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Area Singers Set to Present a Glorious Evening of Comedy & Song in Die Fledermaus

PROVIDENCE, RI: GARDE ARTS CENTER ANNOUNCES
2008-09 CITIZENS BANK BROADWAY SERIES


Five-, Six-, and Seven-show Series Subscriptions Now on Sale



(NEW LONDON, CT) Eastern Connecticut’s premiere showplace for the performing arts, the Garde Arts Center, proudly announces its 2008-09 Citizens Bank Broadway Series. The series opens on November 7, 2008 with Lionel Bart’s Oliver!, and continues with the perennial family favorite Annie, the 10th Anniversary tour of Footloose, Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s Jesus Christ Superstar starring Ted Neeley, a revolutionary new production of Steven Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd, the bright and frisky The Pajama Game, and concludes with William Finn’s ingenious new musical The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.

Subscription is the best way to experience Garde events, with affordable and flexible options available. Series subscribers may customize their 2008-09 Citizens Bank Broadway Series subscriptions with a choice of a five-, six-, or seven-show series, and will get priority purchase and seating for subscription packages and additional single tickets. Subscription packages offer savings of up to 18%, and subscribers are guaranteed their same seats for each performance in the subscription series. Additional benefits include discounts on all other performances in the Garde season, advance notice and purchase periods for added events, and free exchanges within the series.



2008-09 Citizens Bank Broadway Series subscriptions are now on sale in a five-show series ($180-$285), six-show series ($216-$342) or seven-show series ($252-$399). For more information or to subscribe, call the Garde Box Office at (860) 444-7373. Patrons may also download a subscription order form on the Garde’s website at www.gardearts.org.



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CALENDAR LISTING



Oliver!

November 7-8, 2008 ● Friday | 8pm & Saturday | 3 and 8pm

"Consider Yourself" enchanted by Oliver! Hailed the world over as one of the best-loved family musicals of all time, Oliver! brings to the stage some of Charles Dickens' most unforgettable. Hits such as "Consider Yourself at Home", "Food, Glorious Food" and "Where is Love" surround this heartwarming tale of the young orphan Oliver Twist in this new production of Lional Bart's magical musical treasure.



Annie

November 29, 2008 ● Saturday | 3 and 7:30pm

Leapin’ lizards! The timeless tale of Little Orphan Annie is back, giving a whole new generation the chance to experience this classic musical about never giving up hope. Boasting one of Broadway’s most memorable scores, including “It’s the Hard-Knock Life,” “Easy Street,” “N.Y.C.”, and the ever-optimistic “Tomorrow,” Annie is a delightful theatrical experience for the entire family. Don’t miss the all-new production that Variety calls “a winner!”



Footloose

January 10-11, 2009 ● Saturday | 8pm and Sunday | 2 and 6pm

One of the most explosive movie musicals in recent memory now bursts onto the live stage. When a free-spirited city kid moves to a small town where dancing and rock music are banned, he turns his high school upside down and teaches them that it's no sin to have fun and dance! To the rockin' rhythm of its Oscar-nominated top 40 score to which new, dynamic songs have been added, Footloose celebrates the wisdom of listening to young people, guiding them with a warm heart and an open mind.



Jesus Christ Superstar

January 27-29, 2009 ● Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday | 7:30 pm

Jesus Christ Superstar, the first masterpiece from the legendary writing team of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber, exploded onto the scene in 1971 and changed the world of musical theatre forever. With a score of amazing songs – “I Don’t Know How to Love Him”, “Hosanna”, “Everything’s Alright”, “What’s the Buzz”, “Superstar”, and “Heaven on Their Mind” – this original, groundbreaking production starring Ted Neeley and Corey Glover is as relevant and timeless as ever.



Sweeney Todd
February 20-21, 2009 ● Friday | 8pm & Saturday | 3 and 8pm
Experience live on stage the musical that inspired the Tim Burton and Johnny Depp movie. When the infamous Demon Barber of Fleet Street takes up with his crafty neighbor, the two embark on a delicious plot to slice their way through London’s upper crust. Justice is served—along with lush melody, audacious humor and hair-raising excitement. Don’t miss this phenomenal production with music and lyrics by Tony Award-winner Stephen Sondheim.

The Pajama Game
March 22, 2009 ● Sunday | 3 and 7:30pm
Bright and riotously funny, this all-new production of the Tony award-winning, Broadway smash hit, The Pajama Game is contemporary musical theatre comedy at its very best. In this fast-paced, frisky tale, feisty employee representative Babe Williams and handsome factory superintendent Sid Sorkin are on opposite sides of heated negotiations when they find themselves having to negotiate the racy affair heating up between them! The high-energy score by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross brims with popular hits and musical theatre standards such as “Hey There,” “Steam Heat” and the hilarious “Hernando's Hideaway” that will keep you humming all the way home.

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
May 8-9, 2009 ● Friday | 8pm & Saturday | 3 and 8pm
In the Tony award-winning new musical The 25h Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, six young people in the throes of puberty, overseen by grown-ups who barely managed to escape childhood themselves, learn that winning isn’t everything and that losing doesn’t necessarily make you a loser. "Spelling Bee is riotously funny and remarkably ingenious. Gold stars all around," says the New York Times. The Wall Street Journal called Spelling Bee, "perfect in every possible way…that rarity of rarities, a super-smart musical that is also a bona fide crowd-pleaser. An ingenious blend of simplicity and sophistication, it’s not merely funny, it's wise."

Where: Garde Arts Center, 325 State Street, New London, CT 06320

Subscription Series Prices:

Box Office: (860) 444-7373
Online Ticketing: http://www.gardearts.org/