Happy Hunting @ York's Mufti Series

THE YORK THEATRE COMPANY’S

WINTER 2013 MUSICALS IN MUFTI SERIES

ANNOUNCES CAST FOR  

“H A P P Y   H U N T I N G”

BOOK BY HOWARD LINDSAY AND RUSSELL CROUSE

LYRICS BY MATT DUBEY

MUSIC BY HAROLD KARR

DIRECTED BY DAVID GLENN ARMSTRONG

MUSIC DIRECTION BY DAVID ANDREWS ROGERS

STARRING KLEA BLACKHURST

FEATURING JANINE DIVITA, JOY FRANZ, JESSICA GROVÉ,

SEÁN MARTIN HINGSTON, MICHAEL MCCORMICK, HEATHER PARCELLS,

ANDREW SAMONSKY, MICHAEL SHARON AND LYNNE WINTERSTELLER

5 PERFORMANCES ONLY!

MARCH 15 - 17, 2013

AT YORK THEATRE COMPANY AT SAINT PETER’S

Original Playbill (from eBay)

New York, NY (March 7, 2013) – The York Theatre Company (James Morgan, Producing Artistic Director; Andrew Levine, Executive Director) continues the Winter 2013 Musicals in Mufti Series with the 1956 musical hit, Happy Hunting, with book by Howard Lindsay and Russell Crouse, lyrics by Matt Dubey and music by Harold Karr.  Directed by David Glenn Armstrong and with music direction by David Andrews Rogers, the cast stars Klea Blackhurst, and will feature Janine DiVita, Joy Franz, Jessica Grové, Seán Martin Hingston, Michael McCormick, Heather Parcells, Andrew Samonsky, Michael Sharon and Lynne Wintersteller. 

The limited engagement will play 5 performances only, March 15 - 17, 2013 at The York Theatre Company at Saint Peter’s(Entrance on East 54^th Street, just east of Lexington Avenue).

Mama Rose meets “The Hostess with the Mostes’ on the Ball” in Happy Hunting, the 1956 musical that was a star vehicle written for the incomparable Ethel Merman.  A huge, flamboyant, bubbly, light-hearted romp, Happy Huntingfeatures a gag-filled book by the authors of Anything Goes and a delectable score featuring the Merman classics “Mutual Admiration Society” and “Gee, But It’s Good to Be Here.”

When Liz Livingstone--rich, widowed Philadelphia hostess with a heart of gold--perceives a snub at the Grace Kelly-Prince Rainier "Wedding of the Year" in Monaco, she single-mindedly sets out to snare an even more impressively titled husband for her daughter. Things get predictably complicated when she succeeds and then promptly falls for her intended son-in-law herself.  Meanwhile, the bride-to-be only has eyes for the society lawyer, and Liz’s dashing Duke turns out to be very possibly penniless.

Upcoming: Harold & Maude Musical (in progress)

York’s acclaimed Musicals in Mufti Series of musical theatre gems in staged concert performances has presented over 80 shows from the past in simply-staged concert format.  Mufti means: “in street clothes,” without the trappings associated with the original productions.

Harold and Maude. with Book & Lyrics by Tom Jones and Music by Joseph Thalken (Was, Songs from an Unmade Bed), based on the screenplay by Colin Higgins.  Directed by Carl Andress, the cast will feature original Harold and Maude cast members Donna Lynne Champlin (Billy Elliot) and Donna English (Lend Me a Tenor) with Matt Dengler(A Little Night Music) as Harold, Cass Morgan (Memphis) as Maude and Steve Routman (Le Bete). The musical adaptation of the 1971 cult-classic film Harold and Maude comes to life on the York stage in a new version by Jones and Thalken. In what some call the quintessential May-December romance, death-obsessed teenager, Harold, meets Maude, 79, at a funeral and thus begins one of the most unusual, yet truly touching romantic sagas in American pop-culture history. Harold and Maude, featuring Estelle Parsons in the title role, received its world premiere at Paper Mill Playhouse in 2005. The limited engagement will play 5 performances April 13 -15.

Cass Morgan 

Matt Dengler

York Theatre Company will host a special one-night only event, Story by Story: A Conversation with Tom Jones, onWednesday evening, April 4^th at 7:00 p.m.

All performances will take place at The York Theatre at Saint Peter’s on 54^th St, just east of Lexington Avenue.  Musicals in Mufti will continue with Colette Collage (April 27-29), and conclude with The Game of Love (May 11-13). Casting for these two shows will be announced shortly.

The performance schedule for each presentation is:  Fridays at 8:00 p.m., *Saturdays at 2:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m., and *Sundays at 2:30 p.m. & 7:30 p.m. (*Talkbacks follow all matinee performances). 

Tickets are priced at  $39.50 and are available online at www.yorktheatre.org, by calling (212) 935-5820, or in person at the box office at the York Theatre at Saint Peter’s (enter on 54^th Street, just East of Lexington), Monday through Friday (12-6 PM). A special $150 5-show package is still available and will include the remaining four Muftis and the conversation with Tom Jones, Story by Story on April 4^th.