Apple Tree, Brooklyn, Purlie Set for Encores! in '05
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn tells the story of the Nolan Clan, a Brooklyn working-class family at the turn of the century. Johnny who finds relief in a bottle, his wife Katie and two daughters--Francie who idolizes her father and Cissy who has a string of affairs. The show features music by Arthur Schwartz, lyrics by Dorothy Fields, book by George Abbott and Betty Smith. The Encores! staging, which will utilize a revised book by Eleanor Renfield, will run February 10 through February 13.
Purlie, running March 31 through April 3, features music by Gary Geld, lyrics Peter Udell and a book by Udell, Ossie Davis and Philip Rose. A musical based on Davis' 1961 play, Purlie Victorious, Purlie tells the story of Cap'n Cothcipee, who owned everyone in town where slavery and racism were rife. A young idealistic preacher named Purlie Victorious decides to bring freedom to the townsfolk by inventing an elaborate, ingenious and hilarious scheme to reclaim the people's rights.
The Apple Tree is a unique evening of three one-act musicals about men, women and a little thing called temptation. The first one-act based on Mark Twain's "The Diary Of Adam and Eve" is a quirky, touching spin on the tale of the world's first couple. The second, “The Lady Or The Tiger?," explores the fickleness of love in a fable set in a mythical barbarian kingdom. Finally, "Passionella" is based on Jules Feiffer's offbeat Cinderella-story about a chimney sweep whose dreams of being a "glamorous movie star" nearly sabotage her one chance for true love. The musical, playing Mary 12 through May 16, features music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick and a book by Jerry Bock, Sheldon Harnick and Jerome Coopersmith.