broadway`s favorite diva, judy kaye, hits the high notes in asolo rep`s

For immediate release May 7, 2009
BROADWAY’S FAVORITE
DIVA, JUDY KAYE, HITS THE
HIGH NOTES IN ASOLO
REP’S PRODUCTION OF
SOUVENIR A FANTASIA ON THE LIFE
OF FLORENCE FOSTER JENKINS
The famed singer is making a rare
appearance in Sarasota to reprise her
2006 Tony nominated role as the tone deaf
singing socialite—Florence Foster Jenkins.
(Sarasota, FL) Asolo Repertory Theatre celebrates the
diva in each of us with the hilarious musical – Souvenir: A
Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins by
Stephen Temperley. Real life Tony Award winning
Broadway diva Judy Kaye (Phantom of the Opera & Mamma
Mia!) makes a rare appearance in Sarasota in the lead role.
Donald Corren (Torch Song Trilogy) plays her accompanist, the man who chronicles Florence's unlikely rise to
cult status and unexpected success.
Asolo Rep also welcomes the design team from the original Broadway Production: Tony Award-winning director
Vivian Matalon, scenic designer R. Michael Miller (Eminent Domain and The Boys in Autumn on
Broadway), lighting designer Ann G. Wrightson (August: Osage County on Broadway), sound designer
David Budries (Ah, Wilderness! on Broadway), and costume designer Tracy Christensen, who created the
elaborate opera outfits worn by Kaye for the many costumes changes in Florence's Carnegie Hall performance.
This show is co-presented by Flemings, ABC-7, and Icard Merrill.
Souvenir runs from June 5–28, 2009 on Asolo Rep’s mainstage in the Mertz Theatre. Tickets are priced from
$20–$58 and may be purchased on the website at www.asolo.org, or by calling the box office at 941-3518000 (toll free 800-361-8388. Opening night is on Friday, June 5, 2009.
The real-life Florence Foster Jenkins was a wealthy society eccentric, who suffered from the delusion that she
was an exceptional soprano, although she couldn't carry a tune. Nevertheless, her musical career took off when
her private charity galas at the Ritz Carlton ballroom started drawing large crowds, turning her into a cult
sensation. Stephen Temperley began working on the play over 25 years ago, when director Vivian Matalon
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suggested that he write a play about the deluded socialite. After three versions of the text, it was Jenkins'
relationship with her accompanist Cosme McMoon that finally brought the story to light for Stephen.
Temperley's play is a heart-warming tribute to Ms. Jenkins' sincerity, ambition, and love of music and her
unexpected friendship with the talented musician who learned to love and admire this unique woman despite
her delusions.
"The play is about the difference between the way we see ourselves and the way the rest of the world sees us,"
says Temperley. "It's a story about a man who is nothing except self-doubting who meets a person with
absolutely no self-doubts whatsoever."
It takes one of Broadway's most celebrated singers to play the famously tone-deaf soprano.
No matter how deluded Jenkins might have been, Kaye makes you believe that the singer's earsplitting sounds
are, to her ears at least, beautiful music.
"It's hard work to sing so badly," says Kaye, whose Broadway triumphs include Phantom of the Opera (Tony
Award), Mamma Mia! (Tony Award nomination), and On the Twentieth Century (which catapulted her to
overnight stardom). "What's the dramatic license to play Florence Foster Jenkins? Be passionate. Get loud or
soft suddenly. Don't be afraid to hoot and holler, especially in delicate arias like Verdi's 'Caro Nome.' And
don't ever laugh, however hard the audience does."
Biographical information
The cast
JUDY KAYE* (Florence Foster Jenkins) originated the title role of Souvenir: A
Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins on Broadway (Tony Award
nomination), a role she has also played at The York Theatre Company, Berkshire
Theatre Festival, Brentwood Theatre in Los Angeles (LA Stage Alliance Ovation
Award), Westport Country Playhouse, Arizona Theatre Company, American
Conservatory Theatre and Centerstage. She appeared as Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney
Todd on Broadway and on the national tour garnering an L.A. Drama Critics
Circle Award and On Carbonell Award. She performed in Face the Music for
New York City Center’s Encores! series and in Zorba in the Los Angeles Reprise!
series. Highlights of her career include Phantom of the Opera (Tony, Drama Desk
Award nominations), Mamma Mia! (Tony Award, Drama Desk nominations), On
the Twentieth Century (Theatre World Award; Drama Desk nomination), and
Ragtime (LA Stage Alliance Ovation Award), all on Broadway, as well as La
Bohème, Orpheus in the Underworld and The Beggar’s Opera at The Santa Fe
Opera. Kaye has performed with symphony orchestras around the world and sung at the White House twice.
She is the voice of Kinsey Millhone for Random House’s audio book series of the Sue Grafton alphabet
mysteries.
DONALD CORREN* (Cosme McMoon) originated the role of
Cosme McMoon in the original Broadway production of Souvenir.
Since then, the show has played the Brentwood Theatre in Los
Angeles, Arizona Theatre Company, Berkshire Theatre Festival,
Westport Country Playhouse, and, most recently, the American
Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco and Centerstage in
Baltimore. Other Broadway credits include Arnold in Torch Song
Trilogy (Drama Critics Circle Award). Off Broadway, he has
appeared in The Last Sunday in June, Saturday Night, and
Tomfoolery. Regionally, he has been seen in Art (Capital
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Repertory Theatre), The Love of Three Oranges (La Jolla Playhouse), Streets of New York and The Constant Wife
(Westport Country Playhouse), The Winter’s Tale and The Two Gentlemen of Verona (The Shakespeare
Theatre), Animal Crackers (Arena Stage), The Importance of Being Earnest (The Old Globe), Noël (Goodspeed
Musicals), and The Mikado and The Yeoman of the Guard (Gilbert & Sullivan Musical Theatre Co.), among
others. Television credits include nine seasons on Law & Order and appearances on Law & Order: Trial by Jury,
Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Rescue Me and Martha Stewart Living. Corren trained at The Drama Division of
The Juilliard School, and is also a cabaret pianist/ singer specializing in the music of George Gershwin, Noël
Coward, Irving Berlin, and Cole Porter.
The Creative Team
STEPHEN TEMPERLEY (Playwright) first came to the United States from London as a teenager. He trained as
an actor at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and appeared at The Public Theater (Henry IV, Parts I and
II; Invitation to a Beheading) before returning to London. He has a number of West End acting credits, and
since returning to the United States in 1977 he has worked extensively in regional theaters, in stock, on
Broadway (Crazy for You), and Off Broadway (Up Against It). Temperley’s produced plays, all of which have
been directed by Vivian Matalon, include Beside the Seaside, Money/Mercy, Dance with Me, and The Pilgrim
Papers, among others. Souvenir was first seen at The York Theatre Company before going on to the Berkshire
Theatre Festival and Broadway. Now one of the most produced plays in the United States, it recently opened to
rave reviews in Berlin and Stockholm and is slated for productions in South America, Australia, and Japan.
VIVIAN MATALON (Director) has directed in London’s West End, on Broadway, and at numerous regional
theaters in the United States. His West End credits include Suite in 3 Keys with Noël Coward, Irene Worth, and
Lili Palmer; Season of Goodwill with Sybil Thorndike, Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies, and Paul Rogers; Bus Stop with
Lee Remick and Keir Dullea; and the European premiere of Tennessee Williams’s Small Craft Warnings with
Elaine Stritch. He was artistic director of London’s prestigious Hampstead Theatre for three years. His Broadway
credits include After the Rain with Alec McCowen and Nancy Marchand; Noël Coward in Two Keys with Hume
Cronyn, Jessica Tandy, and Anne Baxter; Morning’s at Seven (Tony Award); Brigadoon; The Tap Dance Kid
(Tony nomination) with Savion Glover; and Souvenir with Judy Kaye and Donald Corren.
R. MICHAEL MILLER (Scenic Designer) designed the Broadway, Off Broadway, Berkshire Theater Festival, Los
Angeles, Arizona Theatre Company, Centerstage, A.C.T. and Westport Country Playhouse productions of
Souvenir. Miller has designed scenery for Circle in the Square on Broadway, George Street Playhouse,
Berkshire Theatre Festival, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Syracuse Stage, Virginia Stage Company and
Arizona Theatre Company, among others. He designed The Miracle Worker for Shochiku Company in Tokyo.
He was the U.S. associate designer for Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Aspects of Love and an assistant art director on
the feature films Falling in Love, Shadows and Fog and Bullets Over Broadway. He is the head of design and
production for the Department of Theater Arts in the Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University.
Previous designs for Asolo Rep were The Heidi Chronicles and The Substance of Fire.
TRACY CHRISTENSEN (Costume Designer) has collaborated with Vivian Matalon on the Broadway
production of Souvenir and several shows at Berkshire Theatre Festival. Recent design projects include Meet Me
in St. Louis at The Irish Repertory Theatre and Gypsy, starring Patti LuPone, at Chicago’s Ravinia Festival. Other
credits include Seussical for TheatreworksUSA (Lucille Lortel Award nomination), In This Corner at The Old
Globe, Richard III for Shakespeare Festival St. Louis, Regina at The Kennedy Center and Camelot, starring
Gabriel Byrne, with the New York Philharmonic. She has spent three seasons with the Chautauqua Theater
Company and designed Blue Horizons for Sea World’s new whale and dolphin show.
www.tracychristensen.com.
ANN G. WRIGHTSON (Lighting Designer) recent work includes August: Osage County on Broadway (Tony
nomination) and for the National Theatre in London, Souvenir on Broadway, The Unmentionables for Yale
Repertory Theatre, The Gentleman from Indiana for Indiana Repertory Theatre, and Gem of the Ocean and
Radio Golf for Alliance Theatre. Past projects include Tracy Letts’s Man from Nebraska for Steppenwolf Theatre
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Company; Intimate Apparel for the Guthrie Theater and Steppenwolf Theatre Company; and many projects for
the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Current work includes UP for Steppenwolf, A Prayer for Owen Meany and
Inana for the Denver Center Theatre Company, and Souvenir for A.C.T. in San Francisco and Centerstage in
Baltimore. Wrightson’s work has been seen at The Kennedy Center, Long Wharf Theatre, Arena Stage, and the
Eugene O’Neill Theater Center’s National Playwrights Conference, as well as on Comedy Central and
Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher.
DAVID BUDRIES (Sound Designer) New York designs include Ah, Wilderness!; Long Day’s Journey into
Night; Our Country’s Good; Other People’s Money; Measure for Measure; And a Nightingale Sang; From the
Mississippi Delta; Search and Destroy; The End of the Day; Playland; and Marisol. His regional designs include
productions at Hartford Stage, Centerstage, McCarter Theatre Center, Dallas Theater Center, La Jolla
Playhouse, South Coast Repertory, Trinity Repertory Company, Alliance Theatre, Portland Stage Company,
Westport Country Playhouse and Yale Repertory Theatre, among others. Budries is the international liaison for
the United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT), heads sound for Scenofest (to be part of the 2011
Prague Quadrennial), chairs the sound design program for the Yale School of Drama, and is a freelance radio
and music producer.
JACK GIANINO* (Stage Manager) has worked on two dozen Broadway productions, including Souvenir;
The Scarlet Pimpernel; Dream; Hughie; Inherit the Wind; Black and Blue; Carrie; The Tap Dance Kid; ’night,
Mother; Lena Horne; Brigadoon; The King and I; and A Christmas Carol (Madison Square Garden). His Off
Broadway credits include Souvenir; Address Unknown; Rounding Third; Love, Janis; and Tallulah Hallelujah!.
Regionally he has worked at American Conservatory Theatre (A.C.T.), Centerstage, the Mark Taper Forum and
Long Wharf Theatre, and he has traveled with tours of The Sound of Music; Hello, Dolly!; Porgy and Bess; and
On Your Toes. He is currently the production supervisor at Women’s Project in New York.
AARON SPIVEY (Assistant to the Lighting Designer) Assistant and associate credits on Broadway include: The
Coast of Utopia, 9 to 5, Grease, Tarzan, Little Women and Impressionism. Off-Broadway design: From My
Hometown, 4 Guys Named José, Golf the Musical. Other New York designs include: Wanda’s World, From
My Home Town (Amas Musical Theatre), King Lear (Aulis Collective). Regional: Marry Me a Little (Cincinnati
Playhouse in the Park), Bomb-ity of Errors (Syracuse Stage) and 4 Guys Named José (Actors’ Playhouse).
Tickets are $20–$58, depending on seat location, day and time. Special discounts are available for
students and for groups of 10 or more. For reservations, call 941-351-8000 or toll-free 800-361-8388.
Or save time and gas by purchasing tickets online at www.asolo.org. Tickets to opening night include a special
champagne afterparty sponsored by Lakewood Ranch Communities.
Asolo Repertory Theatre is Florida’s premier professional theatre and one of the most important cultural
forces in the Southeastern United States. Having built a 50-year reputation as a center for theatrical excellence,
Asolo Rep crafts the highest quality productions of classical, contemporary, and newly commissioned work all
performed in the rarest form of rotating repertory. Featuring an accomplished resident company –
complemented by distinguished guest artists – Asolo Rep offers audiences a unique and dynamic theatre
experience. Under the skillful leadership of Producing Artistic Director Michael Donald Edwards and Managing
Director Linda DiGabriele, this world-class institution has taken a bold step toward the future, building landmark
partnerships and collaborations which will add to its success over the next 50 years.
###
Asolo Repertory Theatre (AKA: Asolo Theatre Company, Inc.) is funded in part by the Division of Cultural Affairs, Florida Department of State, The Florida
Arts Council, the City and County of Sarasota and the Sarasota County Tourist Development Tax through the Board of County Commissioners, the Tourist
Development Council, and the Sarasota Arts Council. The Asolo Rep’s Shakespeare productions are sponsored in part by Shakespeare in American
Communities, a national theater initiative sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts and The Sallie Mae Fund in cooperation with Arts Midwest.
Additional funding is also received through the efforts of support groups including the Asolo Angel Association, the Asolo Theatre Guild, The Directors
Emeritus and the generosity of individuals, corporations and foundations.
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FACT SHEET
WHAT
SOUVENIR
A Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins
A New Play with Music by Stephen Temperley
WHERE
Asolo Repertory Theatre mainstage
5555 N. Tamiami Trail - Sarasota, Florida 34243
TICKETS
$20-$58 at the Box Office 941-351-8000 or 800-361-8388
Group Sales (10 or more) toll free 877-427-6567 www.asolo.org
WHO
Producing Artistic Director
Director
Scenic Designer
Costume Designer
Lighting Designer
Sound Designer
Stage Manager
Stage Management Intern
Assistant to the Lighting Designer
CAST in order of appearance
Cosme McMoon
Florence Foster Jenkins
Michael Donald Edwards
Vivian Matalon
R. Michael Miller
Tracy Christensen
Ann G. Wrightson
David Budries
Jack Gianino*
Katy Knowles
Aaron Spivey
DONALD CORREN*
JUDY KAYE*
*Members of Actors’ Equity Association (AEA), the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States.
SETTING: The play takes place in several locations including at Greenwich Village supper club, Florence’s
music room in her suite at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, and the stage and dressing room at Carnegie Hall. One
elegant room transforms into Edward Alley all of the different settings. At the beginning of the play, the time is
1964. In later scenes, the action flashes back to the years 1932–1944.
SYNOPSIS: Hailed by the NY Daily News as “Hilarious and deeply touching…a loony triumph!” This wildly
entertaining play answers the question, “What if you believed in yourself so much that nothing could stand in
your way?” It is the true story of Florence Foster Jenkins a real-life socialite so lost in her love of music that in
spite of being deliriously tone-deaf, she enjoyed a remarkably successful concert career. Her pianist, Cosme
McMoon, grew to admire, respect and even protect her triumphant spirit. It’s a captivating tale of friendship
and a joyful musical salute to one woman’s unwavering belief in herself.
SOUVENIR will be performed with one intermission.
OPENING NIGHT is on Friday, June 5, 2009 at 8 p.m. and the opening night show is followed
by Asolo Rep’s mingle with the stars champagne reception. Press is invited to photograph and interview the cast
and creative team at the party.
PREVIEWS: Wednesday, June 3, at 8 p.m. / Thursday, June 4, at 8 p.m.
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SHOW TIMES
06/05 8:00 p.m.
06/06 2:00 p.m. PD
06/06 8:00 p.m.
06/07 2:00 p.m.
06/09 8:00 p.m. TT
06/10 2:00 p.m.
06/10 8:00 p.m.
06/11 8:00 p.m.
06/12 8:00 p.m.
06/13 2:00 p.m.
06/13 8:00 p.m.
06/14 2:00 p.m.
06/16 8:00 p.m. TT
06/17 2:00 p.m.
06/17 8:00 p.m. AD
06/18 8:00 p.m.
06/19 8:00 p.m.
06/20 2:00 p.m.
06/20 8:00 p.m.
06/21 2:00 p.m. AD
06/23 8:00 p.m. TT
06/24 2:00 p.m.
06/24 8:00 p.m.
06/25 8:00 p.m.
06/26 8:00 p.m.
06/27 2:00 p.m.
06/27 8:00 p.m.
06/28 2:00 p.m.
Panel Discussions (PD): Engage in lively discussions with members of the creative team and experts from the
community as they investigate the deeper themes in each production. The facilitated exchange will occur on our
mezzanine immediately following the 2p.m. performance on June 6th.
Tuesday Talkbacks (TT): All Tuesday evening audience members are given the opportunity to engage in a
discussion about the play, moderated by Asolo Rep staff immediately following the performance.
AUDIO DESCRIBED (AD): A service provided by Asolo Rep where specially trained audio describers provide
elaborate audio imagery of the play action and setting to visually impaired audience members through a
headset system. Wednesday, June 17, 8 p.m.; Sunday, June 21, 2 p.m.
CLOSING NIGHT CELEBRATION on June 27, 2009 join Asolo Rep and Prudential Palms Realty for a funfilled cast party! Purchase a ticket to the closing night performance (May 2) and mingle with the cast after the
show. Enjoy free wine, late night snack food, D.J. music, and a cash bar.
CORPORATE MEDIA SEASON PRESENTER: Comcast
CRYSTAL SOCIETY: Esther M. Mertz, Lee and Bob Peterson, and Ulla R. Searing
MAJOR SEASON PRESENTERS: Florida State University, Joan Mendell, and Virginia Toulmin
SEASON PRESENTERS: Designing Women Boutique, Janet & Stanley Kane, and Elaine Keating
CO-PRESENTERS: Flemings, ABC-7, and Icard Merrill
CO-PRODUCERS: Edward Alley, Ira and Lee Barsky, Janet and Mark Hammer, Mike and Renee Silverstein,
and Florence White.
Media contact Julia Guzman at 941-351-9010 ext. 4800. High resolution images and
additional materials are available on request. Interviews and appearances to be arranged
through media contact.
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Song list:
“One for My Baby” by Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer
All Rights Reserved. Used by Permission of Harwin Music Co.
“Crazy Rhythm” by Irving Caesar, Joseph Meyer, Roger Kahn
Copyright © 1928, 1933 (Renewed), Warner Bros. Inc. (ASCAP) All Rights Reserved. Used by Permission.
“Guess I’ll Hang My Tears Out To Dry” by Jules Styne, Sammy Cahn
Copyright © 1944 (Renewed), Producers Music Publ. Co., Inc. (ASCAP) and Cahn Music Co. (ASCAP)
All rights on behalf of Producers Music Publ. Co., Inc. administered by Chappell & Co., Inc.
All rights on behalf of Cahn Music Co. administered by WB Music Corp. All Rights Reserved. Used by
Permission.
“It All Depends on You” by Ray Henderson, Lew Brown, B.G. Desylva
Copyright © 1926 (Renewed), Chappell & Co., Stephen Ballentine Music, Ray Henderson Music All Rights
Reserved. Used by Permission.
“Violets for Your Furs”
Copyright © 1941, Music Sales Corporation (ASCAP) International. All Rights Reserved. Used by Permission.
“Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition” by Frank Loesser
Published by Famous Music LLC (ASCAP) All Rights Reserved. Used by Permission.
###
Asolo Repertory Theatre (AKA: Asolo Theatre Company, Inc.) is funded in part by the Division of Cultural Affairs, Florida Department of State,
The Florida Arts Council, the City and County of Sarasota and the Sarasota County Tourist Development Tax through the Board of County
Commissioners, the Tourist Development Council, and the Sarasota Arts Council. The Asolo Rep’s Shakespeare productions are sponsored in
part by Shakespeare in American Communities, a national theater initiative sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts and The Sallie
Mae Fund in cooperation with Arts Midwest. Additional funding is also received through the efforts of support groups including the Asolo
Angel Association, the Asolo Theatre Guild, The Directors Emeritus and the generosity of individuals, corporations and foundations.
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