A Burnaby performer is in the spotlight as a Rodgers and Hammerstein revue returns to the stage next month.
Rodgers and Hammerstein: Out of a Dream is onstage at the Gateway Theatre in Richmond April 9 to 25, followed by runs in New Westminster, Coquitlam and Chilliwack.
The show was created by former Burnaby resident Peter Jorgensen, co-artistic producer of Patrick Street Productions - a company devoted to contemporary musical theatre that was founded in Burnaby in 2007.
Out of a Dream first ran onstage at the York Theatre last year.
For Jorgensen, the tribute to Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II was the perfect vehicle for his company, which is devoted to contemporary musical theatre.
"Contemporary musical theatre really began with them, and the risks they took as writers," he told the NOW in a previous interview.
The revue features songs from every one of the duo's 11 collaborations, including the most famous - The Sound of Music, Oklahoma!, South Pacific, The King and I, and Carousel - along with lesser-known offerings such as State Fair, Allegro and Flower Drum Song.
The songs are tied together by a loose narrative based on the stages of love, from possibility to love in bloom to complications, separation and deeper love.
"My admiration for their work, their gifts and their contribution to the musical theatre form has been growing and ripening over many years," Jorgensen said in a press release. "This compilation brings out those aspects that thrill me most about their astonishing creations."
Sayer Roberts returns to the stage after appearing in the original version. The other cast members - Burnaby's Katie Murphy, with Jennifer Andersen and Eva Tavares - are new.
And, this time out, Jorgensen himself appears onstage.
"This is a rare opportunity for audiences to watch one of the best local musical theatre actors interpret and perform his own work," the press release says.
Out of a Dream runs April 9 to 25 at the Gateway Theatre, 6500 Gilbert Rd. in Richmond.
Tickets are $45 regular, $20 for students with ID, or $40 apiece for groups of 10 or more. Call 604-270-1812 or see www.gatewaytheatre.com.
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The show then moves on to the Anvil Centre in New Westminster for an April 29 to May 3 run (www.ticketsnw.ca), followed by a May 5 to 9 run at the Evergreen Cultural Centre in Coquitlam (www.evergreenculturalcentre.ca) and a May 10 showing at the Chilliwack Cultural Centre (www.chilliwackculturalcentre.ca).
Stay tuned to www.patrickstreetproductions.com for all the details.
