'The Mistress Cycle' at Theatre Row 's Lion Theatre

The Mistress Cycle, a musical by Beth Blatt and Jenny Giering, at Theatre Row 's Lion Theatre from the 15 - 24 Sep 2005. Part of the Second New York Musical Theatre Festival.

A musical tale of sacrifice, destruction and renewal, The Mistress Cycle explores the lives and loves of five notorious adulteresses: Tess Walker, a contemporary Manhattan photographer; Anais Nin, the famed sexual adventurer of the early 20th century; Diane de Poitiers, the mistress of King Henri II of 16th century France; Lulu White, a turn-of-the-century bordello Madame; and Ching, a 14-year-old concubine in 12th century China.

Directed by Joe Calarco and choreographed by Karma Camp, the musical features Stephanie Bast (Nine, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Miss Saigon) as Ching, Lisa Brescia (Tim Rice and Elton John�s Aida, Jesus Christ Superstar) as Anais Nin, Mary Bond Davis (Hairspray, The Women, Jelly�s Last Jam) as Lulu White, Sally Wilfert (Assassins, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, King David) as Tess Walker and Lynne Wintersteller (Grand Night for Singing, Closer Than Ever) as Diane de Poitiers.

The design team for The Mistress Cycle is Michael Fagin (Scenic Design), Anne Kennedy (Costume Design), Chris Lee (Lighting Design) and James Sampliner (Musical Director).

The Mistress Cycle, the first collaboration between Ms. Giering and Ms. Blatt, is one of only three winners of this year's Director's Choice Award from the National Music Theatre Network, the parent company of NYMF. Under the leadership of Co-Guest Artistic Directors Patricia Birch and Kathleen Marshall, 72 professional directors, music directors and choreographers evaluated over 125 works and selected three as the recipients of this honor.

The Mistress Cycle was also awarded the prestigious Jonathan Larson Performing Arts Foundation Award in 2000 as well as the 2002-2003 Dramatists Guild Jonathan Larson Fellowship. Developmental readings of the piece have been produced by the Williamstown Theatre Festival, Barrington Stage Company and TheatreWorks/Palo Alto�s New Works Festival. Giering and Blatt are currently at work on the new musical Caraboo, Princess of Javasu with playwright Marsha Norman (�night Mother). Caraboo will be presented this September at the National Alliance for Musical Theatre�s 17th annual Festival of New Musicals.

Dedicated to discovering new work and new artists, The New York Musical Theatre Festival celebrates the diversity, creativity, and future of musical theatre. NYMF is a flagship program of the National Music Theater Network, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization, and is America�s largest annual musical theatre event.