Image: Tess Benger
Anne of Green Gables-The Musical™
April 14, 2011
Charlottetown, PE – The Charlottetown Festival promised a new Anne of Green Gables-The Musical™ this year, and the creative team is proud now to announce the new cast for the lead roles in Canada’s longest running musical.
“It is an exciting and somewhat daunting prospect to approach this Canadian jewel and bring a fresh face to it,” says Marcia Kash, the production’s new director. “I am looking forward to working with this wonderfully talented cast, some of whom know the piece intimately and some who, like me, will be coming to it for the first time.”
Tess Benger is one of those talents coming to Anne for the first time. Benger will star as the musical’s beloved Anne Shirley. She is the fifteenth actor to become Anne in the production’s 47 year history. Benger appeared as Brenda in the Festival’s blockbuster production of Hairspray last year.
“I remember watching the show last year. I was teary the whole time; it’s such a beautiful, heartfelt story. I remember thinking what a joy it would be to one day play Anne, but I never imagined I would be lucky enough to do it only one year later,” Benger says.
Her passion for theatre comes naturally: her mother is an actor and her father is a documentary film producer. She was acting on stage at an early age, but at 13 when it came time to choose whether or not to attend an arts focused school, she chose soccer over theatre. Yet after high school she chose the Music Theatre Performance Program at Sheridan College.
“Before I auditioned for Sheridan I was sure I wanted to be a gym teacher,” she says. “I think there was a part of me that knew I would end up in this business. My heart is in it.”
Kristian Truelsen takes on the role of Matthew Cuthbert, and Nora McLellan joins the cast as his sister Marilla Cuthbert. Truelsen was featured in Kiss Me, Kate and Evita at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival last year. McLellan appeared in the Stratford Festival last year as well, and spent 22 seasons at the Shaw Festival.
“This will be my first chance to explore Prince Edward Island; my first chance to work with the exceptional talent that is Nora McLellan, and my first time performing this beloved story, so full of heart,” Truelsen says. “To choose which of these firsts I am most looking forward to is impossible!”
Justin Stadnyk steps into the role of Anne’s adversary Gilbert Blythe. Also a graduate of Sheridan College, he has performed throughout Canada, including roles with Mirvish Productions and the Shaw Festival.
Lisa Lennox returns to the role of Diana Barry, a part she played in 2003. Completing the cast are Gabriel Antonacci, David Ball, Greg Barry, Jordan Bell, Robin Calvert, Matthew Campbell, Lindsay Croxall, Craig Fair, Rick Hughes, Susan Johnston-Collins, Zak Kearns, Judy Kovacs, Glenda Landry, Julain Molnar, Kyla Musselman, Marlane O’Brien, Kristen Peace, Kristen Pottle, Dane Wagner and Stephanie West.
“With the new choreography of Mike Jackson and a stunning new set by Doug Paraschuk we can promise you a very different Anne experience,” Kash says. “If you've seen Anne of Green Gables at The Charlottetown Festival a hundred times before, you'll have to see it again-- because you won't have seen it like this!”
Anne of Green Gables-The Musical™ plays at The Charlottetown Festival June 28 to August 31. Visit the Confederation Centre of the Arts box office for tickets, phone (902) 566-1267, toll free 1-800-565-0278, or go online to:
MacLean Construction is the production sponsor for Anne of Green Gables-The Musical™. APM is the major sponsor of The Charlottetown Festival. The Province of Prince Edward Island, through the Department of Tourism and Culture, is pleased to be a funding partner for The Charlottetown Festival. Media sponsors are The Guardian, CTV, K-ROCK and Ocean 100.
Media contact: Dan Wall, publicist, Confederation Centre of the Arts, phone (902) 628-6135
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