9 to 5, Jekyll & Hyde, et al. Lead Pittsburgh CLO's Summer Season

Pittsburgh CLO's 2011 Summer Season will fill the Benedum Center with performances audiences will remember well into 2012. In addition to favorite local performers, this summer will be highlighted by talented Broadway stars, accomplished recording artists and veterans of the stage and screen.

9 to 5: The Musical, May 31 - June 5
Diana DeGarmo makes her Benedum Center debut in the role Dolly Parton first made famous as the beautiful and misunderstood Doralee Rhodes in 9 to 5: The Musical. Ms. DeGarmo was runner-up on the third season of "American Idol" at age 16 and has since topped the chart of Billboard's Hot 100 Singles. Her already impressive list of theater credits includes Hairspray and HAIR the Musical on Broadway in addition to The Toxic Avenger off-Broadway and the National Tour of Brooklyn: The Musical (Brooklyn). Regionally, she has also appeared in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, West Side Story and Back to Bacharach and David.

Dee Hoty returns to Pittsburgh CLO as would-be felon Violet Newstead in 9 to 5: The Musical. In addition to her Pittsburgh CLO appearances in A Little Night Music and Cats, Ms. Hoty has earned three Tony® Award nominations for starring roles in Footloose, The Best Little Whorehouse Goes Public and The Will Rogers Follies. She also starred on Broadway and in eight major U.S. cities as Donna Sheridan in Mamma Mia!

Joseph Mahowald returns to Pittsburgh CLO in 9 to 5: The Musical after he last appeared in Chess 14 years ago. Mr. Mahowald will take on the role of the boss audiences love to hate, Franklin Hart, Jr. He starred in Boublil & Schönberg's The Pirate Queen on Broadway and previously starred on Broadway in the title role of Jekyll & Hyde and Javert and Enjolras in Les Misérables. He originated the role of Aaron James in Mike Reid's opera, Different Fields, commissioned by The Metropolitan Opera Guild. Mr. Mahowald also created the roles of Ace Gruver in Tony® Award-winning William Luce's Sayonara and Captain Phoebus in Dennis DeYoung's (Styxx) adaptation of Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

The national tour of 9 to 5: The Musical was directed by Pittsburgh native and Pine-Richland graduate Jeff Calhoun. He also served as the producer and director/choreographer for the Broadway production of Brooklyn the Musical, and the director/choreographer of the 1994 Broadway revival of Grease!, for which he received a Tony® Award nomination for Best Choreography. He last directed the smash hit Disney's High School Musical for Pittsburgh CLO in 2007.

Jekyll & Hyde, June 14 - 26
Kevin Gray reprises the title role he performed in Pittsburgh CLO's critically-acclaimed 2002 production of Jekyll & Hyde. Mr. Gray has also starred in the Pittsburgh CLO productions of The King and I and Miss Saigon. His remarkable list of Broadway and National Tour credits include: The Lion King, The Phantom Of The Opera, Miss Saigon, A Little Night Music, Jesus Christ Superstar, Showboat, Kiss Of The Spiderwoman, The King & I, Titanic, Chu Chem, Night Of The Iguana, and The Music Of Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Elizabeth Stanley makes her CLO debut as the ill-fated Lucy in Jekyll & Hyde. On Broadway she created the roles of Allison in the John Waters' musical, Cry-Baby, and April in the Tony® Award-winning revival of Company. She also starred as Dyanne in the 2010 Broadway premiere of Million Dollar Quartet and as Kira on the first national tour of Xanadu. Her television credits include: "Fringe," "The Chappelle Show" and "PBS Great Performances."

Jekyll & Hyde will be directed by Robert Cuccioli, who returns to the director's chair after directing the 2002 Pittsburgh CLO production of Jekyll and Hyde. He is a Tony® Award nominee for his original portrayal of Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde on Broadway. He also starred as Javert in the Broadway production of Les Misérables. Mr. Cuccioli's previous Pittsburgh CLO performance credits include The Sound of Music, Funny Girl, Guys and Dolls, Bells are Ringing and The Pajama Game. He will also appear in this year's productions of The Sound of Music as Captain von Trapp and Jesus Christ Superstar as Pontius Pilate.

The Sound of Music, July 19 - 31

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