History
The show was originally produced as a 45-minute one-act, workshopped at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in New York and the 2005 New York Musical Theatre Festival, starring the authors, Scott Brown and Anthony King. These early versions of the show were directed by Charlie Todd and Music Directed and Accompanied by Barry Wyner.
The full two-act version of the show premiered at The Jermyn Street Theatre in London in January 2006. That production was Music Directed and Accompanied by Michael Roulston and also starred the authors, Scott Brown and Anthony King.
In September 2006, Chris Fitzgerald and Jeremy Shamos were cast in the roles of Bud and Doug for the 2006 New York Musical Theatre Festival. That production was directed by Dave Mowers and Music Directed and Accompanied by Matt Castle and won awards for "Best Book" and "Best Performance."
The November 2006 Off-Broadway production was directed by Alex Timbers and played at 59E59 in midtown before moving to a six-month run at the Actor's Playhouse. That production was nominated for Best Musical at the Lortel and Outer Critic's Circle Awards, as well as Best Book and Best Director of a Musical at the Drama Desk Awards. David Turner and Darren Goldstein replaced the original cast.
In November 2007, the first regional production worldwide was produced by Plan-B Theatre Company in Salt Lake City, Utah. It was directed by Jerry Rapier, Choreographed by Colleen Lewis, Musically Directed by Jeffrey Price, Stage Managed by Jennifer Freed and featured Kirt Bateman as Doug and Jay Perry as Bud. The production was named 'Best Theatre Production' by Salt Lake City Weekly, 'Best Play' by Q Salt Lake and 'Best Comedy' by the Deseret News. After myriad requests, this production was revived June 3–19, 2011 as Plan-B Theatre Company's contribution to the Musicals On Main Series at the Egyptian Theatre in Park City, Utah. The production remains intact other than Sean Sekino is now the Musical Director.
In September 2008, Gutenberg! The Musical! made its West Coast premiere at Strawberry Theatre Workshop in Seattle. Starring Troy Fischnaller (Doug) and MJ Sieber (Bud), with piano accompaniment by Don Darryl Rivera, and directed by Greg Carter. "Fischnaller's Doug is giddily foul-mouthed with self-congratulation, and Sieber has a twinkle in his eye even as he works himself into a sweaty state of breathless zeal. Both performers toil feverishly to keep director Greg Carter's pace for the show—a five-shot-espresso-with-a-Red-Bull-chaser momentum from start to finish. The brakes are completely disabled on this speeding clown car of inside theater jokes."
In February 2009 the show made its international debut at the Seymour Centre in Sydney, Australia.
In August 2009, the first ever Gutenberg fan site, Gutenberg's Travels, was created, documenting the trips made by Lori Mooney and Jennifer Coolbaugh to see the show's regional productions around the country.
Read more about this topic: Gutenberg! The Musical!
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