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Cast Bios Coming Soon...
Richard Oberacker Book, Lyrics, and Music
Conductor, composer, lyricist and librettist Richard Oberacker is the musical director for Cirque du Soleil's "KA" in Las Vegas. Prior engagements include conductor, arranger and contributing composer for Cirque's world tour of Dralion and conductor of the national tours of Disney's The Lion King. As a composer and lyricist, Mr. Oberacker's original musicals include A Little Theater (Aurelia Theater), In That Valley (National Alliance for Musical Theater Festival of New Works), Dracula (CCM Corbett Theater), and The Gospel According to Fishman (Signature Theatre). With co-lyricist and co-author Robert Taylor, Mr. Oberacker has collaborated on several new musicals including Ace, (National Alliance for Musical Theater New Works Festival, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, The Old Globe, Signature Theatre), Journey to the West (New York Musical Theater Festival), The Parenting Project (Cincinnati Fringe Festival, Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati), and The Sandman (NAMT Festival of New Works, Fredericia Theatre in Denmark). Their musical Bandstand opened at The Paper Mill Playhouse and premiered on Broadway at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre. Mr. Oberacker recently composed the score for a new musical adaptation of The Great Gatsby which premiered in Tokyo, Japan before a Japanese national tour. Next in development, Bruce.
Robert Taylor Book and Lyrics
Robert Taylor began writing poetry and lyrics around the same time he picked up the violin at age eight.  His love of music, languages, literature, and nature has led him to a lifetime of study and travel.  A graduate of Holland's Royal Conservatory, Union College, the University of Bonn, and Princeton University, he has taught foreign languages and ornithology in New York, English and music in China, served as music critic to the Albany Times Union, worked as a freelance musician and writer in Manhattan, a translator in Europe and Asia, and has lectured extensively on opera, literature, and art history.  Mr. Taylor is the co-lyricist/librettist with Richard Oberacker of several new musicals, including Ace, (National Alliance for Musical Theater New Works Festival, The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, The Old Globe, Signature Theatre), Journey to the West (New York Musical Theater Festival), The Parenting Project (Cincinnati Fringe Festival, Ensemble Theatre of Cincinnati), and The Sandman (NAMT Festival of New Works, Fredericia Theatre in Denmark), their TONY Award winning musical Bandstand, which premiered on Broadway at the Bernard B. Jacobs Theatre in April of 2017, and their newest project Bruce.  A principal player with the New York Chamber Soloists Ensemble and the Mozart Orchestra of New York, Mr. Taylor is a member of the Dramatist's Guild, and leads Birding & Nature Tours around the world for the Audubon Society.
Andy Blankenbuehler Original Director/Choreographer
Mr. Blankenbuehler is three-time Tony Award winner for his choreography in the Broadway productions of Bandstand, In The Heights and Hamilton , for which he also received London's Olivier Award.  The recent production of Bandstand (director/choreographer) also received the Drama Desk and Chita Rivera Award for Best Choreography.  Other Broadway credits include Bring It On (Tony nomination), 9 To 5 (Tony nomination), The People In The Picture, The Apple Tree, Annie, and the recent revival of CATS.  Other theatrical work includes Desperately Seeking Susan (West End), the world premiere of the new musical FLY (Dallas Theatre Center), The Wiz (City Center Encores), A Little Princess (Andrew Lippa), and the recent international tour of Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Upcoming projects include the new musical Only Gold with British singer/songwriter Kate Nash.
On television, Mr. Blankenbuehler's work has been seen on the Lionsgate/ABC remake of Dirty Dancing, "America's Got Talent," "So You Think You Can Dance," "The Sopranos," MTV, "Sesame Street" featuring Janelle Monae, as well as many commercials.He has staged concert work for both Elton John and Bette Midler, and he conceived, directed and choreographed the hit Caesars Palace production Nights On Broadway.  He is currently working on a new limited series on FX about the lives of Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon and also on the new film adaptation of CATS.
As a performer, Mr. Blankenbuehler has danced on Broadway in Fosse, Contact, Man of La Mancha, Saturday Night Fever, Steel Pier, Big and Guys and Dolls. Originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, Mr. Blankenbuehler resides in New York City, with his wife Elly and two children, Luca and Sofia. Mr. Blankenbuehler is a recipient of a special 2015 Drama Desk Award for his achievement in the theatre.
In 2019 Mr. Blankenbuehler received the 2018 Kennedy Center Honors for his work on the musical Hamilton.
Gina Rattan Associate Director
Broadway credits include: Angels in America, Matilda The Musical, Soul Doctor, Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella, Billy Elliot. Live TV musicals; Peter Pan, The Sound of Music (Live on NBC). Regional credits include: ART, Old Globe, Guthrie Theater, Lone Tree Arts Center, Theater Raleigh, Theater Workshop of Nantucket. Currently director of Camp American Girl and R&H's Cinderella nat'l tour & new musicals in development. Champion of the work, thoughts, and rights of women and girls.
David Korins Scenic Design
Broadway: Hamilton (Tony nom), Dear Evan Hansen, War Paint (Tony nom), Bandstand, Misery, Motown, Vanya and Sonia…, Annie, Bring It On, An Evening with Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin, Godspell , Chinglish, The Pee-wee Herman Show, Lombardi, Passing Strange and Bridge and Tunnel. TV: "91st Annual Academy Awards," "Grease: Live!" (Emmy award). Creative Director: "Hamilton: The Exhibition," Bruno Mars, Lady Gaga, Kanye West, Mariah Carey, Andrea Boccelli. Dad: Stella and Vivian. @davidkorins
Paloma Young Costume Design
Broadway: Peter and the Starcatcher (Tony Award), Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 (Tony Nomination), Bandstand (Drama Desk Nomination), Lobby Hero, Time and the Conways. Off-Broadway: Natasha, Pierre…, Kazino (Lucille Lortel Award); Merrily We Roll Along, Roundabout, Yen, Permission, Alice By Heart, Moscow X6, MCC; Fly By Night, This Flat Earth, The Patron Saint of Sea Monsters, Playwrights Horizons; Brooklyn Babylon, BAM; Recall, Colt Coeur. Other regional work at American Repertory Theatre, Dallas Theatre Center, South Coast Repertory, Arena Stage, La Jolla Playhouse, The Old Globe, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Hand2Mouth and Mixed Blood, among others. IG: secondpigeon
Jeff Croiter Lighting Design
Broadway: Bandstand, Falsettos, Something Rotten, Newsies, Peter and the Starcatcher, Holiday Inn, Penn & Teller, Disaster, Mothers and Sons, A Time to Kill, Soul Doctor, Jekyll and Hyde, The Pee-wee Herman Show, Next Fall, Kiki and Herb. Off-Broadway: Freestyle Love Supreme, The True, The Other Josh Cohen, Daniel's Husband, Smokey Joe's Café, Jerry Springer The Opera, Tiny Beautiful Things, Cost of Living, Sweet Charity, Head of Passes, Cam Jansen. Other: _Big Apple Circus, _Penn & Teller _at the Rio in Las Vegas, Family Guy Sings. Jeff has received Tony, Hewes and Bass awards,and Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Lortel nominations.
J. Jared Janas Makeup, Hair, and Wig Design
Broadway: Frankie and Johnny in the Claire de Lune, Gettin' the Band Back Together, Bandstand, Indecent, Sunset Boulevard, The Visit, The Real Thing, Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill, Motown, Peter and the Starcatcher, The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess, All about Me, Next to Normal. Recent Off-Broadway & Regional: BLKS (MCC), Nantucket Sleigh Ride (Lincoln Center), Alice by Heart (MCC), Jagged Little Pill (A.R.T.), Miss You Like Hell, The Low Road, and Father Comes Home from the War… (Public Theater), The Amateurs (Vineyard Theatre), Jerry Springer the Opera (New Group), Yours Unfaithfully (Mint Theatre, Drama Desk nomination).
Dave Bova Makeup, Hair, and Wig Design
Broadway designs include: Be More Chill, M. Butterfly, Sunset Boulevard, Bandstand, Indecent, The Real Thing, Violet; Off-Broadway designs include: Jerry Springer The Opera, Little Miss Sunshine, Here Lies Love, Buried Child, Pericles, Booty Candy, My Name Is Asher Lev, Good Person Of Szechwan, Romeo And Juliet. Steppenwolf Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Signature Theatre, Playwright Horizons, Dallas Theatre Center, Shakespeare Theatre of DC, Ford's Theatre, The Public, Public Works, Seattle Rep, Two River Theatre, Delaware Rep, Cleveland Playhouse, Utah Shakespeare Festival. Opera: Atlanta Opera, Glimmerglass Festival, Central City Opera, Sarasota Opera, Kansas Lyric Opera, Washington National Opera, Santa Fe Opera. (1977-2019)
Kate Lumpkin Casting
NY Theatre: We Are Here, We Are The Tigers, Afterglow, Cleopatra, The Bad Years, EcoVillage, Unraveled, Single Rider, safeword ., Diaspora, The Other Side of Paradise, Reunion '69, Counting Sheep, The Excavation of Mary Anning, Agent 355, Emma: A New Musical, Love In Hate Nation, Sitting Bull's Last Waltz, Five Points, Hart Island, Eastbound, Interstate, Honey Dipped Apocalypse Girls, Fefu and Her Friends. Regional: Endlings (A.R.T), West Side Story (Kennedy Center), Evocation to Visible Appearance + A Christmas Carol (Actors Theatre of Louisville), Reunion '69 (Newman Center), Beau (Adirondack Theatre Festival).US/Canadian Casting team for Celebrity Cruises. Head of Education at The Broadway Collective. kate-lumpkin.com @katelumpkin
Greg Anthony Rassen Music Supervision, Arrangements, Co-orchestrations
Drama Desk winner and Tony nominee for Bandstand.  Other Broadway credits include: An American In Paris, Bullets Over Broadway, Little Mermaid, Book of Mormon, R&H's Cinderella, A Chorus Line (Revival). Arranger/orchestrator: Jerry Springer: The Opera (New Group), Beast In The Jungle (Vineyard), Between The Lines (Kansas City Rep.), Atlantis (Virginia Rep.).  Commissions include: New York Pops, Boston Pops; Renée Elise Goldsberry, Leslie Odom, Jr., Ashley Brown, Sierra Boggess, Jeremy Jordan, Norm Lewis, Darren Criss, Liz Callaway, André Previn, John Williams. M.M. degree from Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. www.greganthonymusic.com
Bill Elliot Co-Orchestrator
Tony winner: An American in Paris ; Tony nominations: Bandstand, Nice Work If You Can Get It; Encores! Lady Be Good, Chichester Festival Damsel In Distress; additional orchestrations Cinderella, Anything Goes 2011 Revival; Grammy nomination Nice Work cast album; Emmy nomination Music Director Michael Feinstein PBS Special "The Sinatra Legacy"; orchestra arrangements for Josh Groban, Sutton Foster, producer/arranger of Michael Feinstein's Concord albums "The Sinatra Project" and "The Good Life"; prolific arranger for the Boston Pops, New York Pops, Hollywood Bowl orchestra. TV and film: "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel," Introducing Dorothy Dandridge, "Northern Exposure," Wedding Crashers.
Fred Lassen Music Supervisor
Fred Lassen is a seasoned Broadway conductor, music director, and arranger. Broadway productions he has conducted or supervised include: Prince of Broadway, Bandstand, Mean Girls, King Kong, Finding Neverland, Once, Porgy and Bess, South Pacific, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Spamalot, Cabaret, 42nd Street, Once Upon A Mattress. Off-Broadway/Regional: The Sting (Paper Mill Playhouse, w/Harry Connick, Jr.), The Threepenny Opera (Atlantic Theatre, dir. Martha Clarke), ZORRO (Alliance Theatre), Dangerous Beauty (Pasadena Playhouse. International: Prince of Broadway (Tokyo/Osaka), 4STARS, (Tokyo/Osaka), Maury Yeston's Peony Pavilion (Beijing), Cabaret (Folies Bergère, Paris). He was nominated for a Helen Hayes Award in Washington, DC, in the category of Outstanding Music Direction, for Ricky Ian Gordon's musical Sycamore Trees. Fred has arranged and recorded two albums with Laura Osnes. He was the Associate Music Supervisor for NBC's live musical broadcasts of Peter Pan and The Sound of Music. Fred graduated with a degree in Organ Performance from Oberlin Conservatory, and lives in Brooklyn with his wife Vaishali, an independent documentary filmmaker, and his 4-year-old son Luca.
Justin West Associate Scenic Design
Justin West is a New York based scenic and projection designer. He was an assistant on the Tony nominated Beetlejuice: The Musical, for the Hamilton Exhibition in Chicago, and is an associate on various upcoming projects with David Korins. His work has been seen at Classic Stage Company, the 9/11 Memorial Museum, Keen Company, The York Theatre, the Gateway Playhouse, the Argyle Theatre, La MaMa ETC, Clarion Opera, Pace University, Pan-Asian Rep, Cas Di Cultura (Aruba), Park Playhouse in Albany, and more. www.justinwestdesign.com
Photos by Michael Pool
THE SOLDIERS CAME HOME TO A NEW AMERICA
AND MADE MUSIC THAT INSPIRED THE NATION.
From three-time Tony® winner and Hamilton choreographer, Andy Blankenbuehler, comes a poignant and inspiring new American musical that explodes with infectious music and high-octane, heart-stopping dancing.
It's 1945. As America's soldiers come home to ticker-tape parades and overjoyed families, Private First Class Donny Novitski, singer and songwriter, struggles to rebuild the life he left behind.
When NBC announces a national competition to find the nation's next great musical superstars, Donny sees a lifeline for himself and some fellow veterans that gives them the purpose they so desperately need. Together, they form a band unlike any the nation has ever seen. Along the way, they discover the power of music to face the impossible, find their voice, and finally feel like they have a place to call home.
BANDSTAND is "both a peppy celebration of can-do spirit and a more somber exploration of what American servicemen experienced when they marched home from World War II. It's a great argument for why theater can sometimes tell a story more boldly and more viscerally" (The New York Times). "The show defies you not to be moved" (Time Out New York).
Oct 26-27, 2019 Oklahoma City, OK OCCC Visual and Performing Arts Center Theater BUY TICKETS
Oct 28 - 30, 2019 College Station, TX Rudder Auditorium BUY TICKETS
Nov 1, 2019 Albuquerque, NM Popejoy Hall BUY TICKETS
Nov 2-3, 2019 Amarillo, TX Civic Center Auditorium BUY TICKETS
Nov 6, 2019 Abilene, TX Abilene Convention Center BUY TICKETS
Nov 7, 2019 Tyler, TX Cowan Center BUY TICKETS
Nov 8, 2019 Orange, TX Lutcher Theater BUY TICKETS
Nov 9, 2019 Galveston, TX The Grand 1894 Opera House BUY TICKETS
Nov 11-12, 2019 Sioux Falls, SD Washington Pavilion BUY TICKETS
Nov 13, 2019 Bismarck, ND Civic Center BUY TICKETS
Nov 16 - 17, 2019 Eugene, OR Hult Center for the Performing Arts BUY TICKETS
Nov 19 - 20, 2019 Santa Barbara, CA Granada Theater BUY TICKETS
Nov 21 - 24, 2019 Thousand Oaks, CA Fred Kavli Theatre BUY TICKETS
Dec 3 - 4, 2019 Colorado Springs, CO Pikes Peak Center BUY TICKETS
Dec 6 - 8, 2019 Phoenix, AZ Orpheum Theatre BUY TICKETS
Dec 11, 2019 Sioux City, IA Orpheum Theatre BUY TICKETS
Dec 13 - 14, 2019 Des Moines, IA Civic Center BUY TICKETS
Dec 15, 2019 Cedar Falls, IA Gallagher-Bluedorn Performing Arts Center BUY TICKETS
Dec 16, 2019 Davenport, IA River Center Adler Theater BUY TICKETS
Dec 17, 2019 Overland Park, KS Yardley Hall BUY TICKETS
Jan 3-5, 2020 Huntsville, AL Von Braun Center Concert Hall BUY TICKETS
Jan 8, 2020 Wabash, IN Honeywell Center BUY TICKETS
Jan 9 - 12, 2020 Toledo, OH Stranahan Theater BUY TICKETS
Jan 14 - 16, 2020 Wichita, KS Century II Performing Arts Center BUY TICKETS
Jan 17 - 19, 2020 Lincoln, NE Lied Center for Performing Arts BUY TICKETS
Jan 21, 2020 Wausau, WI Grand Theater BUY TICKETS
Jan 23, 2020 Van Wert, OH Niswonger Performing Arts Center BUY TICKETS
Jan 24 - 26, 2020 South Bend, IN Morris Performing Arts Center BUY TICKETS
Jan 27, 2020 Muncie, IN Emens Auditorium BUY TICKETS
Jan 29, 2020 Pembroke, NC Givens Performing Arts Center BUY TICKETS
Jan 30, 2020 Maryville, TN Clayton Center for the Arts BUY TICKETS
Jan 31, 2020 Charleston, SC Charleston Gaillard Center BUY TICKETS
Feb 1-2, 2020 Oxford, AL Oxford Performing Arts Center BUY TICKETS
Feb 4-5, 2020 Sarasota, FL Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall BUY TICKETS
Feb 6, 2020 Avon Park, FL Alan Jay Wildstein Center for the Performing Arts BUY TICKETS
Feb 7 - 8, 2020 The Villages, FL The Sharon L. Morse Performing Arts Center BUY TICKETS
Feb 18-23, 2020 Jacksonville, FL Moran Theater BUY TICKETS
Feb 28-29, 2020 Hershey, PA Hershey Theatre BUY TICKETS
Mar 1, 2020 Waterbury, CT Palace Theater BUY TICKETS
Mar 3–8, 2020 Washington D.C. National Theatre BUY TICKETS
Mar 15, 2020 Greenvale, NY Tilles Center for the Performing Arts BUY TICKETS
Mar 17 - 18, 2020 Morristown, NJ Community Theatre BUY TICKETS
Mar 19-22, 2020 Worcester, MA Hanover Theatre BUY TICKETS
Mar 27-29, 2020 Reno, NV Pioneer Center BUY TICKETS
Mar 30 - 31, 2020 Modesto, CA Mary Stuart Rogers Theater BUY TICKETS
Apr 3 - 5, 2020 Boise, ID Velma V. Morrison Center for the Performing Arts BUY TICKETS
Apr 7 - 12, 2020 Sacramento, CA Memorial Auditorium BUY TICKETS
Apr 14, 2020 Cheyenne, WY Civic Center BUY TICKETS
Apr 17 - 19, 2020 Lexington, KY Lexington Opera House BUY TICKETS
Apr 20, 2020 Paducah, KY Carson Center BUY TICKETS
Apr 22, 2020 Bartlesville, OK Community Center Auditorium BUY TICKETS
Apr 24 - 26, 2020 Birmingham, AL Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex BUY TICKETS
Apr 27-28, 2020 Macon, GA Grand Opera House BUY TICKETS
Apr 29 - 30, 2020 Columbia, SC Koger Center for the Arts BUY TICKETS
May 2, 2020 Wilmington, NC Wilson Center BUY TICKETS
May 3, 2020 Morganton, NC Morganton Municipal Auditorium BUY TICKETS
May 5 - 17, 2020 Ft. Lauderdale, FL Broward Center for the Performing Arts BUY TICKETS
May 25, 2020 San Angelo, TX Murphey Performance Hall BUY TICKETS
May 26 - 31, 2020 Dallas, TX Winspear Opera House BUY TICKETS
Jun 3-4, 2020 Red Bank NJ Count Basie Theatre BUY TICKETS
Jun 5-7, 2020 New Haven, CT Shubert Theater BUY TICKETS
"The show defies you not to be moved"
(Time Out New York)
From three-time Tony® winner and Hamilton choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler. Six soldiers return from war and, through the power of music, finally find a place to call home.
© Bandstand. 2019 .