All About Me: Nicholaw replaces Zaks as director

Three-time Tony Award nominee Casey Nicholaw will direct and choreograph Dame Edna Everage and Michael Feinstein's All About Me.

Producers Jeffrey Richards and Jerry Frankel said in a statement, "We feel there is nobody more gifted in musicals and comedies today then Casey Nicholaw, whose work on Spamalot and The Drowsy Chaperone are recent high watermarks in that genre. Dame Edna and Michael Feinstein are thrilled he's joining the team."

Casey Nicholaw was nominated for Tony Awards for his helmship and choreography of 'The Drowsy Chaperone,' and was also nominated for his choreography of 'Spamalot."

Nicholaw replaces the previously announced Jerry Zaks, enabling Zaks to assume his new duties as creative consultant on The Addams Family.

The Addams Family recently opened in Chicago to mixed reviews. The creative team are responding to comments that the show's current direction leaves the narrative of the story unfocused. Zaks has been called in to help tighten the helmship so that the audience can enjoy the 'creepiness' of the Addamses without having to chase after the storyline. The Addams Family opens on Broadway in the Spring of 2010.

Dame Edna Everage and Michael Feinstein's All About Me opens at the Henry Miller's Theatre on 18 Mar 2010, following previews from 19 Feb. It had been originally announced that the show would play at the John Golden Theatre

All About Me is written by playwright Christopher Durang. The design team will be announced at a later date.

A press release desribes Dame Edna Everage as "housewife, megastar, investigative journalist, social anthropologist, children's book illustrator, diseuse, chanteuse, swami, monstre sacré, polymath, adviser to British royalty, grief counsellor, spin doctor and icon is, arguably, the most popular and gifted woman in the world today."

Barry Humphries created 'Dame Edna Everage' in his native Australia in the 50's, where he quickly gained a cult following. He first preformed her character on the British stage at the Fortune Theatre in 1968 in 'Just a Show' which received a mixed reception from the critics, though rave notices from writers such as John Osborne. This led to a short-lived television series on BBC 'The Barry Humphries Scandals.'

Though Austrailian, Barry Humphries has found a special place in the British hearts where his characters Dame Edna Everage' and 'Sir Les Patterson' - Australia's foul-mouthed cultural attaché to Britain - are household names. Humphries is a regular guest on British chat shows, such as 'The Graham Norton Show,' and 'Parkinson,' hosted by Michael Parkinson. Parkinson's chat show ran on British TV from 1971 - 1982 and 1998 - 2007). Parkinson honoured Dame Edna by asking her to be his final guest on his final show, which was watched by 8.3 million viewers.

Barry Humphries was awarded the Commander of the Order of the British Empire for services to Entertainment in 2007, the same year as his native city Melbourne re-named a city street (Dame Edna Place) in his honour.

Dame Edna Everage is a character who refuses to accept her fictional status, in numberous interviews Dame Edna has commented that she finds the idea of a man dessing up as a woman for entertainment purposes "repulsive." According to Dame Edna, Humprhies is merely her manager, and it is reported that the two regularly have disagreements on this issue.

Michael Feinstein last appeared on Broadway in 1990 in 'Michael Feinstein in Concert: Piano and Voice' and performed on Broadway in 1988 in both 'Michael Feinstein in Concert: Isn't It Romantic' and in 'Michael Feinstein in Concert.'

Feinstein released his first album 'Pure Gershwin' in 1986, and has since gone on to release many more albums of American standards, such as 'Remember,' 'Over There,' 'Nice Work if You Can Get It,' 'Michael and George.' Feinstein recently completed a six-part Warner Home Video series for television that depicts the history of the American popular song up to 1960.

All About Me is being produced on Broadway by Jeffrey Richards, Jerry Frankel, Robert G. Bartner and the Ambassador Theater Group.