Music by Andrew Lippa.
Lyrics by Tom Greenwald.
Book by Andrew Lippa and Tom Greenwald.
Directed by Christopher Lane.
Designed by Nell Knudsen.
Cast: Helen Evans. Jon Hawkins.
Presented by McVicar Lane Productions.

The UK Premiere of the Off-Broadway musical.

[ new work season 2007 ]
Sundays and Mondays, 4, 5, 11, 12, 18 and 19 November 2007
Post-show discussion with lyricist Tom Greenwald - 18 November.

The UK premiere of a truly original musical by award winning New York composer, Andrew Lippa.

john & jen looks at the complexities of relationships between brothers and sisters and parents and children, set against the background of a changing America between 1950 and 1990. It is the story of Jen and her relationships with the two John’s of her life: her younger brother, who was killed in Vietnam, and his namesake, her son who is trying to find his way in a confusing world. john & jen is a tour-de-force for two actors who take Jen and John from childhood, through adolescence and beyond. This gem of a show brims with intelligence, wit and beautiful melodies.

Andrew Lippa is one of the most acclaimed new musical theatre composers of recent years. Born in Leeds and raised in the US, he wrote the book, music and lyrics for The Wild Party, which received its world premiere at the Manhattan Theatre Club, New York City, and won the Outer Critics Circle Award for best Off-Broadway musical of the season and the Drama Desk Award for best music. In 1999, he created all new arrangements and contributed three new songs to the Broadway revival of You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown (including My New Philosophy for Tony winner Kristin Chenoweth) for which he received a Grammy nomination. He is currently writing the music and lyrics for Jules Feiffer’s The Man in the Ceiling for Disney Theatricals and recently wrote the music and lyrics for Asphalt Beach which was premiered by the American Musical Theatre Project. john & jen was premiered off-Broadway with Carolee Carmello and James Ludwig. Andrew Lippa is consulting on the UK premiere of john & jen.

The cast were also in concert with Andrew Lippa on 20 October 2007 at Dress Circle and on 22 October 2007 at St. Paul's, Knightsbridge.

Helen Evans’ recent theatre includes Les Miserables (National Tour), Nellie Forbush in South Pacific (Singapore Repertory Theatre), Inside Out – A Portrait of Ivor Novello (Bristol Old Vic and National Tour), and A Memory, A Monologue, A Rant and A Prayer (London Premiere).

Jon Hawkins’ appearances include Twelve Irish Tenors World Tour (Dublin World Wide Productions), Tonight’s the Night (National Tour), The Thing About Men (Edinburgh Fringe) and The Merry Wives of Windsor (Royal Shakespeare Company at the Barbican). Following john & jen, Jon will be joining the international touring cast of Mamma Mia.

Director Christopher Lane has directed A Memory, A Monologue, A Rant and A Prayer (London Premiere), BABE Inc. and Pistachio Stories (Soho Theatre), The End in Mind (Upstairs at the Gatehouse), A Devilish Exercise, Conjuring Marlowe at The Rose (The Rose Theatre Trust).

www.johnandjen.co.uk

Presented by arrangement with JOSEF WEINBERGER LIMITED
On behalf of MUSIC THEATRE INTERNATIONAL of New York Originally produced by Goodspeed Opera House. Michael B. Price, Executive Producer.
Originally produced in New York City by the Lamb’s Theatre Co., Ltd. Carolyn Rossi Copeland, Producing Director.

The Press on John and Jen

“This tour de force of a two-hander.”
Michael Darvell, Classicalsource.com

“Actors Helen Evans and Jon Hawkins manage with great feeling and immense self-possession.”
Michael Darvell, Classicalsource.com

“The songs provide a panoply of different emotions in a mix of moods.”
Michael Darvell, Classicalsource.com

“It’s a touching piece that had the first-night audience wildly screaming for more.”
Michael Darvell, Classicalsource.com

“It is obviously a show that has an appeal for anybody and everybody who can identify with the theme and its characters.”
Michael Darvell, Classicalsource.com

“It is an emotionally complex piece, with searing, resonant songs that are both gorgeously melodic in their own right and full of wit and feeling.”
Mark Shenton, The Stage

“Christopher Lane's intense and moving production, played with utter commitment by the two young actors.”
Mark Shenton, The Stage

“Helen Evans brings a real sense of honesty and vulnerability to Jen, while
Jon Hawkins, as the two Johns, has ruffled charm in spades.”
Mark Shenton, The Stage

“The two musicians, Petr Limonov on piano and Benjamin Lee on violin, are also finely attuned to the constantly shifting patterns of mood and melody in the piece.”
Mark Shenton, The Stage