Book, Music and Lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa
Directed by David Dorrian
Musical Direction by Simon Gray
Lighting by Michela Brennan
Costume Design by Chris Hill
Sound Effects Design by Tim Clark
Presented by Perspective Productions in association with Concordance
The Cast:
Break
Man 1 - Russell Whitehead
Man 2 - Ed Tolputt
The Blessed Virgin Mary - Cassidy Janson
Agnes
Woman - Valerie Cutko
Agnes - Verity Quade
Man - Ed Tolputt
Eulogy for Mister Hamm
Man in Bathrobe - Russell Whitehead
Woman with a Boot - Valerie Cutko
Girl With A Kidney-Thing - Kira Lauren
Lucky Nurse
Madge - Cassidy Janson
Jerry - Russell Whitehead
Sherri - Verity Quade
Cabbie - Simon Masterton
2, 9 and 16 April 2006
THE UK PREMIERE OF FOUR SHORT MUSICALS BY MICHAEL JOHN LaCHIUSA
Following its recent success with old musicals, the multi-award-winning Finborough Theatre now presents for a limited run of Sunday concert performances, Lucky Nurse…, an early work by the hottest composer on Broadway, Michael John LaChiusa.
Lucky Nurse and Other Short Musical Plays were first performed together in 1991 at Playwrights Horizons with a cast of Broadway stars including Tony Award winner Chuck Cooper. Since then Broadway’s finest talents (including Toni Collette, Idina Menzel, Mandy Patinkin and Audra MacDonald) have beaten a path to Michael John LaChiusa’s door – drawn by his ability to explore quirky and engaging situations through incisive lyrics and beautiful music.
Lucky Nurse… contains four plays about little people engaging with big issues. It begins with Break, in which two construction workers achieve new insight into their lunch hour woes when the Virgin Mary appears to them in an accidental visitation. Next comes Agnes. Deserted in her wheelchair while her nurse goes shopping, Agnes tells a stranger how she longs for paradise – and asks him to send her there. In Eulogy For Mister Hamm, various residents of a hostel are queuing to use the one available bathroom when they discover that their superintendent may be dead. Finally, Lucky Nurse takes us on a journey through the events that link the lives of four world-weary strangers on a single night in the city.
Directed by exciting young talent David Dorrian whose previous credits include Assistant Director on Activated Image’s acclaimed production of Patience at the Finborough Theatre, and Assistant Director to Daniel Kramer for The Gate Theatre’s sell-out revival of Hair.
Composer Michael John LaChiusa is a five time Tony nominee. Critically acclaimed productions include The Wild Party (starring Toni Collette), Marie Christine, Hello Again (with Jenna Russell in the UK Premiere), Little Fish and First Lady Suite. His latest production See What I Wanna See (starring Idina Menzel) had an extended sell-out run at New York’s Public Theater. LaChiusa is also about to go into production at the Lincoln Center with a musical adaptation of The House of Bernarda Alba.
The cast includes Valerie Cutko, seen in in My Fair Lady (RNT/Theatre Royal Drury Lane) andGrand Hotel (Broadway); Cassidy Janson who recently won rave reviews in the lead role of Susan in the London premiere production of Tick Tick….Boom! (Menier Chocolate Factory); Kira Lauren, recently graduated from NYU's Tisch School; Simon Masterton, seen in Passion (Bridewell Theatre) and two Finalists from the BBC Radio 2 Voice of Musical Theatre 2005 - Verity Quade, recently seen in Jerry Springer - The Opera (Cambridge Theatre) – and Ed Tolputt and Russell Whitehead.
Presented by arrangement with Josef Weinberger Limited
Reviews for Lucky Nurse and Other Short Musical Plays
"A terrific workshop production of LaChiusa's early Lucky Nurse and Other Short Musical Plays was given to enthusastic (and full) houses at the Finborough Theatre"
Grapevine
"Lucky Nurse is a captivating collection of four musical miniatures by Michael John LaChiusa, one of America ’s most prolific theatrical composers but whose work is hardly known over here." Mark Shenton, The Stage
