PAPER MILL PLAYHOUSE ANNOUNCES FULL CASTING AND CREATIVE TEAM FOR IRVING BERLIN’S HOLIDAY INN
Paper Mill Playhouse is proud to announce casting and creative team for Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn, based on the film from Universal Pictures, with music and lyrics by Irving Berlin, and book by Gordon Greenberg and Chad Hodge. Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn will begin performances Wednesday, Nov 21, and will continue through Sunday, Dec 30, at Paper Mill Playhouse. Bank of America is the Major Sponsor of Irving Berlin’s Holiday. Paper Mill Playhouse’s 2018–2019 season is proudly sponsored by Investors Bank.
Directed by Mr. Greenberg (The Baker’s Wife, 1776 – Paper Mill), and with choreography by Denis Jones (Mary Poppins – Paper Mill, Holiday Inn – Broadway, Tony nomination), music direction by Shawn Gough (Annie, Paper Mill), the principal cast will feature Paige Faure (Honeymoon in Vegas – Paper Mill) as Lila Dixon, Jordon Gelber (Avenue Q) as Danny, Ann Harada (Avenue Q) as Louise, Jeff Kready (Thoroughly Modern Millie – Paper Mill) as Ted Hanover, Hayley Podschun (Peter Pan – Paper Mill) as Linda Mason, Nicholas Rodriguez (Tarzan) as Jim Hardy with Jian Harrell and Aidan Alberto alternating in the role of Charlie Winslow.
They will be joined by Jordon Beall, Gene Biscontini, Colin Bradbury, Tricia DeSario, Taylor Fields, Kelly Gleason, Juliane Godfrey, Berklea Going, Joshua Israel, Julie Kavanagh, Mallory Nolting, Clifton Samuels, JT Teeling, Karl Skylar Urban, Amy Van Norstrand, Scarlett Walker, Travis Ward-Osborne, and John T. Wolfe.
In this musical based on the beloved Bing Crosby/Fred Astaire film, Jim Hardy leaves behind the hustle and bustle of showbiz for a quiet life on a Connecticut farm. Jim’s agrarian efforts are a flop, but things start looking up when he falls for a talented schoolteacher, and together they infuse their sleepy rural setting with some Broadway razzle-dazzle. Fresh from a Broadway run, this heartwarming, toe-tapping production features more than 20 classic songs from the Berlin catalog, including “Easter Parade,” “Cheek to Cheek,” “Steppin’ Out with My Baby,” and “White Christmas.”
The production team includes set design by Anna Louizos, costume design by Alejo Vietti, lighting design by Jeff Croiter, sound design by Matt Kraus, hair and wig design by Charles G. Lapointe. The production stage manager is Victoria Navarro. Casting is by Telsey + Company, Laura Wade, CSA.
Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn will be performed at Paper Mill Playhouse eight times a week, Wed—Sun. Performance schedule: Wed at 7:00PM, Thu at 1:30PM and 7:00PM, Fri at 7:00PM, Sat at 1:30PM and 7:00PM and Sun at 1:30PM and 7:00PM. Please note: There are no performances on Nov 22 (Thanksgiving Day), Dec 24 (Christmas Eve) and Dec 25 (Christmas Day). Tickets are on sale now starting at $34. Tickets may be purchased by calling 973.376.4343, at the Paper Mill Playhouse Box Office at 22 Brookside Drive in Millburn, or online by clicking here. All major credit cards accepted. Groups of 10 or more may receive up to a 40% discount on tickets and should call 973.315.1680. Season subscriptions are on sale now and are available by calling 973.379.3717. Students may order $23-$28 rush tickets over the phone or in person at the Paper Mill Playhouse Box Office on the day of the performance. Bank of America is the Major Sponsor of Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn.
“Bank of America is committed to supporting arts and culture in our local markets. We are proud to sponsor Paper Mill Playhouse and its production of Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn. Organizations like Paper Mill Playhouse help economies thrive and enable individuals to connect with each other across cultures,” said Robert Doherty, president, Bank of America New Jersey. “Holiday Inn is a classic and is guaranteed to make your days merry and bright!”
PAIGE FAURE (Lila Dixon) is pleased to return to Paper Mill, having previously appeared in Honeymoon in Vegas and On the Town. Broadway: Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella (Ella), Miss Saigon (Ellen u/s), Bullets Over Broadway (Ellen u/s), How to Succeed… (Hedy LaRue). Off Broadway: Joan in Taste of Things to Come. National Tours: R&H Cinderella, A Chorus Line, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Little Women, Aida. Selected regional: Paige in the world premiere of The Heart of Rock & Roll, the new Huey Lewis musical (Old Globe); Lorene in From Here to Eternity (FLMTF); Chess (Kennedy Center); Nice Work… (Eileen) and Seven Brides… (Milly) at Sacramento Music Circus; The Drowsy Chaperone (Janet) at NCT.
JORDAN GELBER (Danny) is excited to make his Paper Mill Playhouse debut. Broadway: Sunday in the Park with George, Buddy in Elf, All My Sons, Avenue Q (original Broadway and Off Broadway cast). Off Broadway: Two Thousand Years, The Joke. TV: Elementary’s M.E. Hawes, Insatiable, The Black List, Mindhunter, Mr. Robot, Boardwalk Empire, Nurse Jackie, Rescue Me, Law & Order: SVU, The Sopranos. Film: upcoming The Kitchen, Bleed for This, Dark Horse, Everyday People (IFP/Gotham Award nomination).
ANN HARADA (Louise) originated the role of Christmas Eve in the Broadway and West End productions of Avenue Q and stepsister Charlotte in Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella on Broadway. Other Broadway: Madame Thénardier in Les Misérables (revival), 9 to 5, Seussical, and M. Butterfly. She performed her solo concert in Lincoln Center’s American Songbook series in 2014. Film: Sisters, Trouble, Youth in Oregon, Admission, Hope Springs, Feel, Happiness. TV includes “Smash” (as Linda, the stage manager), “Lipstick Jungle,” “30 Rock,” “Doubt,” “The Good Wife,” “House of Cards,” “Master of None,” “The Jim Gaffigan Show,” “Search Party,” “Younger.”
JEFF KREADY (Ted Hanover). Paper Mill: Jimmy in Thoroughly Modern Millie. Broadway: Monty Navarro in A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, Tony Elliot in Billy Elliot, Sunday in the Park with George, and Les Misérables (Jean Valjean u/s). Regional: Tommy in Brigadoon (Pittsburgh CLO), Mr. Snow in Carousel (Goodspeed Opera House), and David Sedaris’s one-man show Santaland Diaries (Hartford TheaterWorks). TV: “The Good Fight” (CBS), “Elementary” (recurring, CBS), “Boardwalk Empire” (HBO). Graduate of Washburn University and former elementary school music teacher. Favorite roles: husband to Nikki, father to Lena (5) and Louise (1). Up next: Tootsie, opening on Broadway this spring.
HAYLEY PODSCHUN (Linda Mason) was last seen at Paper Mill as Wendy in Peter Pan. This is her second time at the Inn, having originated the role of Lila Dixon at Goodspeed Opera House. She played Glinda in the national tour of Wicked, and her Broadway credits include Hello, Dolly!; Something Rotten!; Chaplin (Mildred Harris); Anything Goes; Pal Joey; Sunday in the Park with George; Hairspray (also national tour); and The Sound of Music. TV/Film: “The Blacklist,” “Louie,” “Hairspray” (Tammy).
NICHOLAS RODRIGUEZ (Jim Hardy). Broadway: Tarzan. National Tour: The Sound of Music (Captain von Trapp). Off Broadway: Toxic Avenger, Almost Heaven, Colette Collage, Bajour. Carnegie Hall: Guys and Dolls. Regional: Carousel (Helen Hayes nomination), Mother Courage and Her Children, Oklahoma! (Helen Hayes Award), My Fair Lady (Helen Hayes nomination), Destiny of Desire, and The Light in the Piazza all at Arena Stage, The Ten Commandments at the Kodak Theatre, Muny, ZACH Theatre, Milwaukee Rep, Maltz Jupiter Theatre. Film: Sex and the City 2. Television: “Madam Secretary,” Nick Chavez on ABC’s “One Life to Live” (GLAAD Award). His debut album, The First Time…, is now available.
JIAN HARRELL (Charlie Winslow) is thrilled to be making his professional stage debut. Other favorite projects include “Saturday Night Live” and “Late Night with Seth Meyers.” Jian is proud to be part of Hoboken Children’s Theater.
AIDAN ALBERTO (Charlie Winslow Alternate) is excited to be in Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn. Aidan has had principal roles in school musicals and local community theaters. Trained at Paper Mill Playhouse Summer Conservatory (2017), he has under his belt many voiceovers and commercials.
IRVING BERLIN (Music & Lyrics) wrote scores to 13 Broadway musicals, contributed to seven revues, and wrote songs for 12 classic Hollywood movie musicals. Born in Russia, he immigrated to the Lower East Side of New York City, where he started his career as a singing waiter and soon became a lyricist, composer, and music publisher. He built the Music Box Theatre to house his Music Box Revues. Among his more than 1,200 songs, many of which are considered classics today, is “God Bless America,” for which he established a fund that receives all revenue from the song and distributes it to the Boy and Girl Scouts.
GORDON GREENBERG (Director, Co-author) directed and cowrote the Broadway stage adaptation of Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn (Roundabout/Universal, PBS’s Great Performances) and directed the acclaimed West End revival of Guys and Dolls, which starred Rebel Wilson and received six Olivier Award nominations (Savoy Theatre, Chichester Festival Theatre). Recent/current work includes The Heart of Rock & Roll (Old Globe); Barnum (Chocolate Factory, London); Terms of Endearment starring Alfred Molina, Calista Flockhart, and Constance Wu (Geffen); cowriting/directing The Secret of My Success (Universal Stage Productions); directing Dietrich:Piaf (Mirvish, Toronto); writing the new book for Meet Me in St. Louis (Muny); cowriting/directing Mystic Pizza (MGM/Araca); cowriting Port Au Prince (New Group); cowriting/directing Ebenezer Scrooge’s Big (Your Town Here) Christmas Show (Bucks County, Old Globe); cowriting/directing The Curious Case of the Curse of Count Dracula (Maltz); and cowriting original movie musicals for the Disney Channel and Nickelodeon. Other credits: Jacques Brel… (Drama Desk, Drama League, Outer Critics nominations), Working (Drama Desk), Disney’s Tangled. Paper Mill: The Baker’s Wife, Pirates!, 1776, Happy Days. Regional: Williamstown, Muny, Goodspeed, Huntington, Signature, Dallas Theater Center, NY Stage and Film, Philadelphia Theatre Company. Education: Stanford, NYU, RADA. Member, SDC, WGA, The Dramatists Guild. Co-Artistic Director, Broadway Teaching Group. Artistic Associate, New Group.
CHAD HODGE (Co-author) co-created and was showrunner and executive producer of TNT’s drama “Good Behavior.” He also created and executive produced “Wayward Pines” on Fox. In addition, he created NBC’s The Playboy Club and the CW’s Runaway. His film projects include The Darkest Minds for 20th Century Fox, based on the New York Times bestselling trilogy by Alexandra Bracken, which was released in Aug 2018, and Anita, about notorious singer and orange juice spokeswoman Anita Bryant. Hodge grew up in Chicago and graduated magna cum laude from Northwestern University. He lives in Los Angeles.
DENIS JONES (Choreographer). Paper Mill Playhouse: Mary Poppins, Honeymoon in Vegas, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Damn Yankees, The Full Monty, High School Musical, Meet Me in St. Louis. Broadway: Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn (Tony Award nomination for best choreography), Honeymoon in Vegas. Other recent credits: How to Succeed… (Kennedy Center); Hey, Look Me Over! and Paint Your Wagon (NY City Center Encores!); Crazy for You (Signature—Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Choreography); Thoroughly Modern Millie (Goodspeed); The Wiz and 42nd Street (Muny—St. Louis Theater Circle Award for Outstanding Choreography); Moonshine: That Hee-Haw Musical (Dallas Theater Center); A Funny Thing…Forum (Two River/Williamstown). Upcoming: Tootsie.
SHAWN GOUGH (Music Director) is thrilled to return for his sixth production at Paper Mill! Previously: The Color Purple, Annie, The Honeymooners, Pirates!, Happy Days. Broadway: Billy Elliot; Violet; Nice Work If You Can Get It; The Light in the Piazza; Sunday in the Park with George; Into the Woods; The Frogs; Kiss Me, Kate!; The Music Man; Aladdin; Les Misérables; Dames at Sea; Chicago; Big Fish; Dirty Rotten Scoundrels; The Coast of Utopia; Annie Get Your Gun; The Lion King; Mary Poppins; The Drowsy Chaperone. Off Broadway: Carmen Jones; Cagney; Shockheaded Peter; A Man of No Importance; Tick, Tick…Boom!. Upcoming: Marie by Ahrens and Flaherty, directed by Susan Stroman.
ANNA LOUIZOS (Scenic Design) is a three-time Tony Award nominee for In the Heights, The Mystery of Edwin Drood, and High Fidelity. For Paper Mill: The Baker’s Wife, 25th Annual…Spelling Bee, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Irving Berlin’s White Christmas, and Honeymoon in Vegas. Other Broadway designs: School of Rock (sets and costumes), Holiday Inn, Dames at Sea, Honeymoon in Vegas, It Shoulda Been You, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella, Avenue Q, The Performers, Irving Berlin’s White Christmas, Curtains, Baby It’s You!, To Be or Not to Be, All About Me, Steel Magnolias, Golda’s Balcony. Recent Off Broadway/regional: Kings (Public Theater), Evita (Bay Street).
ALEJO VIETTI (Costume Design). Paper Mill: Spelling Bee, Damn Yankees, The Hunchback of Notre Dame. New York: Broadway’s Holiday Inn, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical (also West End—Olivier nomination, national tour, Japan, UK tour, Australia), Allegiance (Drama Desk nomination). Works for the Radio City Rockettes, Roundabout Theatre Company, Manhattan Theatre Club, NYC Opera, City Center Encores!, Atlantic Theater, among many others, as well as the current revival of Smokey Joe’s Cafe. Selected regional: Alley, Hartford Stage, Goodspeed, Guthrie Theatre, Arena Stage, Old Globe, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Minnesota Opera. Other: Disney’s Hunchback of Notre Dame (US premiere, Japan, Germany), Ringling Brothers. TDF Irene Sharaff Young Master Award.
JEFF CROITER (Lighting Design). Paper Mill: over a dozen productions including Newsies and Bandstand. Broadway: Bandstand, Falsettos, Holiday Inn, Something Rotten!, Disaster!, Penn & Teller, Newsies, Peter and the Starcatcher, Mothers and Sons, Soul Doctor, Jekyll & Hyde, The Anarchist, The Performers, The Pee-wee Herman Show, Next Fall, Kiki and Herb. Off Broadway includes The True, Smokey Joe’s Cafe, Jerry Springer: The Opera, Tiny Beautiful Things, Cost of Living, Sweet Charity, Head of Passes, The Last Five Years. Other: Big Apple Circus, Penn & Teller in Las Vegas, Jennifer Muller/The Works. Jeff has received Tony, Hewes, and Bass Awards and Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle, Lortel, Ovation, Irne, and Audelco nominations.
MATT KRAUS (Sound Design). Paper Mill Playhouse: Lend Me a Tenor and Newsies. Broadway: Kristin Chenoweth: My Love Letter to Broadway, Kathy Griffin Wants a Tony, Liza’s at the Palace…. Off Broadway: Caucasian Chalk Circle, 50 Shades! The Musical Parody, Forbidden Broadway, Fat Camp, Voca People. Elsewhere: Evita (St. Louis Rep); West Side Story (Barrington Stage); Evita and Ragtime (PA Shakespeare); The World Goes ’Round (Bucks County Playhouse); Buddy Holly Story (Walnut Street); Absinthe (Caesars Las Vegas); audio coordinator for remote shoots at “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.” Matt recently won a Daytime Emmy Award for his work on Disney’s Broadway Hits at Royal Albert Hall in London.
CHARLES G. LAPOINTE (Hair & Wig Design). Previously at Paper Mill Playhouse: The Sting, The Color Purple, The Outsider, The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Over 90 Broadway shows including Hamilton, The Band’s Visit, Beautiful, Anastasia, Torch Song, SpongeBob SquarePants (2018 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Wig and Hair Design), Summer: The Donna Summer Musical, Amélie, Motown: The Musical, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder, The Color Purple, In the Heights. Upcoming Broadway: The Cher Show, Beetlejuice. Television: “The Wiz Live!” (Emmy Award nomination), “Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert” (Emmy Award nomination), “Blue Bloods,” “American Crime,” “Madoff,” “Hairspray.”
VICTORIA NAVARRO (Production Stage Manager). Broadway: The Lion King, The Color Purple. National tours include Matilda, Annie, Oliver!, and Seussical. Paper Mill: Annie. Opera: Santa Fe Opera, Virginia Opera. Vicky is an adjunct professor at NYU Tisch and Montclair University as well as a Maplewood resident.
TELSEY + COMPANY (Casting). Broadway/Tours: Network; The Cher Show; The Prom; American Son; Torch Song; Pretty Woman; My Fair Lady; Mean Girls; Frozen; Once on This Island; Anastasia; Come from Away; Waitress; Hamilton; Kinky Boots; Wicked; Hello, Dolly!; Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; On Your Feet!. Off Broadway: Atlantic Theater Company, Classic Stage Company, MCC Theater, St. Ann’s Warehouse, Second Stage Theater. Film: Mary Poppins Returns, Ben Is Back, The Greatest Showman, Miss Sloane, Into the Woods, Margin Call, Rachel Getting Married. TV: “Murphy Brown,” “This Is Us,” “House of Cards,” “Divorce,” “NCIS: New Orleans,” “One Day at a Time,” “Atypical,” “Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert,” commercials.
Accessibility Performances for Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn
Paper Mill Playhouse, a leader in accessibility, will offer audio-described performances for Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn on Saturday, Dec 29, at 1:30PM and Sunday, Dec 30, at 1:30PM. Prior to these performances at noon, the theater will offer free sensory seminars. Sensory seminars offer an opportunity for patrons with vision loss to hear a live, in-depth description of the production elements of the show and hands-on interaction with key sets, props, and costumes. There will be a sign-interpreted and open-captioned performance on Sunday, Dec 30, at 7:00PM.
Free Audience Enrichment Activities for Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn
Conversation Club: Join us Thursday evenings, Nov 29, Dec 6, 13, 20 one hour before curtain for an informal, informative gathering. You’ll learn more about the performance you’re about to see.
The Director’s Viewpoint: One hour before curtain at 6:00PM on Wednesday, Nov 21, we host a pre-show discussion in the Renee Foosaner Art Gallery.
Q&A with the Cast: After the matinee on Saturday, Dec 15, stick around for a lively Q&A with cast members directly following the performance.
Paper Mill Playhouse’s 80th anniversary season continues in the winter with the world-premiere musical My Very Own British Invasion (Jan 31—Mar 3), directed and choreographed by Tony Award winner Jerry Mitchell. The 1960s British music scene comes to life with songs from Herman’s Hermits, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Petula Clark, The Moody Blues, and other legendary bands of the era. The spring brings the East Coast premiere of Benny & Joon (April 4—May 5). Based on the 1993 film which starred Johnny Depp and Mary Stuart Masterson, this new musical is a smart, funny, tender-hearted celebration of love: between children and parents; romantic partners; friends; and, most of all, siblings. The final production of the season, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast (May 29—Jun 30), is an international sensation that has played to more than 35 million people in 13 countries. Based on the Academy Award-winning animated feature, the stage production includes all of the original songs from the movie by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman, plus additional gems by Menken and Tim Rice.
Paper Mill Playhouse will once again, be a collection point for this year’s ‘Jersey Cares’ Coat Drive during the run of Irving Berlin’s Holiday Inn. For the past 22 years, The Jersey Cares Coat Drive has mobilized the collection and distribution of thousands of “gently used” winter coats to men, women, children, and infants in need. Last year, Jersey Cares collected more than 30,000 coats throughout the state of New Jersey. Paper Mill Playhouse has been a collection partner for more than a decade and will be collecting gently used winter coats from Nov 1—Dec 30, 2018. Collection of coats will take place in the lobby at Paper Mill Playhouse, 22 Brookside Drive, Millburn, NJ.
