TGF12 PRODUCTIONSPRESENTS

BOOK BY

CHAD KESSLER &DAVID JAMES BOYD

MUSIC & LYRICS

DAVID JAMES BOYD

CHOREOGRAPHY BY

BUDDY CASIMANOMUSIC PRODUCED BY

BETBOYZDIRECTED BY

TOM WOJTUNIK

STARRING

TOMASSO ANTICO* JONNY BEAUCHAMP DAVID JAMES BOYD* BRETT DOUGLAS*BADIA FARHA* EMMY RAVER-LAMPMAN* NATHALY LOPEZ EMILY MACNAMARA*

TRAVIS MORIN* TONY PERRY* ERIK RANSOM* KIM SOZZI* JEFF TUOHY*

WWW.THEGROOVEFACTORYMUSICAL.COMTHE GROOVE FACTORY IS AN OFFICIAL SELECTION OF THE 2012 MUSICAL THEATER FESTIVAL

*AEA Member

It’s New Years Eve, 1999. With the entire country caught up in “Y2K Paranoia”, Chazz Goodhart decides it’s the perfect opportunity to escape his rural hometown of Redfield, Virginia. He leaves behind his Meth-dealing mother, and hops a Greyhound bus in hopes of getting into the Party Of The Century: The Y2K Bootyquake Bash” at The Groove Factory. Despite the assault on New York City’s Clubland and the politically charged “War on Designer Drugs”, DJ Willy D Vinyl has managed to keep the music pumping nightly at the last mega-club still standing. After taking in his first moments in the city he has always dreamed of, Chazz goes to find his androgynous & eccentric Uncle Joey, who luckily has a few tricks up his sleeve to secure an extra ticket to the sold-out event. Along with Joey’s two best friends Coco Dependent and Sera Tonin, Chazz and Joey race throughout the adrenaline filled city...entering radio contests, and drag competitions. They will stop at nothing until they are all dancing under the shimmering lights of the new millennium count-down. Once they walk through the doors of The Groove Factory, it’s a mind-blowing, life-altering moment in time that one will ever forget...

ABOUT THE SHOW

For over a decade, we have been passionately working on a performance piece that would combine the elements of a modern day pop concert with a character-driven, theatrical storyline exploring the psychology of a moment in time. When we first started working on the script, we took our inspiration from Madonna’s groundbreaking concert staging of the early 90’s. The song, dance and multimedia elements and social provocations that go hand and hand with these mega dance concerts has always been a point of fascination for us. Add into the mix our love of the theater and nostalgia for the innocence of the 1990s and The Groove Factory is born: a musical that looks at the last glory days of New York City’s mega-dance clubs through the filter of the impending turn of the Millennium accompanied by global Y2K paranoia.

As we work on the piece now, we of course know that Y2K is almost laughable and the real threat was a few years down the road on September 11th, 2001. Our evolving social perspective post 9/11, looks back on the 90’s as a decade of decadence brought on by economic prosperity and childlike innocence without the dark clouds of terrorism and war. The America of the 90’s has been forced to grow up in the decades since. The Groove Factory allows the audience, for one night, to go back to that time right before terror, George W. Bush and iPhones.

After many song demos and closed readings for colleagues and friends, our dream began to blossom. In 2006 the first incarnation of The Groove Factory was chosen as a finalist for the Richard Rodgers Award. Then, in February of 2010, the book and the score were revised and The Groove Factory enjoyed a two week artistic residency at IRT THEATRE in Manhattan’s West Village. In July 2012, The Groove Factory celebrated its world premiere to a sold out audience as an official selection of the New York Musical Theater Festival.

Join us as we continue the adventure!

THE GROOVE FACTORY HISTORY

DAVID JAMES BOYD (MUSIC, LYRICS, & CO-BOOK WRITER)

After appearing on Broadway in Miss Saigon and Kiss Of The Spider Woman (with Chita Rivera), David became co-producer (along with producing partner DJ Randy Bettis, of BETBOYZ) of multiple top 50 Billboard Dance Chart-toppers and has worked with artists Taylor Dane, Judy Torres, Kim Sozzi, Ari Gold, Jenn Cunetta, Brian Kent, Jason Dottley, Levi Kreis, Inaya Day and many more. David has served as composer/music director for music/songs for the Off-Broadway theatrical productions: Zanna Don’t (John Houseman Theatre), Carnival Round The Central Figure (IRT), Matthew Passion (The Actor’s Theatre), Rainy Days and Mondays (Fringe NYC), and the popular touring children’s show, Roots Of Rap Poetry. Audiences enjoyed David’s original music and lyrics in the recent Off-Broadway hit, My Big Gay Italian Wedding (St. Luke’s Theatre). “Pride Is The Word”, his own dance single, will be featured in the upcoming documentary, Raid On The Rainbow Lounge, narrated by Meredith Baxter, and his song “When It Comes to Love” will be featured in the upcoming film, Bear City 2.

CHAD KESSLER (CO-BOOK WRITER)

As a librettist, full musicals include Vicarious (NY Fringe) and current musical workshops Fancy Lady (IRT Theater) and Stepchild (Rochester Institute of Technology & IRT Theater). He is currently working on a solo show, Shiva Makes You Fat, mentored by actress/comedian Judy Gold. On camera, Chad has appeared as a featured regular on NBC’s Open House NY, and is creator, producer and host of The United Plates of America and Woofmeister Inc, both currently in final stages of development. As an actor, he recently created the role of Father Rosalia in the long running Off-Broadway hit My Big Gay Italian Wedding (St. Luke’s Theater). Other NY acting work has been seen at Ensemble Studio Theater, Chashama, Actors Playhouse, West End Theater, and numerous other theaters. He is also a regularly featured voice on Nickelodeon and The Cartoon Network. Chad holds a BFA in Theater Arts from NYU/Tisch.

KIM SOZZI (STARRING AS MELODY MCPLANET)

One of the leading ladies of the Billboard Dance charts, Kim has enjoyed 10 Top #5 Billboard hits since bursting on the scene in 2001 with Feelin Me, which featured popular remixes by Hex Hector, Rosabel and Jonathan Peters. She has the distinct honor of having 3 consecutive #1 songs on the Billboard Dance Charts (“Feel Your Love”, “Kiss Me Back”, and “Secret Love”) and in 2009, her single “Feel Your Love” was the #1 most played Dance song of the year, beating out “Poker Face” by Lady Gaga. Her collaboration with MYNT, “How Did You Know” peaked at #1 on KTU 103.5, received nation wide radio airplay and rose to #2 on the Billboard Chart. Kim has performed with acts such as– Justin Beiber, Lady Gaga, Pitbull, Pussycat Dolls, Flo-Rida, Coldy O’Donis, George Lamond, John Mayer, Fantasia, Backstreet Boys, Kevin Rudolf, and Cascada. In 2003 she recorded “Show Me The Way” with Jose Carrerras and toured with him throughout Europe. The duet went on to achieve enormous acclaim in the European market and was chosen as the theme song for Ski Jumping Olympics in Austria. Signed personally by Tommy Motolla of Columbia Records, Kim’s ballads were featured on the wildly popular soundtracks of Dawson’s Creek and Teaching Mrs Tingle. Kim made her NY stage debut last spring in My Big Gay Italian Wedding, playing Toniann Naso.

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CELEBRITY OF THE DAYDAVID BOYD

After appearing on Broadway in Miss Saigon and Kiss of the Spider Woman withthe legendary Chita Rivera, Oakland, CA native David James Boyd (composer / lyricist / singer / music producer), and producing partner DJ Randy Bettis formed BetBoyz, co-producing multiple top 50 Billboard Dance Chart-toppers.Boyd has worked with artists Taylor Dane, Judy Torres, Kim Sozzi, Ari Gold, Jenn Cunetta, Brian Kent, Jason Dottley, Levi Kreis, and Inaya Day, among others.

Boyd has served as composer/music director for the Off-Broadway theatrical productions Zanna Don't (John Houseman theatre); Carnival Round The Central Figure (IRT Theater); Matthew Passion (The Actor's Theatre); Rainy Days and Mondays (Fringe NYC); and the popular touring children's show, Roots Of Rap Poetry.

Audiences enjoyed David's original music and lyrics in the recent Off-Broadway

Copyright 2009, Celebrity Service International, LLC. No part of this material may be copied or reproduced without priorconsent of Celebrity Service International, LLC.

NEW YORK CELEBRITY BULLETIN, FRIDAY, JULY 20, 2012

smash, My Big Gay Italian Wedding (St. Luke's Theatre).

"Pride is the Word," his own dance single, was featured in the 2012 full-lengthdocumentary, Raid of the Rainbow Lounge, narrated by Meredith Baxter, while his song "When It Comes to Love" was featured in the comedy, BearCity 2 (2012), co-starring Kevin Smith and Kathy Najimy.

David James Boyd and producer / co-writer Chad Kessler are available for interviews regarding the New York Theatre Festival & TGF 12 Productions presentation of their The Groove Factory - A New Musical at the Theatre at St. Clement's (423 West 46th Street) running Tuesday, July 24th through Sunday, July 29th. Boyd, who served as co-writer, composer and lyricist, also stars in the musical whose cast includes the leading lady of the Billboard Dance charts, Kim Sozzi. Sozzi made her New York stage debut last spring in My Big Gay Italian Wedding playing Toniann Naso.

Contact: PR Contact / Interview Requests: Cynthia Parsons McDaniel 917/412-0555 cynp1219@aol.com

LINKS

thegroovefactorymusical.com

soundcloud.com/thegroovefactory

facebook.com/TheGrooveFactoryMusical

youtube.com/user/tgfmusical

@tgfmusical

WWW.THEGROOVEFACTORYMUSICAL.COMTHE GROOVE FACTORY IS AN OFFICIAL SELECTION OF THE 2012 MUSICAL THEATER FESTIVAL

FOR MORE INFO ON THE GROOVE FACTORY, PLEASE CONTACT

JUDITH DRASNER, GENERAL MANAGERDRASNERJUDITH@GMAIL.COM

646 642 2423