Stephen Schwartz visits MetroStage

There was “magic to do” when Broadway composer Stephen Schwartz arrived at MetroStage for his first look at the premiere of The Stephen Schwartz Project for the 3pm performance on Saturday, April 26th.

An hour before showtime, he sat down with Joel Markowitz (of DC Theatre Scene) to discuss what had attracted him to DC director/choreographer Michael J. Bobbitt’s concept - the unusual takes on his songs and the unconventional arrangements by John Cornelius II.

Schwartz flew to Houston to see the first workshop at Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS). Done with high school students, the concept of a showcase for young talent became part of the show.

Before closing, he talked about his upcoming project for Opera Santa Barbara, an intriguing opera titled Séance on a Wet Afternoon scheduled to open Fall, 2009.

Listen to Joel Markowitz's interview with Stephen Schwartz.

After the performance, he held a talk-back and answered many audience questions and he stayed to sign autographs and take pictures. Below is a photo of Director Michael Bobbitt, Stephen Schwartz and Producing Artistic Director Carolyn Griffin.

Check out these moments from The Stephen Schwartz Project

What Everyone Is Saying About The Stephen Schwartz Project

"...the brand-new arrangements by John L Cornelius II soar in Bobbitt's bouncy revue, with medleys that blend well with enough solo material to feature almost every one of the nine bubbly performers." -Jolene Munch, The Examiner

"...Amber Iman Moorer, is still in college but possesses the poise and roof-raising voice of a seasoned professional, as does another student performer, Jobari Parker-Namdar." -Jayne Blanchard, Washington Times

"The Stephen Schwartz Project company (a cast of nine young, gifted performers) bookends the Project with rousing renditions of “The Spark of Creation” from Children of Eden." -GaryMcMillan, DCTheatreScene.com

"Director and choreographer Michael Bobbitt finds new ways to present well-known songs..." -Brad Hathaway, Alexandria Gazette Packet

"...this is a great venue to which I will certainly want to return. The cast showed tremendous talent and seemed to having fun with the material. The costumes were the best I've seen in a long time."

"[Florrie] Bagel enlivens 'West End Avenue' with her big, warm voice and ebullience and sings 'Since I Gave My Heart Away' with admirably straightforward lyricism. [Priscilla] Cuellar also eschews the vocal furbelows for simple, heartfelt singing in her solos 'Defying Gravity' ... and 'Where Is The Warmth.'" -Jayne Blanchard, Washington Times

"This is a lively musical revue... The cast is spirited with fine voices and the choreography is simple but well done."

"Felicia Curry is featured frequently enough to lift any audiences’ spirits, especially in the rousing “Ain’t It Good?” from Children of Eden.... Jobari Parker-Namdar delivers a very sweet rendition of “Cold Enough to Snow” that is heartwarming enough to melt a glacier. Kerry Deitrick sings beautifully through the challenging ballad, “Meadowlark"..." -GaryMcMillan, DCTheatreScene.com

"The cast's youthful appeal and skill with the demands of full-out Broadway-style singing make "The Stephen Schwartz Project" worth seeing." -Jayne Blanchard, WashingtonTimes

"...it was very entertaining... I think everyone should take advantage of this at this price. Where can you go in D.C. where any seat is a great one and be entertained at this cost? No where else."

"If you enjoy seeing a young troupe of talented performers sell the heck out of up-tempo tunes, catch this show." -Brad Hathaway, Alexandria Gazette Packet

Upcoming Special Event: Talk Back with Stephen Schwartz

Stephen Schwartz will attend the 3pm performance on Saturday, April 26th and he will hold a talk-back afterwards for about 30 minutes.

Tickets are still available for $38.00 by calling 800-494-8497 or visiting www.BoxOfficeTickets.com.

Mr. Schwartz was last at MetroStage when he attended a performance of Becoming George on May 2, 2006, and he participated in a panel discussion with director Brett Smock, Michael Kerker (ASCAP) and the authors of "How A New Musical Is Developed."

Schwartz has won almost every major award in his field including 3 Oscars, 3 Grammys, 4 Drama Desk Awards, 1 Golden Globe Award and a self-described "tiny handful of tennis trophies." Although his music has been nominated five times for Tony Awards, and he also received one nomination for Best Book of a Musical, he has not yet won a Tony.

Schwartz wrote lyrics for the successful 2007 Disney film Enchanted, collaborating with Alan Menken. Three songs from the film, "Happy Working Song," "That's How You Know" and "So Close" were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song. A recent project is incidental music for his son Scott Schwartz's adaptation of Willa Cather's My Antonia. He has also written the theme song for the new Playhouse Disney show Johnny and the Sprites, starring John Tartaglia.

He is currently writing an opera based on the film Seance on a Wet Afternoon.

PROMO for The Stephen Schwartz Project

The Stephen Schwartz Project: Now Playing

Priscilla Cuellar sings "Defying Gravity"

Costume Ideas

Costume Designer Emily Dere has been working hard pulling together some contemporary outfits for the cast of The Stephen Schwartz Project.

Take a look at what's she got planned...

The Stephen Schwartz Project BEGINS April 10th

Producing Artistic Director Carolyn Griffin is pleased to announce that the world premiere of a new musical revue, The Stephen Schwartz Project, will open April 10 and run through May 25, 2008 at MetroStage. Conceived, directed and choreographed by Michael Bobbitt, The Stephen Schwartz Project will feature “wicked” new arrangements by John L. Cornelius II of Schwartz’s most beloved music.

In September 2007, this new revue was workshopped in Houston, Texas, with more than 45 students at Houston’s Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS). It included songs from Schwartz's legendary portfolio of award-winning hits; songs such as "Defying Gravity" from his latest blockbuster Wicked, "When You Believe" from the animated film The Prince of Egypt and "Spark of Creation" from Children Of Eden and had audience members jumping to their feet and roaring with approval throughout the performances. Mr. Schwartz was in the audience and was very pleased with the new arrangements. He will be attending the premiere here at MetroStage which will feature nine professional actors from the Washington DC area, and a five piece band.

Director and choreographer Michael Bobbitt is the Artistic Director at Adventure Theatre. He most recently directed and choreographed Petite Rouge at the New York Musical Theatre Festival. Locally he choreographed Once On This Island and Frog and Toad at Round House Theatre. He is currently collaborating with Mr. Cornelius on a musical adaptation of The Bingo Long Traveling All-Stars and Motor Kings. Music Director Doug Bowles is on the voice faculty at American University, is a private voice teacher, and performer and has music directed many shows including Grand Night For Singing, Always Patsy Cline and The Yellow Rose. His company SingCo Music has produced many cabaret style entertainments and includes the SingCo Music Orchestra.

The Stephen Schwartz Project will feature a wide variety of songs from this award-winning composer/lyricist. Songs from Broadway and regional favorites Godspell, Pippin, Children of Eden, The Baker's Wife, The Magic Show and Wicked, and award-winning films Prince of Egypt, Pocahontas and The Hunchback of Notre Dame will be performed with new arrangements and great choreography.

The set designer is Alex Cooper, costumes will be by Emily Dere and the lighting designer is Jason Arnold. Jessica Lee Winfield is the Stage Manager and Kevin Laughon is the Production Manager/ Scenic Artist.

The Stephen Schwartz Project will be in performance from April 10 - May 25, Thursdays and Fridays at 8pm, Saturdays at 3pm and 8pm and Sundays at 3pm and 7pm. Press Night is Sunday April 13 at 7 pm. Tickets are $35-40 and can be reserved by calling 1-800-494-8497 or go to BoxOfficeTickets.com.

Updating The Stephen Schwartz Project

Rehearsals started today with the nine young cast members having music rehearsals with the new arrangements by John L. Cornelius II.

And the set has begun to take shape. Set designer Alex Cooper has been inspired by artist Joseph Cornell who was an American artist and sculpure whose most characteristic art works were boxed assemblages created from found objects. He could create poetry from the commonplace and created very unique flat collages.

Using this concept, Alex has created a set that involves romantic swirls, natural elements and sleek urban designs to update the look of the songs portrayed in Stephen Schwartz's musicals. Actors and artwork peek through boxed openings of this bold idea...

Here's another panel that will appear behind the action onstage...

Announcing the cast of The Stephen Schwartz Project

A Hot New Musical Revue featuring the songs of award-winning composer/ lyricist Stephen Schwartz. Celebrate the work of one of Broadway’s most acclaimed writers with “Wicked” new musical arrangements from Broadway and regional favorites Pippin, Godspell, Children of Eden, and The Baker’s Wife, the award-winning films Prince of Egypt, Pocahontas and more. There is ‘magic to do’ in our little ‘corner of the sky’…‘ when you believe’ you will ‘defy gravity’ …all at MetroStage this spring! Directed and choreographed by Michael Bobbitt with musical direction by Doug Bowles. The cast includes:
Amber Iman Moorer is a graduating Senior Musical Theatre Major at Howard University, from Atlanta, GA. Recently, she has appeared in Into the Woods (Jack’s Mother), Sweeney Todd, A Chorus Line, Working and Eyes, to name a few.
Andrew Sonntag graduated from the Catholic University of America in 2007, where he received a BA in Drama. He recently appeared as Jimmy Harper in The Studio Theatre's production of Reefer Madness and he will appear as Atreyu in Imagination Stage's Neverending Story this Summer.

Kerry Deitrick is a graduate of the Baltimore School for the Arts and recently received her BM in music theatre from Catholic University. Upcoming projects include this Summer's Jerry Springer: The Opera at The Studio Theatre.

Jobari Parker-Namdar is making his MetroStage debut. He is a recent graduate of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts.

Felicia Curry has been seen previously at MetroStage in Two Queens One Castle, Three Sistahs and tick, tick…BOOM!

Benjamin Horen, an Ohio native, is a choral director in Fairfax County Public Schools and has served as the music director for US Performing Arts camps at The George Washington University. Ben has performed at The Kennedy Center, understudied the role of Cosme (Souvenir) at Studio Theatre and has performed in a backers’ audition with Stephen Schwartz for the upcoming Broadway production of Children of Eden.
Priscilla Cuellar has worked in various theatres in the area including Signature Theatre, Imagination Stage, Adventure Theatre and Toby's Dinners Theatre. She has worked with some of Broadway's best including Carolee Carmello, E. Faye Butler and Judy Kuhn and she will be in Big River at Olney Theatre this Summer.

Clif Walker is a native Washingtonian and graduate of D.C.'s famed Duke Ellington School of the Arts. He has appeared in Arena Stage's South Pacific, Round House Theatre's Once On This Island and The Kennedy Center’s Soul Possessed among other countless musicals and revues.

Florrie Bagel has appeared in Into the Woods at Signature Theatre, Godspell at Olney Theater Center and, most recently, originated the role of “Bethany” in the new musical, Nobody’s Perfect, at The Kennedy Center. She will be performing next in Jerry Springer: The Opera at The Studio Theatre.

The set designer is Alex Cooper, costumes will be by Reggie Ray and the lighting designer is Jason Arnold.

The Stephen Schwartz Project, by the numbers, takes a new direction

This musical revue, conceived and directed by Michael Bobbitt, began with preview performances at the Theater Alliance Cabaret Series at the H Street Playhouse on August 19, 2006 and at the Page-to-Stage New Play Festival at the Kennedy Center Millennium Stage on September 2, 2006. Featured vocalists were Priscilla Cuellar, Erin Driscoll, Eleasha Gamble, Isaiah Johnson and Phil Olarte under the musical direction of Doug Bowles.

MetroStage will debut this musical April 10, 2008.

Over the Summer of 2007, three (3) auditions, two (2) callbacks and over seventy (70) actors were at MetroStage to find the cast of The Stephen Schwartz Project. Both Equity and Non-Equity members were encouraged to come out whether they were local to the DC area or as far away as New York City.

Director Michael Bobbitt and Music Director Doug Bowles had a huge challenge to pick five (5) individuals that were strong enough who could carry a show solely by themselves, but work well and harmonize with the other members of this exciting new musical revue. These ensemble actors had to have a sparkling and dynamic personality that represented a cross-section of America.

It was a very difficult choice, but after the show was workshopped at Theatre Under the Stars, in Houston, Texas, on September 21 and 22, The Stephen Schwartz Project is headed for a new direction.

ACT @ TUTS is an extension of the classes taught through The Academy at Theatre Under the Stars Humphreys School of Musical Theatre. The musical was showcased with a large group of talented actor/singer/dancers 13 to 18 years of age. The show featured music from Wicked, Godspell, Pippin, The Magic Show, The Baker's Wife, The Prince of Egypt and more. Stephen Schwartz joined them during the rehearsal period to work with the cast and view the performance.

Bobbitt said, "Stephen was 'surprisingly stunned' and moved at what he saw. The students were dazzling. Because of this workshop, he thinks it has the appeal of High School Musical - something that many area high schools and colleges would love to do.... Stephen only had a handful of notes for me and my collaborator, arranger John L. Cornelius. (He liked all the songs except for parts of two of the numbers.) We are plugging away at the changes."

The world premiere at MetroStage will now include a young cast of high school and college students mixed with young professionals that will have tons of energy.

More details to come later...

We'd like to thank everyone for their time and patience during this audition process and we wish the best of luck in your future endeavors!