PHOTO: John Cariani
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 6, 2018
CONTACTS: Sharone Sayegh (sharonesayegh@gmail.com) and Pomme Koch (pommekoch@gmail.com)
KATRINA LENK, TONY SHALHOUB
AND CAST MEMBERS OF THE BAND’S VISIT SET FOR
ONE-NIGHT-ONLY PERFORMANCE EVENT
THE BAND VISITS CARIANI
An evening of scenes from plays by John Cariani
Benefiting Wintergreen Arts Center in Presque Isle, Maine
Monday, October 1 at 7:30pm
Romulus Linney Courtyard Theatre at the Pershing Square Signature Center
(New York, NY) Members of the original Broadway cast of the 10-time Tony Award-winning Best Musical, The Band’s Visit—including Tony Award winners Katrina Lenk and Tony Shalhoub—will come together for a one-night-only benefit presentation of THE BAND VISITS CARIANI, an evening of scenes from John Cariani’s plays. Tony & Olivier Award nominee Moritz Von Stuelpnagel (Hand To God, Present Laughter, Bernhardt/Hamlet) will direct. All proceeds will benefit the Wintergreen Arts Center, in Cariani’s hometown of Presque Isle, Maine, which offers arts programs to children and adults in rural northern Maine.
The evening will take place on Monday, October 1st at 7:30pm at the Romulus Linney Courtyard Theatre at the Pershing Square Signature Center, 480 West 42nd Street.
Shalhoub and Lenk will be joined by Bill Army, Layan Elwazani, Adam Kantor, Pomme Koch, Andrew Polk, Rachel Prather, Ahmad Maksoud, James Rana, Jonathan Raviv, Sharone Sayegh and Kristen Sieh. The Band Visits Cariani is produced by Pomme Koch and Sharone Sayegh.
“I’m overjoyed to be reunited with the cast of The Band’s Visit, even for just one night,” says Tony Shalhoub. “And I can’t think of a better reason than to celebrate the work of John Cariani. Not unlike The Band’s Visit, John’s plays speak both to the present moment and the greater human condition—and they give voice to some people who are overlooked and aren’t very well represented in contemporary American art and culture…oh, and they’re also really funny.”
On the connection between his plays and The Band’s Visit, John Cariani says, “The Band’s Visit is about love and loss and kindness and hope in a fictional town in the middle of nowhere in Israel. A lot of my plays are about love and loss and kindness and hope in a fictional town in the middle of nowhere in northern Maine. I’m intrigued by the intersection of these two make-believe worlds. And I’m excited to see the actors who appear in The Band’s Visit every night tackle scenes from my plays—and raise some money for a good cause while they’re at it.”
The Band Visits Cariani will feature scenes from four of Cariani’s plays, including the widely produced Almost, Maine, which explores love and loss among working class people in rural northern Maine. Almost, Maine has become one of the most popular plays in the United States with nearly 4000 productions to date. It recently unseated Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream as the most frequently produced play in North American high schools. Scenes from three of Cariani’s other plays—LOVE/SICK, Last Gas and cul-de-sac—will also be featured.
TICKET AND DONATION INFORMATION
To purchase tickets ($35 – $100): click here
For additional information and to make a donation to the Wintergreen Arts Center directly, click here.
For more information about The Band’s Visit on Broadway, visit: TheBandsVisitMusical.com
JOHN CARIANI is a Tony Award-nominated actor and an accomplished playwright. He made his Broadway debut in the 2004 revival of Fiddler on the Roof and received an Outer Critics Circle Award and a Tony Award nomination for his portrayal of Motel the Tailor. He originated the role of Nigel Bottom in the current Broadway hit, Something Rotten! and received an Outer Critics Circle Award nomination for his performance. He is currently appearing as Itzik in The Band’s Visit, winner of the 2018 Tony Award for Best Musical. Most people know John from his roles on NBC’s long-running drama, “Law & Order,” on which he played Forensics Tech Beck for five seasons. He also had recurring roles on CBS’ “Numbers” and on IFC’s “The Onion News Network.” As a playwright, he is best known for his first play, Almost, Maine, which premiered at Portland Stage Company in 2004 and became the most successful play in the company’s history. Almost, Maine opened Off-Broadway in 2006 and has since become one of the most popular plays in the United States with nearly 4000 productions to date. It is currently the most frequently produced play in North American high schools topping perennial favorites A Midsummer Night’s Dream, You Can’t Take It with You, and Our Town. It has also received over twenty international productions and has been translated into over a dozen languages. His other plays include Last Gas and LOVE/SICK both of which are newly published by Dramatists Play Service and have had several professional productions across the country and around the world. His newest play, cul-de-sac, is currently in development.
POMME KOCH is an actor, currently appearing in The Band’s Visit on Broadway. In New York he has performed in productions and workshops for The Public Theater, Lincoln Center Educational, and The National Alliance for Musical Theatre. He has worked regionally with A.C.T., Theatre Calgary, The O’Neill Center, Marin Theatre Company, Theater J, San Francisco Playhouse, Round House Theatre, The Shakespeare Theatre Company, The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Folger Theatre, and Studio Theatre. TV credits include “Blue Bloods” and “House of Cards”. www.pommekoch.com @pommekoch
SHARONE SAYEGH is an actor and producer, currently appearing as Anna in the 10 time Tony Award-winning musical The Band’s Visit. For the past 7 years she has produced “Artists For World Peace on Broadway”, an annual charity concert benefiting Artists For World Peace and their projects around the world. Other Broadway: Mamma Mia!. Off Broadway: Anna in The Band’s Visit (Atlantic Theater Co, World Premiere), Title role in Scheherazade (Prospect Theater Co) and the world premiere of The Wildness (Ars Nova). Regional: Vidya in Disconnect (San Jose Rep, BACC Nom.), Aouda in Around the World in 80 Days (Florida Rep), Maria Elena in Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story (The Muny), and Mrs. Jesus/Ens. in Escape to Margaritaville (La Jolla Playhouse, World Premiere). Workshops: Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo (The Lark), War is F*cking Awesome (Dir. Leisl Tommy), Escape to Margaritaville (Dir. Christopher Ashley), Hazel (Dir. Lucie Arnaz), Sheila Levine (Dir. Susan Stroman), Hooray For Iceboy (Dir. John Rando). BFA: Syracuse University. www.sharonesayegh.com @sharonesayegh
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