Broadway In Chicago

Broadway In Chicago has announced the complete 2009 Broadway In Chicago Season Series. The anticipated Chicago premiere of Mary Poppins, will be joined in the season by Grease, A Chorus Line, A Bronx Tale and Xanadu.

The complete 2009 season lineup includes:

Grease
January 6 - 18, 2009

The one that you want is back!  Grease, Time Magazine’s 2007 pick for “#1 musical of the year,” is rockin’ across the country in this new production direct from Broadway.  Take a trip to a simpler time of poodle skirts, drive-ins and T-birds.  “Bad boy” Danny and “the girl next door” Sandy fall in love all over again to the tune of your favorite songs: “Summer Nights,” “Greased Lightnin’” and “We Go Together” as well as additional songs from the hit movie: “Grease,” “Hopelessly Devoted to You” and “You’re the One That I Want.” So throw your mittens around your kittens and “Hand Jive” the night away with the show that will make you want to stand up and shout, “A-wop-bop-a-loo-bop A-wop-bam-boom!”  Grease!

A Bronx Tale
March 9 – 22, 2009

Academy Award-nominated actor Chazz Palminteri returns to the stage in an unforgettable performance fresh from a successful run on Broadway, where it was praised by the critics and adored by the public.  In A Bronx Tale, the celebrated play on which he based the legendary movie, Palminteri vividly depicts a young boy's rough childhood in the 1960s-era Bronx and the unforgettable people he encountered.  A classic coming-of-age story about reaching your true potential and trusting your heart, A Bronx Tale is directed by four-time Tony Award-winner Jerry Zaks.

Mary Poppins
Limited Engagement Begins March 11, 2009

Beginning in March 2009, the world's most famous nanny will arrive at the Cadillac Palace Theatre!  Combining the best of the original stories by P. L. Travers and the beloved Walt Disney film, the Tony Award-winning Mary Poppins is everything you'd hope for in a Broadway musical—and like nothing you'd ever expect.  Produced by Disney and Cameron Mackintosh, the show includes such wonderful songs as “Chim Chim Cher-ee,” “A Spoonful of Sugar,” “Let’s Go Fly a Kite,” and, of course, “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.”  The NY Daily News hails Mary Poppins as “a roof-raising, toe-tapping, high-flying extravaganza!” Don't miss all the magic of Broadway’s super hit musical, and let your imagination take flight.

A Chorus Line
April 14 – May 3, 2009

In an empty theatre, on a bare stage, casting for a new Broadway musical is almost complete. For 17 dancers, this audition is the chance of a lifetime. It's what they've worked for - with every drop of sweat, every hour of training, every day of their lives. It's the one opportunity to do what they've always dreamed - to have the chance to dance.  This is A Chorus Line, the musical for everyone who’s ever had a dream and put it all on the line.  Winner of nine Tony Awards, including “Best Musical” and the Pulitzer Prize for drama, this singular sensation is the longest-running American Broadway musical ever.  Now A Chorus Line returns.  Come meet the new generation of Broadway’s best. “A Chorus Line is back, and it’s thrilling!” -John Lahr, The New Yorker

Xanadu
Limited Engagement Begins January 2009

The most celebrated musical comedy in years is also one of the biggest surprise hits in Broadway history. Turning a famously bad film of the same name into an inspired comic gem, Xanadu has critics and audiences leaping to their feet!  This wildly funny musical delivers a surprisingly touching story about the nine magical muse-daughters of Zeus, who comes to earth in 1980 (disguised in roller skates, leg warmers and Australian accents) to inspire humans to create truly great work and discover the meaning of the universe's greatest secret: the Gift of Xanadu. Zeus' most important decree is they can’t fall in love with any mortals! But all that changes when the young Kira meets the handsome artist Sonny, who needs her help in achieving his greatest dream. It is only when Sonny teaches Kira the true meaning of inspiration, that the secret of Xanadu is revealed! People of all ages agree: Xanadu is an unforgettable, must-experience (roller skating) theater event.  The 90 minutes of non-stop fun are set to a legendary score by Electric Light Orchestra and John Farrar, including such hits as "Xanadu," "Evil Woman," "Magic," "Have You Never Been Mellow" and many more. The New York Times raves, "Ingenious and Criminally Funny" and The New Yorker calls it "Brilliant--The most fun you'll have on Broadway."

 The line-up will also feature the opportunity for priority purchase of the following 2008-09 Off-Season specials:

Monty Python’s Spamalot: The Third Coming
January 20 – February 1, 2009

Winner of the 2005 Tony Award for Best Musical, Monty Python’s Spamalot - the outrageous new musical comedy lovingly ripped off from the film classic “Monty Python and The Holy Grail” – triumphantly returns to the home of its World Premiere for a limited engagement.  Directed by Tony Award-winner Mike Nichols, with a book by Eric Idle and music and lyrics by the Grammy Award-winning team of Mr. Idle and John Du Prez, Monty Python’s Spamalot tells the tale of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table as they embark on their quest for the Holy Grail.  Flying cows, killer rabbits, taunting Frenchmen and show-stopping musical numbers are just a few of the reasons audiences everywhere are eating up Spamalot.

Rain: The Beatles Experience
March 3 – 8, 2009

Experience what Beatlemania was all about! From Ed Sullivan to Abbey Road! They look like them and they sound just like them!  “The next best thing to seeing The Beatles,” raves the Denver Post.   All the music and vocals are performed totally live!  Rain: The Beatles Experience covers the Fab Four from the earliest beginnings through the psychedelic late 60s and their long-haired hippie, hard-rocking rooftop days. Rain: The Beatles Experience is a multi-media, multi-dimensional experience...a fusion of historical footage and hilarious television commercials from the 1960s lights up video screens and live cameras zoom in for close-ups.  “Uncanny! Rain are a quartet of fine musicians in their own right…as The Beatles, they triumph!” cheers the Boston Herald.  “An adoring Valentine to The Beatles,” declares the Washington Post.  Sing along with your family and friends to such Beatlemaniac favorites as “Let It Be,” “Hey Jude,” “My Guitar Gently Weeps,” “Come Together” and “Can’t Buy Me Love.”

Shout! – The Mod Musical
April 20 – July 20, 2008

Shout! is a fast-paced journey through the infectious and soulful pop anthems and ballads that made household names of stars like Petula Clark, Dusty Springfield and Lulu. In this Austin Powers-like musical, hits like “To Sir With Love,” “Downtown,” “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me,” “Son of A Preacher Man,” and “Goldfinger” frame the journey of five women during the liberating days of the 1960s that made England swing! The first edition of Shout! appeared on stage at the Duplex in New York in 2000 and then transferred to London’s Jermyn Street Theatre, where it was nominated as Best Musical by WhatsOnStage.  Shout! had the London critics raving during its sold-out run there in 2001. The Times cheered, Shout! “captures all the soulful heartbreak of the ‘60s diva songbook.”

 2009 Broadway In Chicago Season Series ticket holders will receive special benefits, including savings up to 25%, priority seating at each venue, ticket exchange privileges, pre-paid and discounted parking, access to gift cards to give tickets as gifts, as well as the first opportunity to purchase additional tickets to future Broadway In Chicago productions, including those not currently listed in the Season Series.  Season ticket packages will go on-sale Friday, May 9 at 10:00 a.m., and are available by logging onto www.BroadwayInChicago.com or calling the Season Ticket Hotline at 312-977-1717.

Single tickets to each individual production will go on-sale at future dates to be announced.  Broadway In Chicago gift certificates, which can be redeemed for any production or for season ticket packages, can be obtained at Broadway In Chicago box offices, www.BroadwayInChicago.com or by calling Ticketmaster at 312-902-1400.