White Sand Entertainment (Ken Denison, executive producer) announces GOOD OL' GIRLS, a new musical set to open Off-Broadway, at the Black Box Theatre at The Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre (111 West 46th Street between 6th and 7th Avenues) on Sunday, February 14th. Previews begin Monday, February 8th. The musical, written by two prominent Southern authors, Lee Smith (The Last Girls) and Jill McCorkle (Going Away Shoes), has songs by Nashville hit-makers Matraca Berg (Reba McEntire, Dixie Chicks, Faith Hill) and Marshall Chapman (Jimmy Buffett, Wynonna, Olivia Newton-John). GOOD OL' GIRLS is directed by Randal Myler (It Ain't Nothin' But The Blues; Hank Williams: The Lost Highway; Love, Janis) and adapted by Paul Ferguson. Featured in the cast are: Sally Mayes (She Loves Me), Teri Ralston (Company), Lauren Kennedy (Spamalot), Liza Vann (Machiavelli) and Gina Stewart ("Dawson's Creek".)
Two of Nashville's leading singer/songwriters redefine the modern Southern woman in GOOD OL' GIRLS, a musical about love, loss and laughter. Through the language of five unique southerners, GOOD OL' GIRLS celebrates childhood through old age with big hair and bigger hearts.
GOOD OL' GIRLS will be accompanied by a four-piece band.
The creative team includes sets by Tim Mackabee, costumes by Michael Bevins, lighting by Brian Nason and sound by Lew Mead for Syntonic Design. Bluegrass picker/songwriter Joe Newberry and actress/musician Julie Oliver adapted and arranged the music. Keith Levenson is the musical supervisor.
The playing schedule for GOOD OL' GIRLS is Mondays, Tuesdays, Friday and Saturday at 8PM, with matinees Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays at 3pm.
Randal Myler was nominated for a Tony Award for 'It Ain't Nothin' But The Blues (Director/co-author) at Lincoln Center and the Ambassador Theater; nominated for an Outer Critic's Circle Award for "Hank Williams Lost Highway" (Director/co-author) at the Little Shubert; and his hit musical on the life of Janis Joplin ran for over two years at the Village Theater (Director/author). His musical "Fire On The Mountain" (based on interviews and the music of coal miners) was nominated for five Jeff Awards in Chicago and his musical "Touch The Names: Letters To The Vietnam Veterans Memorial" has been staged at several major regional theaters.
Lee Smith began writing and selling stories at the age of nine. Since, 1968, Smith has published eleven novels, including her 2002 New York Times bestseller, and "Good Morning America" Book Club pick, The Last Girls. Smith has also won an O. Henry Award for her three collections of short stories in 1978 and 1980.
JILL MCCORKLE has had five of her eight books to be named to the New York Times notable books. McCorkle has received the New England Book Award, The John Dos Passos Prize for Excellence in literature and the North Carolina Award for Literature. Aside from published fiction, her essays and reviews have appeared in The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, The News & Observer, Southern Living, Real Simple and the American Scholar.
MATRACA BERG was the youngest nominee ever to the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame and was inducted in 2008. Berg scored her first success in 1983, after writing "Faking Love," which was a number one hit for T.G. Sheppard and Karen Brooks. She went on to contribute material to Trisha Yearwood, Reba McEntire, Deana Carter, Martina McBride and many others.
MARSHALL CHAPMAN was one of the earliest woman musicians to front a rock and roll band. To date she has released ten critically acclaimed albums, most notably, Jaded Virgin (1978), and It's About Time (1996). Her songs have been recorded by a variety of artists including, Jimmy Buffett, Wynonna, and Olivia Newton- John.
