Theater News

Drowsy Chaperone Tour to Kick Off at Toronto’s Elgin Theatre

Bob Martin
(© Joseph Marzullo/Retna)
Bob Martin
(© Joseph Marzullo/Retna)

The national tour of the hit musical The Drowsy Chaperone will kick off at Toronto’s Elgin Theatre, September 19-October 14. The show will then travel to more than 30 cities across the United States including Cleveland, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Atlanta, Hartford, Pittsburgh, St. Paul, Houston, and Los Angeles. No casting has been announced for the tour.

The show features a score by Tony Award winners Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison and a book by Tony Award winners Bob Martin and Don McKellar. As on Broadway, the touring production will be directed by Casey Nicholaw, and the creative team includes David Gallo (sets), Gregg Barnes (costumes), Ken Billington and Brian Monahan (lighting), Acme Sound Partners (sound), Larry Blank (orchestrations), and Phil Reno (musical direction).

The musical tells the story of a modern-day musical theater addict known simply as “Man in Chair.” To chase his blues away, he drops the needle on his favorite LP: the 1928 musical comedy The Drowsy Chaperone, which tells the tale of a pampered Broadway starlet who wants to give up show business to get married.

The show originated at the Toronto Fringe Festival in 1999, and played the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles prior to its Broadway run. A London production of the show, starring Bob Martin, Summer Strallen, and Elaine Paige, begins performances next month. The show’s Broadway production currently stars John Glover, Janine LaManna, Beth Leavel, JoAnne Worley, Danny Burstein, Lenny Wolpe, and Peter Bartlett.