Lauren Kennedy, Sarah Stiles & Anneliese van der Pol to Star in Vanities

Lauren Kennedy, Sarah Stiles and Anneliese van de Pol have been tapped for the pre-Broadway production of the new musical Vanities at the Pasadena Playhouse this summer. The show will begin performances on August 22 and run through September 28, with opening night set for August 29. Vanities is aiming for a fall 2008 opening on Broadway at a theater to be announced, directed by Judith Ivey.

Based on Jack Heifner's hit 1976 comedy that ran for 1,785 performances off-Broadway, Vanities is a funny, sexy and poignant look at the journey of three all-American girls as they mature from cheerleaders to sorority sisters in the 1960s to independent women in the late 1980s. Heifner has written the musical's book, collaborating with composer David Kirshenbaum Summer of '42, Party Come Here.

Kennedy Mary most recently appeared on Broadway as the Lady of the Lake in Monty Python's Spamalot. Her Broadway credits include Sunset Boulevard, Side Show and Les Miserables and the New York City Opera production of Cinderella. She played Nellie Forbush in Trevor Nunn's London revival of South Pacific at The Royal National Theatre and starred opposite Val Kilmer in The Ten Commandments at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles. Most recently she starred in pre-Broadway tryout of Lone Star Love with Randy Quaid.

Stiles Joanne played her role in Theatreworks Palo Alto production of Vanities and is currently starring as Kate Monster and Lucy in the Broadway company of Avenue Q. She also appeared in the Broadway and first national touring companies of The 25th Annual Putnam Co. Spelling Bee and in the national tour of Titanic. She toured with Tommy Tune in the Polynesian production of Dr. Dolittle. Her off-Broadway credits include Captain Louie.

Van der Pol Kathy made her Broadway debut in 2007 as the final Belle in Beauty and the Beast and starred for six years of the popular Disney Channel show That's So Raven as Chelsea Daniels. Theater credits include Eva Peron in Evita Buena Park Civic Theatre and Laurey in Oklahoma! Austin Musical Theatre. Dance roles include Clara in The Nutcracker and the title role in Coppelia Southern California Dance Theater.

The musical version of Vanities was originally produced at TheatreWorks in Palo Alto in the summer of 2006 and was awarded two Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Awards for Outstanding Musical Production and Best Original Score. It was also showcased at the 2006 National Alliance for Musical Theatre NAMT Festival of New Musicals.

The Vanities creative team include choreographer Dan Knechtges Xanadu, …Spelling Bee, set designer Anna Louizos In the Heights, Curtains, costume designer Joe Aulisi Charlie's Angels, lighting designer Paul Miller Legally Blonde, sound designer Tony Meola Wicked, music director Carmel Dean …Spelling Bee and orchestrator Lynne Shankel Cry-Baby.

Vanities will be produced on Broadway by Junkyard Dog Productions and Bartner/Jenkins Entertainment.