La Jolla Playhouse to Present World Premiere of Hands on a Hardbody Musical

The La Jolla Playhouse will present the world-premiere musical Hands on a Hardbody, written by Pulitzer Prize winner Doug Wright and featuring a score by Amanda Green and Trey Anastasio, to run April 27-June 10, 2012 in the Mandell Weiss Theatre. The production will feature direction by Neil Pepe and choreography by Benjamin Millepied.

The show takes place in Longview, Texas, where ten economically-strapped strangers embark on an endurance contest sponsored by an auto dealership, and the winner gets a brand-new hardbody truck.

Wright won the Pulitzer Prize and the Tony Award for I Am My Own Wife and an Obie Award for Quills. He wrote the librettos to Grey Gardens and The Little Mermaid. Green’s musical credits include the scores to Bring It On and High Fidelity. Anastasio is best known for being a co-founder of the rock band Phish.

Pepe is the artistic director of New York’s Atlantic Theater Company. His Broadway credits include A Life in the Theatre and Speed-the Plow. Millepied is one of the ballet world’s foremost young choreographers and also choreographed the hit film Black Swan.

For tickets and more information, visit www.lajollaplayhouse.org.