A Tale of Two Cities Musical Announces Chicago, Broadway Plans for 2006

The Broadway-bound musical version of Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities, with book, music and lyrics by Jill Santoriello, will have its world premiere at the Chicago Theatre, where performances will begin on January 31, 2006. The show is being produced by the married team of Barbra Russell and Ron Sharpe who met while appearing in Les Miserables and have since recorded albums and toured together and Ron Phelps and they are planning to have it officially bow on the Great White Way on April 27, 2006.

"I began working on this musical when I was 18—a very long time ago," Santoriello told Broadway.com. "It's a long, long road trying to get a show to Broadway. But this story really speaks to people. It has got this really universal contemporary message about redemption and the how the choices you make in your life are up to you."

"When we heard the first few bars of this music, it floored us," Russell said. "It is so lush. And when we heard it was A Tale of Two Cities—we had to do it. There is no better story than A Tale of Two Cities."

Set against the epic backdrop of the French Revolution and based on the classic Dickens novel, A Tale of Two Cities is a musical about injustice, vengeance and the redemptive power of love.  When Dr. Manette is released from the French Bastille after 17 years, he must be resurrected from the brink of madness by his daughter, Lucie. In England they meet two very different men: the exiled French aristocrat, Charles Darnay, whom Lucie marries, and the drunken cynic, Sydney Carton. Soon family secrets and political intrigue combine to draw Lucie and her family back to Paris. At the height of the Reign of Terror, the musical finds an unlikely hero in Carton, inspired by love to make an extraordinary sacrifice.

Since its inaugural publication on April 30th, 1859, the novel A Tale of Two Cities has sold over 200 million copies in a wide variety of languages. Many have quoted from the book, which famously opens with the line "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times."The book has been the inspiration for many musicals, but, none of them have ever made it to Broadway.

"The source material is just wonderful," Sharpe gushed. "This story is a story that has never been told on Broadway. It's a big story. It's got to have a large cast, with extravagant sets." To that end, the musical is being capitalized at $14 million, which the producers claim has all already been raised.

This A Tale of Two Cities had a huge industry reading at the Little Shubert in the summer of 2004 with a 20-member orchestra, something that is unheard of for a private reading. The cast of that presentation featured Gary Morris, Billy Gillman, Gavin Creel, James Barbour and Jenny Powers. "There were people that were very moved, that came up to me in tears," Santoriello explained. "That is the greatest compliment anyone can pay a writer, to say that you moved them."

While Guy Stroman helmed that reading, David H. Bell will direct the full production. Bell is best known for directing Hot Mikado, which was nominated for an Olivier Award. His other credits include Elmer Gantry, Casper with Chita Rivera, The Theatre of Dreams which he also wrote, Looking Glass, Pictures in the Hall, Weekend, Actor, Lawyer, Indian Chief, Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus in Las Vegas and As You Like It.

A Tale of Two Cities is set to officially open in the Windy City on February 9. It will feature costume design by Gregory Gale, scenic design by Jim Joy and orchestrations by Edward Kessel.

"We had to wait until the time was right to do it," Sharpe stated. "We couldn't do it when Les Miz was on Broadway because of the comparisons [people would make]—we had to wait. We believe now is the time for our show."