O’Neill Music Theater Conference Announces 25^th Anniversary Season

Waterford, CT, May 23, 2002 – Paulette Haupt, artistic director of the O’Neill Music Theater Conference (OMTC), has announced that three new musicals, AVENUE Q, EMBARRASSMENTS and LIL BUDDA, will be part of the 25th anniversary conference at the Eugene O’Neill Theater Center. During the three-week conference, established and emerging artists form a community of writers, composers, directors and performers in support of bringing new music theater to life on the stage. The OMTC 2002 events are as follows:

EMBARRASSMENTS Book by Laurence Klavan; Music by Polly Pen; Lyrics by Laurence Klavan and Polly Pen

Henry James, one of the greatest of all prose writers, always wanted to be a playwright. His experience in the theater is one of the arts’ most ironic and painful tales, and one explored in a new musical. Featuring actors Tamra Hayden, Lauren Mufson, Peter Samuel, Erica Schroeder, Henry Stram, Steven Sutcliffe, Marc Vietor and Lynne Wintersteller. Performances are August 4 at 2:30 p.m. and August 3 and 8 through 10 at 8:00 p.m. in the Rufus & Margo Rose Theater Barn.

AVENUE Q Music & Lyrics by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx; Book by Jeff Whitty, Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx

Singing puppets and their human neighbors tackle life's most vexing issues – including love, money, race, and what to do with a jury duty summons. The place is New York City and the street is AVENUE Q, the only place you can afford to live when you're just out of college, or out of a job, or just plain broke. Featuring actors Stephanie D’Abruzzo, Jordan Gelber, Amanda Green, Ann Harada, Rick Lyon, Lara MacLean and John Tartaglia. Performances are August 10 & 11at 2:30 p.m.and August 15 through 17 at 8:00 p.m. in the Dina Merrill Theater.

LIL BUDDA Book & Lyrics by Stephanie Jones; Music by Janice Lowe; Story by Janice Lowe and Stephanie Jones

LIL BUDDA depicts a music-video dancer's desperate, poignant and comedic journey toward stardom and, ultimately, personal enlightenment. Against the surreal backdrop of an American entertainment wasteland, LIL BUDDA satirically examines contradictions of female self-exploitation, race, celebrity, and individual happiness. Featuring actors Robert Scott Daye, Matt Farnsworth, Nathan Lee Graham, Anika Larsen, Jillian Lindsey, Anika Noni Rose and Jason Wooten. Performances are August 17 & 18 at 2:30 p.m. in the Barn.

Special Events – ÏMaking MusicalsÓ
The O’Neill takes audiences behind the curtain to see what goes into making musicals.

Wednesday, August 7 at 8:00 p.m. in the Barn
With the creators of EMBARRASSMENTS and AVENUE Q

Wednesday, August 14 at 8:00 p.m. in the Barn
With the creators of AVENUE Q and LIL BUDDA

In addition to the public readings and discussions, writer Stephen Tomac, winner of OMTC’s annual Georgia Bogardus Holof Lyricist Award, and composer Joshua Z. Kant will be in residence developing an as-yet-untitled musical, about one woman’s desperate attempts to have a grandchild.

The Eugene O’Neill Theater Center, founded in 1964 and based in Waterford CT, is dedicated to the advancement of new work for the theater and creates and operates programs which complement that goal. These include the Puppetry Conference, Playwrights Conference, Critics Institute, Music Theater Conference and the National Theater Institute, a college-accredited training program for theater artists. The O’Neill also owns and operates the Monte Cristo Cottage, childhood home of America’s only Nobel Prize-winning playwright, Eugene O’Neill, and holds an annual celebration honoring the life and works of its namesake every October.

Admission to events in the Making Musicals series is $5. Ticket prices for staged readings of AVENUE Q, EMBARRASSMENTS and LIL BUDDA range from $8 to $12. Performance schedule is subject to change. To reserve tickets or receive a summer brochure, call the O’Neill Center box office at 860-443-1238.