WEBPAGE 1: HOMEPAGE Tributes Theatre Productions 2008-09 Season Upcoming Presentation: Les Miserables - the Musical December 10, 2008 “Far more than entertainment… a Thrilling Emotional Experience!” – TIME Magazine Tributes Theatre Productions artistic growth is a direct result of the generosity of supporters like you, who we embrace as family. The part you play is as crucial to the genesis of theatre as is anyone else's - something of which I had some idea as a Company Member, but am ever more aware of now, as co-Artistic Director. And so I am making this appeal to you. I sincerely hope you will consider an end-of-year contribution to our work that will help sustain our mission to create new theatre for diverse artists and audiences that truly reflects our New York City home. Tributes Theatre Productions has developed hundreds of new plays, staged 48 world premiere productions here in New York City; toured the world; and given a voice to numerous revered artists. We are a multi-ethnic collective of 104 actors, writers, designers, directors and technicians; 19 board members; seven staff members and three Artistic Directors - but our friends, donors and audience members like you are equally a part of this family. We appreciate your time, your ticket purchases and all your interest in Tribute Theatre Productions where your involvement is our very lifeblood. In supporting us, you become part of our family - and our work becomes, in part, yours. We welcome you with open arms. See you at the theatre in 2008! Best regards, Robert Anthony Duvall Artistic Director --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WEBPAGE 2: ABOUT US About Tributes Theatre Productions Artistic Mission Statement: Tributes Theatre Productions' mission is to deliver and - develop hundreds of new plays - stage world premiere productions in New York City - tour the world - provide a voice to numerous revered artists - provide theatre experiences that stimulate and inspire young people and their communities Our Mandate: To provide to the New York community with a venue for premiere world productions, as well as and educational experience to the younger community. Four times a year, Tributes Theatre Productions offers an intensive Master Class program for 15 to 20 students, over a five-week period. Taught by Company Members, the Master Class provides students with an in-depth study of Tributes’ collaborative process including acting, writing, directing and exercises that encourage the development of an ensemble. The Class culminates in an informal presentation. When possible, to provide innovative and exploratory drama for adults. To promote an improved climate and opportunity for new actors within the Society's Regional District. Whenever possible and appropriate, to present work of the Tributes Theatre Productions to other parts of the world, in order: - to discover new methods and approaches - to compare the relevancy of our work - to validate and further the Society's work by placing it before a broader public - to share our methods with others who are interested The prime concern of this mandate is one of excellent, professional drama. History and Highlights: Tributes Theatre Productions was founded in 1984 as a professional touring theatre company; since that time the Theatre has created, commissioned and produced more than 80 original plays or original adaptations. Tributes Theatre Productions now operates as a full-service theatre (resident productions, tours, outreach activities, performing arts studio). Some of Tributes Theatre Productions highlights include: The Queen's Silver Jubilee Medal awarded to founding Artistic Director Robert Anthony Duvall for his work in Theatre. Collaboration with National Museums Association of United States and Canada, which accompanied an exhibit on tour to museums. Collaborating with a Japanese director to create bilingual production, Hajimari no Hajimari, which toured to Japan, U.S. and Canada. Breaking Box Office records in New York with The Hobbit, which saw over 10,000 audience members come through the Grand Theatre doors over a period of only 10 days. Tributes Theatre Productions commission of Adventures In the Rouge Trade by Robert Clinton was declared a winner of the Petro-Canada Theatre Play Advancement Competition. The commencement, in 2006, of an ongoing relationship with the New York Symphony Orchestra to jointly develop works for performance with the VSO and other symphonies across the country. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WEBPAGE 3: PERFORMANCES Tribute Theatre 2008-09 Season UPCOMING PRESENTATION: Les Miserables - the Musical December 10, 2008 “Far more than entertainment… a Thrilling Emotional Experience!” – TIME Magazine Tributes Theatre Productions proudly announces our exciting new production of the powerful and passionate Les Miserables! This epic tale of love, loss, triumph and redemption begins in France in 1815. Jean Valjean, released on parole after nineteen years on the chain gang, finds that his past condemns him to be an outcast. Only the saintly Bishop of Digne treats him kindly and the parolee repays him by stealing his silver. Valjean is caught by police, and is astonished when the Bishop lies to the police to save him. Valjean decides to start his life anew. Based on Victor Hugo’s classic novel, Boublil and Schonberg’s Les Miserables won eight Tony Awards, a Grammy, and on Oct 6, 2006 it became the worlds longest running musical. Past Performances: The following is a list of stage productions that have been performed on the Grand Theatre's main stage: West Side Story Set in Manhattan's West Side/Hell's Kitchen in the mid-1950s, the musical explores the rivalry between two teenage gangs of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds. The young protagonist, Anton ("Tony"), who belongs to the White gang, falls in love with Maria, the sister of the leader of the rival Puerto Rican gang. The dark theme, sophisticated music, extended dance scenes, and focus on social problems marked a turning point in American musical theatre. Bernstein's score for the musical has become extremely popular; it includes "Something's Coming," "Maria," "America," "Somewhere," "Tonight," "Jet Song," "I Feel Pretty," "One Hand, One Heart," and "Cool." The original 1957 Broadway production, directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins and produced by Robert E. Griffith and Harold Prince, marked Stephen Sondheim's Broadway debut. It ran for 732 performances (a successful run for the time), before going on tour. The production garnered a Tony Award nomination for Best Musical in 1957, but the award ultimately went to Meredith Willson's The Music Man. It won a Tony Award in 1957 for Jerome Robbins' choreography. The show has enjoyed an even longer-running London production, a number of revivals and international success, and spawned an innovative, award-winning 1961 musical film of the same name. West Side Story is produced frequently by local theatres and, occasionally, by opera companies. Fiddler on the Roof Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in tzarist Russia in 1905. Fiddler on the Roof was originally entitled Tevye. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters (or Tevye the Milkman) and other tales by Sholem Aleichem which he wrote in Yiddish and published in 1894.[1] The story centres on Tevye, the father of five daughters, and his attempts to maintain his family and religious traditions while outside influences encroach upon their lives. He must cope with both the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters—each daughter's choice of husband moves progressively further away from established customs—and with the edict of the Tsar that evicts the Jews from their village. The Music Man The Music Man is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson. The show is based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' bandleader and sells band instruments and uniforms to naive townsfolk before skipping town with the cash. In River City, Iowa, prim Marian the librarian sees through him, but when Hill helps her younger brother, Marian begins to fall in love with Harold. Harold, in turn falling for Marian, risks being caught to win her. In 1957, the show became a hit on Broadway, winning five Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and running for 1,375 performances. The cast album won the first Grammy Award for "Best Original Cast Album". The show's success led to revivals and a popular 1962 film adaptation. Both professional and amateur theatre companies still frequently produce it. A Midsummer Night’s Dream A Midsummer Night's Dream is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, suggested by "The Knight's Tale" from Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, written around 1594 to 1596. It portrays the adventures of four young Athenian lovers and a group of amateur actors, their interactions with the Duke and Duchess of Athens, Theseus and Hippolyta, and with the fairies who inhabit a moonlit forest. The play is one of Shakespeare's most popular works for the stage and is widely performed across the world. A Midsummer Night's Dream is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare, suggested by "The Knight's Tale" from Geoffrey Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, written around 1594 to 1596. It portrays the adventures of four young Athenian lovers and a group of amateur actors, their interactions with the Duke and Duchess of Athens, Theseus and Hippolyta, and with the fairies who inhabit a moonlit forest. The play is one of Shakespeare's most popular works for the stage and is widely performed across the world. It is not known exactly when A Midsummer Night's Dream was written or first performed, but, on the basis of topical references and an allusion to Spenser's Epithalamion, it is usually dated 1595 or 1596. Some have theorized that the play might have been written for an aristocratic wedding (numerous such weddings took place in 1596), while others suggest that it was written for the Queen to celebrate the feast day of St. John. No concrete evidence exists to support either theory. In any case, it would have been performed at The Theatre and, later, The Globe in London. Some features of the plot and characters can be traced to elements of earlier mythologically based literature; for example, the story of Pyramus and Thisbe is told in Ovid's Metamorphoses and the transformation of Bottom into an ass is descended from Apuleius' The Golden Ass. Lysander was also an ancient Greek warlord while Theseus and Hippolyta were respectively the Duke of Athens and Queen of the Amazons. In addition, Shakespeare could have been working on Romeo and Juliet at about the same time that he wrote A Midsummer Night's Dream, and it is possible to see Pyramus and Thisbe as a comic reworking of the tragic play. A further, seldom noted source is The Knight's Tale in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- WEBPAGE 4: CONTACT US General Inquires, please contact: Tributes Theatre Productions 320 W. 38th Street Suite #2988 New York, NY 10018 tel: 212.434.4566 fax: 819-775-2399 info@tributestheatre.com For press inquiries, please contact: John Schieman 320 W. 38th Street Suite #2988 New York, NY 10018 tel: 212.434.4588 The Board of Directors: John Schieman President jschieman@tributestheatre.com Marjorie Smith Vice-President Administration msmith@tributestheatre.com Amber McManus Director of Marketing and Promotion msmith@tributestheatre.com Judith Anderson Secretary jandersson@tributestheatre.com Jack Chambers Director of Technical Services jchambers@tributestheatre.com Mary Walters Director of Membership and Volunteers mwalters@tributestheatre.com