FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

MEMPHIS, a Dynamic New Musical About Race, Romance & Rock 'N' Roll.

High-Energy Show Fuses Award-Winning Talent, Home-Grown Stars, with a Keen Eye Toward Broadway.

SEATTLE - Just one week after America's first African-American President takes office, and this country reaches a new milestone in racial equality, MEMPHIS will open at The 5th Avenue Theatre. This high-energy new musical about race, romance and rock 'n' roll reminds audiences just how far we've come by returning to Beale Street and the segregated South of the 1950s. MEMPHIS follows the fictionalized life story of white radio disc jockey Huey Calhoon, who first shocks a city by playing black music on mainstream radio, and later publicly proclaims his love for the beautiful black singer who inspires him. MEMPHIS is a co-production between The 5th Avenue Theatre and La Jolla Playhouse. The show arrives in Seattle fully-loaded with a creative team that includes award-winning Broadway professionals Christopher Ashley (Xanadu), Joe Di Pietro (I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change), Sergio Trujillo (Jersey Boys and Guys and Dolls) and a musical score developed by Bon Jovi rock superstar David Bryan.

For MEMPHIS Bon Jovi's Bryan has written an original score brimming with gospel, rhythm & blues, and early rock 'n' roll fused with his own contemporary sensibility. Starring Broadway performers Montego Glover (Felicia) and Seattle's own Chad Kimball (Huey) MEMPHISboasts a young energetic cast that makes new songs like "The Music of My Soul," "Memphis Lives in Me" and "Steal Your Rock 'n' Roll" explode from the stage.

Many MEMPHIS cast members call Seattle home but one star, Chad Kimball, is particularly excited to return home from Broadway and perform on The 5th Avenue's stage for his former Roosevelt High School Drama Director Ruben Van Kempen. Van Kempen comments, "While in high school, Chad had enough stellar talent and energy to light up the darkest place on earth. His commitment and passion, along with his acting skill and superb tenor voice make him one of Broadway's top performers."

MEMPHIS marks the first collaboration between the exciting new writing team of Joe DiPietro (author of the record-breaking international hit I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change) and David Bryan (keyboardist, songwriter and founding member of Bon Jovi). Their second musical The Toxic Avenger opens in New York in the Spring of 2009. This award-winning creative team is led by Christopher Ashely (director) and Sergio Trujillo (choreographer); together they've set their sights toward a Broadway run late in 2009.

The creative team (including David Bryan of Bon Jovi), will be at The 5th Avenue Theatre for Spotlight Night on January 5, 2009. Together with the 5th Avenue's Producing Artistic Director, David Armstrong, they will discuss the show's creation and development, preview a few of the new songs and introduce members of the cast. Tickets are free (general admission, limit 4 tickets per reservation) and available to the general public by visiting 5thavenue.org or calling 206.625.1900. Then on January 8, 2009 at 7p.m., David Bryan has been invited to Experience Music Project's JBL Theatre for a live interview as part of their "Oral Histories Program." Tickets are $5 for the general public and free for EMP, SFM and 5th Avenue subscribers/members. Call (206)770-2702 or (877) EMP-SFM1 to reserve your tickets.

In The 5th Avenue's production of MEMPHIS, Chad Kimball plays the irrepressible, often irreverent white DJ Huey Calhoon, and Montego Glover plays the beautiful Felicia, his forbidden love. Other cast members include: Derrick Baskin as Gator, Allen Fitzpatrick as Mr. Simmons, James Monroe Iglehart as Bobby and Cass Morgan as Huey's mother. The role of Delray will be played by J. Bernard Calloway from 1/27 - 2/8, and by Melvin Abston from 2/10 - 2/15. Also featured are: Anne Allgood, Brad Bass, Tracee Beazer, Josh Breckenridge, Kevin Covert, Dionne Figgins, Meaghan Foy, Lauren Lim Jackson, Cashae Monya, Jill Morrison, John Eric Parker, Maya RS Perkins, Jermaine Rembert, Daniel Watts, Charlie Williams, Ty Willis and R. Hamilton Wright.

CHAD KIMBALL (Huey) played Huey Calhoun in Memphis at North Shore Music Theatre and TheatreWorks. Mr. Kimball was seen on Broadway as John Lennon in Lennon and he donned the guise of Milky-White in the Broadway revival of Into the Woods with Vanessa Williams. Other Broadway: The Civil War and Good Vibrations. Off Broadway: Finian's Rainbow, My Life with Albertine and Godspell. Regional theater includes Sweeney Todd (Signature Theatre); Baby (Paper Mill Playhouse); Chess in Concert and Little Fish (The Blank). Mr. Kimball won a Bistro Award for his solo concert, which he reprised at Joe's Pub. Mr. Kimball is a graduate of the Boston Conservatory. More at www.chadkimball.com

MONTEGO GLOVER (Felicia). Broadway: The Color Purple and Dreamgirls Concert. Off Broadway: The Pirates of Penzance, Radiant Baby and Ghetto Superstar. Regional credits include: Memphis (North Shore Music Theatre and TheatreWorks; IRNE and SFTC Award nominations); Aida (IRNE Award winner); Once on This Island (Helen Hayes Award nomination); Dreamgirls; Smokey Joe's Cafe; Ragtime; West Side Story; Oklahoma!; Ain't Misbehavin'; A Midsummer Night's Dream; Jesus Christ Superstar; Into the Woods; Cookin' at the Cookery (IRNE and Dora Award nominations); Saint Heaven (world premiere, Stamford Center) and The Conservationist (world premiere, Asolo Theatre). Commercials include: Subway, Charmin, Wishbone, Verizon, Nickelodeon and McDonald's. TV/Film: Law & Order, Guiding Light, Wonderful World of Disney and Flicker Flutter (RIPFest). Graduate of Florida State University, B.F.A. program. Visit www.MontegoGlover.com.

JOE DI PIETRO (Book and Lyrics). Broadway and national tour: All Shook Up. Off Broadway: I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change, the longest-running musical revue in Off Broadway history. Also Off Broadway: the long-running comedy Over the River and Through the Woods, which has had hundreds of productions around the world. In addition to Memphis, Mr. Di Pietro and David Bryan have co-written The Toxic Avenger (George Street Playhouse, October 2008). Other works include The Thing About Men (Outer Critics Circle Award - Best Off Broadway Musical) and Art of Murder (Edgar Award - Best Mystery Play). His new play, F**king Men, premiered in May at the Finborough Theatre in London. Also, a play he wrote for Marion Ross, The Last Romance, will premiere in Kansas City this fall. Mr. DiPietro and David Bryan are currently at work on their new musical, Chasing the Song.

DAVID BRYAN (Music and Lyrics). Born in Edison, NJ, Mr. Bryan began piano lessons at the age of seven and continued classical study with Emery Hack for 13 years. He attended Rutgers University where he continued his musical education and pre-med studies while preparing for an audition at the prestigious Julliard School of Music. Just after gaining acceptance to the school, he got the call from Jon Bon Jovi that a record company had decided to give them a record deal. The choice was made and the rest is history. As the keyboard player, songwriter and founding member of Bon Jovi, now in its 20th year, Mr. Bryan's journey has included selling 100 million albums, traveling the world playing to millions of people in 50 countries and circling the globe 15 times. In his time off from recording and touring, Mr. Bryan began a career as a composer and lyricist of musicals. Recently appointed as an Honorary Board Member of Only Make Believe - a program dedicated to the principle that freeing a child's creative spirit is a valuable part of the healing process - Mr. Bryan is also a National Spokesperson for VH1's Save the Music Program. The VH1 Save the Music Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the quality of education in America's public schools by restoring music education programs in cities across the U.S.

CHRISTOPHER ASHLEY (Artistic Director/Director, Memphis) most recently directed Xanadu on Broadway at the Helen Hayes Theatre, which opened in June 2007. Since graduating cum laude from Yale University in 1986, Mr. Ashley has directed over 60 productions, including Broadway musical productions All Shook Up (Palace Theatre 2005, national tour 2006) and The Rocky Horror Show (2001 Tony Award, Drama Desk, Outer Critics Circle nominations - Best Direction of a Musical, Circle in the SquareTheatre). At the Kennedy Center Sondheim Celebration he directed both Sweeney Todd (2002, Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Direction of a Resident Musical) and Merrily We Roll Along; at New York Theatre Workshop, Valhalla (2004, Lucille Lortel Award nomination), The Most Fabulous Story Ever Told (1998) and Blown Sideways Through Life (1993); at the Minetta Lane Theatre, Jeffrey (1993, Lucille Lortel Award, Outstanding Director, Obie Award, Director); at the WPA Theatre, The Naked Truth (1994) and The Night Hank Williams Died (1989); at the Joseph Papp Public Theater, Fires in the Mirror (1993, Lucille Lortel Award, Outstanding Director); at the Goodspeed Opera House, They All Laughed (2001) and the world premiere of Lucky in the Rain (1997); at the Lucille Lortel Theatre, Bunny, Bunny (1998); at the Variety Arts, Communicating Doors (1998); at the Manhattan Theatre Club, Wonder of the World (2001), New Yorkers (2001), Between Us (2004) and Regrets Only (2006); at the Helen Hayes Theatre, The Smell of the Kill (2002) and at the Mark Taper Forum, Without Walls (2006). Mr. Ashley has also been the recipient of the Princess Grace Award statuette, the Drama League Director Fellowship and an NEA/TCG Director Fellowship. He also directed the feature film of Jeffrey, released by Orion Classics, and the American Playhouse production of Blown Sideways Through Life for PBS.

SERGIO TRUJILLO (Choreographer). Broadway: 2006 Best Musical Tony-winner Jersey Boys (Drama Desk and Outer Circle Award Nomination for Outstanding Choreography) and All Shook Up. Off Broadway: Saved (Playwrights Horizons); Next to Normal (Second Stage) and The Great American Trailer Park Musical (New World Stages). Other NYC credits: Kismet and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (City Center Encores!) and Salome (NYC Opera). International credits: Tarzan (Europe); Peggy Sue Got Married (West End, London); West Side Story and The Sound of Music (Stratford Festival); Kiss Me, Kate and The Twelfth Night (Tokyo, Japan). Other theater credits: The Wiz and Zhivago (La Jolla Playhouse); All Shook Up (national tour); The Mambo Kings (Golden Gate Theatre); The Wedding Banquet (Village Theatre); Kiss of the Spider Woman (North Shore Music Theatre); Le Nozze Di Figaro (LA Opera); Hoy Come Ayer (Ballet Hispanico) and segments of Chita Rivera's Chita & All That Jazz. TV: Broadway: The American Musical (PBS) and The 14th American Comedy Awards starring Nathan Lane, Martin Short and Jane Krakowski. He is the recipient of a 2003 Ovation Award in LA and three Dora Mavor Moore Award nominations for Outstanding Choreography in Canada. Upcoming Broadway: Addams Family (2010) and Guys and Dolls (2009).

The 5th Avenue Theatre is Seattle's premier musical theater. In 1980, the non-profit 5th Avenue Theatre began producing and presenting top-quality live musical theater for the cultural enrichment of the Northwest community. The 5th Avenue Theatre maintains a subscription audience of nearly 24,000 and an annual attendance of more than 287,000. It ranks among the nation's largest and most respected musical theater companies. The Theatre is committed to encouraging the next generation of theatergoers through its Educational Outreach Program which includes: The Adventure Musical Theatre Touring Company, The 5th Avenue High School Musical Theatre Awards, the Student Matinee Program and Spotlight Nights. Unique in its Chinese-inspired design, the exquisite theater opened in 1926 as a venue for vaudeville and film. Today, under the leadership of Managing Director Marilynn Sheldon and Producing Artistic Director David Armstrong, The 5th Avenue Theatre continues to achieve the highest standards in all aspects of artistic endeavors and facility operations, while preserving its artistic, architectural and historic legacy. Visit www.5thavenue.org.

Ticket Information: Tickets to MEMPHIS are priced from $22 - $81. Tickets are available over the phone by calling 206-625-1900 / toll-free 888-5TH-4TIX (584-4849), www.5thavenue.org. or in person at the box office at 1308 5th Avenue, Seattle, WA 98101. There is no service charge when purchasing tickets in person at The 5th Avenue Theatre Box Office.

MEMPHIS

January 27 - February 15, 2008 (Previews: Jan. 27-31, Feb.1, 3 & 4)

Tuesday Evening 7:30 pm
Wednesday Evening 7:30 pm
Thursday Evening 8:00 pm
Friday Evening 8:00 pm
Saturday Matinee 2:00 pm
Saturday Evening 8:00 pm
Sunday Matinee 1:30 pm
Sunday Evening 7:00 pm

Please contact John Longenbaugh, Public Relations Manager, at (206) 625-1418 with questions or to schedule individual interviews. Photos available upon request.

2008-2009 SEASON CO-SPONSORS: The Boeing Company and U.S. Bank
SHOW SPONSORS: The Boeing Company