[1] Fitting in and growing up are just a few of the themes explored in Actors Theatre’s production of the new rock musical Girlfriend by Todd Almond.
Titled after the 1991 album of the same name by singer Matthew Sweet [3], Girlfriend tracks the relationship of two teenage boys in a small Nebraska town, in the summer following their high school graduation.
Though the musical is new to most audiences, it has quite a long history with Artistic Director Les Waters. He directed the premiere of the show at Berkeley Repertory in 2010, and also staged a one-night concert showing at Joe’s Pub [4], a renowned performance space in New York City, in 2012.
Ryder Bach, one of two main actors in the show, is reprising his role as Will, which he originated at Berkeley Rep.
Waters says, “I adore this musical. Girlfriend is full of these perfect pop songs that Todd Almond has brilliantly transformed into a touching and genuine story about all the joys and terrors of falling in love.”
The Actors Theatre run will be the first fully-staged production since the premiere. It will feature an all-female band onstage, led by Musical Director Julie Wolf.
Girlfriend is part of the Brown-Forman Series, and runs January 29-February 17. Special performance events include a Balcony Social Media Night on February 7, where audience members are free to tweet, text and otherwise connect via tech devices during the performance. Tickets to the Balcony Media Night are $20.
Regular performance tickets start at $30 and are available online [5] or by calling the Actors Theatre box office at 502-584-1205. Actors Theatre offers several discount ticket options which can be seen on the Actors Theatre webpage. [6]
Image: Courtesy Actors Theatre