For Immediate Release
50TH ANNIVERSARY PRODUCTION OF
FRANK LOESSER’S TONY AWARD AND
PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING MUSICAL COMEDY
“HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING”
STARRING
DANIEL RADCLIFFE
DIRECTED AND CHOREOGRAPHED BY
TONY AND EMMY AWARD-WINNER
ROB ASHFORD
OPENS AT BROADWAY’S AL HIRSCHFELD THEATRE
SUNDAY, MARCH 27, 2011
PREVIEWS BEGIN SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2011
TICKETS ON SALE EXCLUSIVELY TO
AMERICAN EXPRESS CARDHOLDERS JULY 13, 2010
TICKETS ON SALE TO GENERAL PUBLIC JULY 31, 2010
Daniel Radcliffe will make his Broadway musical debut as J. Pierrepont Finch in a new production of the Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical comedy HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING opening at Broadway’s Al Hirschfeld Theatre (302 West 45th Street) Sunday, March 27, 2011, at 5pm. Radcliffe has just completed his decade-long, critically-acclaimed performance starring as Harry Potter in the largest grossing franchise in motion picture history. Directed and choreographed by Tony and Emmy Award-winner Rob Ashford, HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING has a book by Abe Burrows, Jack Weinstock and Willie Gilbert, based on Shepherd Mead’s satirical self-help book of the same name and music and lyrics by Frank Loesser. Further casting will be announced shortly. The 50th Anniversary production of HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING begins previews Saturday, February 26, 2011, at 8pm, and is produced by Broadway Across America (John Gore, Thomas B. McGrath, Beth Williams), Craig Zadan, Neil Meron, Joseph Smith, Michael McCabe, and Candy Spelling.
Tickets for HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING go on sale exclusively to American Express cardholders Tuesday, July 13, at 12:01am, at Telecharge.com (212-239-6200) with preferred seating available to American Express Gold Card, Platinum Card and Centurion members. Tickets go on sale to the general public Saturday, July 31, at 12:01am. Tickets for HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING range from $52 – $132, and the playing schedule is as follows: Tuesday at 7pm, Wednesday through Saturday at 8pm, with matinees Wednesday and Saturday at 2pm and Sunday at 3pm. Please note that during previews Tuesday performances are at 8pm.
Following the advice of a book entitled “How to Succeed in Business” a young window-cleaner, J. Pierrepont Finch, begins a meteoric rise from the mail-room to Vice President of Advertising at the World-Wide Wicket Company. Finch’s unorthodox and morally-questionable business practices jeopardize not only his career but also his romance with secretary Rosemary Pilkington. With a beloved score by Frank Loesser, HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING is packed with hit standards such as “I Believe in You,” “Happy to Keep His Dinner Warm,” “The Company Way,” “Been a Long Day,” “Rosemary,” and “Brotherhood of Man.”
HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING opened to critical acclaim at the 46TH Street Theatre (Richard Rodgers) on Broadway in October 1961, running for 1,417 performances. The cast starred Robert Morse as Finch, Bonnie Scott as Rosemary, Charles Nelson Reilly as Bud Frump, and Rudy Vallee as the President of the World-Wide Wicket Company. The show won seven Tony Awards including best musical and best book, the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for best musical, a Grammy for best original cast show album, and is one of only eight musicals to win the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. In 1967, a film based on the musical was released by United Artists, with Morse and Vallee recreating their Broadway roles and Michele Lee as Rosemary. The 1995 Broadway revival stared Matthew Broderick as Finch and Megan Mullally as Rosemary.
BIOGRAPHIES
Daniel Radcliffe (J. Pierrepont Finch) has played the title role in the largest grossing franchise in motion picture history, based on J.K. Rowling’s bestselling “Harry Potter” books, with the first half of the final film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, being released November 19, 2010, and the final film being released in July 2011. Having made his Broadway debut as Alan Strang in Peter Shaffer’s play Equus, Radcliffe received both Drama League and Drama Desk nominations for his performance. Radcliffe had first played the role of Alan in 2007 to critical acclaim in London, which marked his West End Debut. Radcliffe’s other credits include the Australian independent feature December Boys, and the role of Jack Kipling in the telefilm “My Boy Jack,” which told the story of Rudyard Kipling’s 17-year-old son, Jack, who died in World War I, and the devastating effect this had on his family. Radcliffe has also made a guest appearance as himself in the award-winning BBC/HBO series “Extras,” starring Ricky Gervais. He first appeared on screen as the young David Copperfield in the BBC/PBS presentation of Charles Dickens’ classic novel.
Rob Ashford (Direction and Choreography) is director and choreographer (Tony nomination) of the current Broadway revival of Promises, Promises. Other Broadway credits include Thoroughly Modern Millie (2002 Tony Award, Best Choreography), Cry-Baby (Tony nomination), Curtains (Tony nomination), The Wedding Singer (Tony nomination). In London, A Streetcar Named Desire starring Rachel Weisz at the Donmar Warehouse (Olivier nomination, Best Revival), Parade at the Donmar Warehouse (Olivier nominations for Direction and Choreography), Evita (Olivier nomination), Guys and Dolls (Olivier nomination), Thoroughly Modern Millie (Olivier nomination), A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum and Once in a Lifetime (National Theatre). Other credits include Parade (Mark Taper Forum), Candide (English National Opera, La Scala, Milan, Chatelet, Paris), Tenderloin, Bloomer Girl, A Connecticut Yankee, and Pardon My English (Encores!). He provided choreography for the film Beyond the Sea directed by and starring Kevin Spacey, and received a 2009 Emmy Award for Outstanding Choreography for his work on the 81st Annual Academy Awards. He is on the Executive Committee of the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographer, on the Board of Trustees of the Joyce Theatre, and an Associate Director at the Donmar Warehouse.
Broadway Across America (Producer) is owned and operated by British theatre producer John Gore (CEO) and entertainment industry veteran Thomas B. McGrath (Chairman). Broadway Across America presents first-class touring Broadway musicals and plays, family productions and other live events throughout a network of 40 North American cities. Under the supervision of Beth Williams (COO & Head of Production), Broadway Across America is also dedicated to the development and production of new and diverse live theatre for productions on Broadway, across America and throughout the world. Recent Broadway productions include Promises, Promises; Million Dollar Quartet; La Cage aux Folles; Lend Me A Tenor; A View From The Bridge; West Side Story; Hair; and Irving Berlin’s White Christmas. Touring productions include Dreamgirls and Nickelodeon’s Storytime Live! featuring Dora the Explorer. For more information on Broadway Across America please visit them online at BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com.
Craig Zadan and Neil Meron (Producers) began their careers at the Public Theater working for Joseph Papp. Prior to that, Zadan wrote the acclaimed book, Sondheim & Co. Zadan and Meron are currently represented on Broadway with Promises, Promises starring Sean Hayes and Kristin Chenoweth. Their movies have garnered six Academy Awards, five Golden Globes, eleven Emmy Awards and two Peabody Awards. Their feature films include: Chicago (6 Oscars including Best Picture), Hairspray, The Bucket List, and Footloose. Their television projects, (69 Emmy nominations), include: Gypsy, Cinderella, Annie, The Music Man, Life With Judy Garland, Martin & Lewis, Serving In Silence, The Beach Boys, Brian’s Song, The Three Stooges, The Reagans, A Raisin In The Sun , plus the hit TV series Drop Dead Diva. Upcoming projects include a new movie musical of Damn Yankees with Jim Carrey and Jake Gyllenhaal, and a new scripted TV series they are producing with Steven Spielberg, about the behind-the-scenes creation of a Broadway musical.
Joseph Smith and Michael McCabe (Producers). UK based McCabe/Smith are currently Associate Producers of the Tony award-winning Promises, Promises, starring Sean Hayes and Kristin Chenoweth, at the Broadway Theatre, and UK Consulting Producers for the Tony award-winning Million Dollar Quartet, at the Nederlander Theatre (which they will present in the West End in 2011). In 2009 they were UK Producers of Spring Awakening, winner of the 2010 Critics’ Circle Award for ‘Best Musical’ and four 2010 Laurence Olivier Awards including ‘Best Musical’. Joseph is the Executive Producer for Old Vic Productions, a producer of Billy Elliot The Musical worldwide. Michael is Executive Producer of Wicked (Apollo Victoria Theatre, London). www.mccabesmith.com
Candy Spelling (Producer) made her Broadway debut as a producer of Promises, Promises, having long been a supporter of the arts. Ms. Spelling is the author of the recent bestseller Stories From Candyland. She is a blogger for the Huffington Post, momlogic.com and other media outlets, writes a column for the Los Angeles Confidential, provides entertainment news reports for BBC radio, and is working on a new series for E! Entertainment Network. This year she was named “Ambassador For Tourism” for Los Angeles, and was invited to join the Board of Directors for L.A. INC., the Los Angeles Convention and Visitors Bureau. She is currently a Commissioner for the Board of Recreation and Parks for the City of Los Angeles and was instrumental in creating the first non-profit Parks Foundation in L.A. She is also a member of the L.A. Coliseum Commission and she is an active board member of L.A.’s Best, the after-school enrichment program that serves children in need throughout the city, in partnership with the L.A. Unified School District, the City of Los Angeles and the private sector.