Wonderettes Spinoff Life Could Be a Dream to Debut in L.A.

Life Could Be a Dream, a male-oriented spinoff of Roger Bean’s off-Broadway revue The Marvelous Wonderettes, is headed for the stage in Hollywood this summer. The new show, written and directed by Bean, will begin previews on July 27 at the Hudson Mainstage Theatre and will open on August 7. The limited engagement is scheduled to run through September 27.

Portraying the “Crooning Crabcakes” singing group will be Doug Carpenter, Justin Michael Duval, Jim Holdridge and Daniel Tatar, with Jessica Keenan Wynn rounding out the cast. The show will feature choreography by Lee Martino and musical direction by Michael Paternostro.

Life Could Be a Dream centers on the boy group banned from the Springfield High School prom, which made it possible for “the Marvelous Wonderettes” to perform there. Now the guys get one more chance at fame and fortune as Denny (Tatar), his friend Eugene (Holdridge), their best friend Wally (Duval) and their new friend Skip (Carpenter) form a singing group so they can enter and win a local contest on Big Whopper Radio. Trouble comes in the form of Lois (Wynn), who arrives to help put some polish on the group but who also broke Eugene’s heart many years before at their Junior Prom. Will Lois and one of the boys find true love? Will these delightfully goofy guys be able to pull it together and win the contest?

The show features such classic songs as “Stay” (Just a Little Bit Longer),” “Runaround Sue,” “The Great Pretender,” “Tears On My Pillow,” “Unchained Melody,” “Earth Angel,” “Little Darlin’,” “The Glory of Love,” and the title tune.

Life Could Be a Dream will have scenic design by Tom Buderwitz, lighting design by Luke Moyer, sound design is by Cricket S. Myers and costume design is by Shon LeBlanc. Life Could Be a Dreamis being produced by David Elzer, Peter Schneider and Crooning Crabcakes LLC.