Lucky Guy announces cast

Avid Theatricals have announced the cast and creative team for the upcoming Off-Broadway premiere of Lucky Guy, a new musical comedy, written and directed by Willard Beckham, opening at the Little Shubert Theatre on 19 May 2011, following previews from 28 Apr, and running through to 24 Jul 2011.

Lucky Guy will star Emmy Award-winner Leslie Jordan (Will & Grace), Varla Jean Merman (aka Jeffery Roberson) ('Chicago,' "Ugly Betty"), Kyle Dean Massey ('Next To Normal,' 'Wicked'), Jenn Colella ('Urban Cowboy,' 'High Fidelity'), Jim Newman ('Curtains,' 'Steel Pier') and Savannah Wise ('Rock of Ages,' 'Ragtime').

Welcome to Nashville - a town full of colorful characters all chasing after the very same dream: a smash hit record. To beat the odds and strike gold (or, better yet, platinum), it takes one great song, serious talent, or lots of luck - and preferably all three.

Featuring an array of musical styles with salutes to Country, Broadway, Vaudeville, Bluegrass, Pop, and even Hawaiian, Lucky Guy weaves a tale of down-home dreamers and low-down schemers all willing to do whatever it takes to come out on top in the cut-throat world of Music City, USA.

Lucky Guy creative team includes Rob Bissinger (set design), Paul Miller (lighting design), William Ivey Long (costume design), Kurt Fischer (sound design), Todd Ellison (orchestrations and musical supervision), and A.C. Ciulla (choreography).

Bio:

Leslie Jordan is the 2006 Emmy Award Winner for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series for his portrayal of "'Beverley Leslie' on 'Will and Grace.' Television audiences will also remember him for his recurring roles on 'Boston Legal,' 'Ugly Betty,' and 'Reba.' Feature film audiences will recognize him from his performance as 'Brother Boy' in Del Shores' adaptation of his play 'Sordid Lives'' with Olivia Newton-John, Delta Burke and Beau Bridges. He continued the role in 'Sordid Lives... the Series' for the cable network Logo, which starred Rue McClanahan, Caroline Rhea and Bonnie Bedelia among others. He has a starring role in the upcoming Dreamworks feature film 'The Help' based on the best-selling novel by Kathryn Stockett. His book "My Trip Down the Pink Carpet" for Simon and Schuster formed the basis of a 90-minute one-man show, which had a 45 city book-signing/performance tour and a successful twelve-week Off-Broadway run in 2010.

Varla Jean Merman (aka Jeffery Roberson) has just completed shooting the feature film "Varla Jean and The Mushroomheads" which he wrote, starred in and produced. He guest starred as "Varla Jean" on "Ugly Betty" last year in the final season of the show. He was also featured on Bravo's "Project Runway Season 5" as the winning model for the show's drag challenge. Jeff played the role of 'Mary Sunshine' in the revival of 'Chicago' on Broadway and also made his network television debut on "All My Children" in the recurring role of lady of the evening Rosemary Chicken.

Kyle Dean Massey - Broadway: 'Next to Normal' (Gabe), 'Wicked' (Fiyero), 'Xanadu' (Thalia). Off-Broadway: 'Altar Boyz' (Matthew). TV: "Cupid" (ABC). Film: "Sex & The City 2."

Jenn Colella has starred on Broadway in 'High Fidelity' and 'Urban Cowboy.' Off-Broadway: Title role in 'Beebo Brinker Chronicles' (Lily Tomlin-producer), 'Don't Quit Your Night Job,' and 'Slut'. Television: "Sondheim! The Birthday Concert at Lincoln Center," "All My Children," "The Good Wife," "Cashmere Mafia" and "Rescue Me." Film: "Lay It Down For Good," "Uncertainty" (with Joseph Gordon-Levitt).

Jim Newman - Broadway: Original companies of 'Curtains' as 'Parson Tuck/Randy' (cast album), 'Minnelli on Minnelli' (cast album), 'Happy in Steel Pier' (cast album), 'Sunset Boulevard' and 'The Who's Tommy,' as well as the workshops of 'Pure Country,' 'Footloose' and 'Urban Cowboy.' Off-Broadway credits include: 'John Denver' in 'Almost Heaven: Songs of John Denver,' 'George Bush/Osama Bin Laden' in 'Newsical!' and 'Millard' in 'On a Clear Day You Can See Forever '(Encores!). Television: Guest appearances on "Celebrity Apprentice," "Hope and Faith," "All My Children," "One Life to Live," "The View," and "The Rosie O'Donnell Show." Film: "Out of Sync" with L.L. Cool J and "The Big Gay Musical."

Savannah Wise - Broadway: 'Ragtime' (Evelyn Nesbit), 'Rock of Ages' (Sherrie) and 'Les Misérables.' Television: "Gossip Girl," "Law & Order: CI" and "Rescue Me." Willard Beckham (Writer & Director) is a native of Hominy, Oklahoma and is honored to have received a special commendation from his home state recognizing his achievements in musical theatre. A graduate of The Cleveland Institute of Music, Beckham made his debut as a composer/lyricist at Carnegie Hall. He was then commissioned to write the first musical comedy ever produced in Korea, 'Magic in the Mirror,' directed by Baayork Lee. As a performer, he toured in the first and second national companies of 'No, No, Nanette.' On Broadway he originated the roles of 'Geoffrey' in 'Something's Afoot' (co-starring Gary Beach) and 'Richard Tidewell' in 'The Utter Glory of Morrisey Hall' with Celeste Holm. After a break of over 20 years, he returned to the New York stage in his own one man musical 'Me, Myself and I.' He earned an ASCAP Special Award for Musical Theatre for Lucky Guy.