Announcing the 2012 Woodminster Season

Woodminster Summer Musicals
Oakland's Summer Theater Under the Stars
Summer 2012 – 46th consecutive season of musical theater in Oakland's beautiful Joaquin Miller Park

Press contact: Kathy Kahn, woodminsterpr@yahoo.com, 510-418-8523
Theater contact: Harriet Schlader, harriet@woodminster.com, 510-531-9597

PRESS RELEASE (For immediate release)

Woodminster Musicals 2012 Shows Announced
46th Season includes Fiddler on the Roof, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, and CATS

• Open Auditions March 31-April 1
• Season Ticket Renewals Available Now; General Admission tickets go on sale March 1
• Kids Come Free, $12 Previews, and half-price tickets for groups makes live theater more affordable

February 18, 2012, Oakland, CA -- Producers Associates, Inc. announces Fiddler on the Roof, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, and Cats are the shows in the 46th season of the Woodminster Summer Musicals. Since 1967, the organization has produced three or more musicals each summer at Woodminster Amphitheater, attracting more than 20,000 ticket holders each season to Joaquin Miller Park in Oakland.

The selection procedure for Woodminster shows is based in part on audience input. All three shows in the 2012 season have been among the top-requested for the last two years. Says Harriet Schlader, Managing Director of the organization, "We think our audience will be very excited about this season. 'Fiddler' is a perennial audience favorite, one of the all-time great musicals. 'Forum' is just the kind of hilarious comedy people are looking for in hard times. And people have been asking for 'Cats' for years -- we're thrilled that we could at last get the license to present it."

Woodminster's 2012 season will open with Fiddler on the Roof July 13-22. The universal story of parents and children, tradition and change, is told through the experience of Tevye, a poor milk man in Czarist Russia, and his beautiful daughters. The familiar score includes songs like "Sunrise, Sunset," "If I Were A Rich Man," and "Matchmaker." Performances are July 13 (opening), July 14, 15, 19, 20, 21, and 22, all at 8 p.m.

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, the second show in the Woodminster season, will be performed August 10-19. This early Sondheim piece combines the classic comedy of ancient Roman playwright Plautus with the slapstick tradition of vaudeville to create one of the funniest musicals ever written. Songs include "Comedy Tonight," "Love I Hear," and "Everybody Ought To Have a Maid." Performances are August 10 (opening), August 11, 12, 16, 17, 18, and 19, all at 8 p.m.

The 46th season of the Woodminster Summer Musicals will close with the musical phenomenon Cats, September 7-16. Based on T.S. Eliot's Old Possum's book of Practical Cats, this long-running hit show features a large cast of singing, dancing felines. The extensive and varied score is most famously the origin of the popular standard "Memory." Performances are September 7 (opening), September 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, and 16. Performances are at 8 p.m. except for September 9, 13, and 16, when they will be at 7 p.m.

Musicians for Woodminster shows are members of Musicians Local No. 6. Actors are a combination of professional Equity actors and actors from the community. This summer's shows include over a hundred roles for adults and teens. General auditions are March 31-April 1. Hopeful performers should check woodminster.com for times, locations, and requirements. Auditions for AEA members are by appointment, and may be arranged by calling 510-531-9597 after March 20.

Tickets for Woodminster shows range from $27 to $56 with a $2 discount for children and seniors. Season tickets for all three shows are also available, and provide about a 15% discount over the single ticket prices. Also, groups of 25 and more can purchase blocks of seats for half price, providing an affordable outing or fundraiser for a church or service group, neighborhood association, or any other group. For information about tickets, check www.woodminster.com or call 510-531-9597.

Season ticket renewals are available now. After March 1, all tickets will be released and season ticket and general admission ticket orders will be filled on a first-come-first-served basis.

For the third year, Woodminster will open the final dress rehearsal of each show to the public as a "preview performance." All preview performances are at 8 p.m., tickets are $12, and seating is open, first-come, first-choice. The preview performance of Fiddler on the Roof is July 12; the preview for A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum is August 9; the preview for Cats is September 6. No group rates, "Kids Come Free," or other further discounts apply for Preview Performances.

In 2012, Woodminster will continue its popular Kids Come Free program, where children and teens 16 or younger who are attending with paying adults can get free tickets on performance nights. (Limitations apply, see website.) The organization gives away about 3,000 free tickets to children and teens each summer. Producers Associates is seeking sponsors for this longstanding program, which helps families introduce their kids to live theater in a relaxed and affordable environment.

The Woodminster Summer Musicals are performed under the stars at Woodminster Amphitheater, an open-air performance facility in Joaquin Miller Park high in the Oakland Hills. The park's spectacular views and serene woodsy environment made it the perfect setting for the amphitheater, cascades, reflecting pool, and paths that were originally built as a WPA project in 1939-40. For many East Bay families, it is a long-standing summer tradition to enjoy a picnic in the park and then see a musical at Woodminster.

Producers Associates, Inc. was founded in 1967 by the late James Schlader (who in May 2010 at age 96) and his wife, Harriet, to provide affordable live summer family entertainment in the East Bay, and to foster a love of live theatre. For more than four decades, the organization, in partnership with the Oakland Park and Rec Department, has been producing summer musicals at Woodminster Amphitheater. Healthy season tickets sales, attendance by groups, and special opportunities for families have made Woodminster shows the best attended performances in Oakland. For more information about the 2012 season or history of the organization, visit http://www.woodminster.com.

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