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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 17, 2007

Contact: Contact: Mike Emery
713.743.8186 (office)
713.415.6551 (pager)
pemery@uh.edu

BROADWAY GREAT JERRY BOCK RETURNS TO
UH FOR 2007 CHILDREN’S THEATRE FESTIVAL

For Broadway legend Jerry Bock, entertaining young audiences has become a rite of summer. As a regular contributor to the University of Houston Children’s Theatre Festival (CTF), Bock has helped craft contemporary stage favorites that appeal to both kids and parents.

This year, he will be on hand for the world premiere of “The Princess Who Could Not Be Heard,” a tale of a deaf princess who is rejected by her own family because of her hearing disability but finds acceptance among circus performers. Performances run June 15 – 29 in the Lyndall Finley Wortham Theatre in UH’s Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts building.

This musical was written by Bock and Sidney Berger, director of the UH School of Theatre & Dance. It is directed by Chesley Santoro Krohn and stars Hannah Alcorn as the princess.

“This is a serious subject, but the story is very light-hearted,” Berger said. “Any time you have songs written by the great Jerry Bock, it’s going to be a fantastic time for audiences of all ages.”

For many years, Bock has brought his musical touch to this event, which annually produces professional plays aimed at younger audiences.

He received Tony Awards for his songs in “Fiddler on the Roof” and “Fiorello.” His work continues to grace the Great White Way in “The Apple Tree,” which is nominated for a 2007 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical.

“Words cannot describe what he brings to this festival,” Berger said. “He is one of the legends of the American musical theater and treats each of these productions as if it was going to open on Broadway.”

Berger and Bren Dubay founded CTF in 1978, and each year, it entertains 25,000 theater-goers at UH.

Tickets are $9 for adults and $8 for children 14 and younger. For more information about the Children’s Theatre Festival, visit http://www.hfac.uh.edu/theatre/performances/ctf.html.

WHAT: Children’s Theatre Festival: “The Princess Who Could Not Be Heard”
WHEN: 10:30 a.m., June 15, 18 – 22, 25 – 29; 1 p.m., June 20; 2 p.m., June 24
WHERE: Lyndall Finley Wortham Theatre in
UH’s Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts
University of Houston - Entrance 16
WHO: The University of Houston’s School of Theatre & Dance

For more information about UH visit the university’s ‘Newsroom’ at www.uh.edu/admin/media/newsroom.