THE KING and I
A Concert Performance
The Plaza Arts Center
Eatonton, GA
October 17, 2009 @ 7pm
October 18, 2009 @ 3pm
Rodgers & Hammerstein's
THE KING and I
Music by RICHARD RODGERS
Book and Lyrics by OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN II
Conductor, Kevin Farrell
Concert Stage Director, Baayork Lee
Based on "Anna and the King of Siam" by Margaret Landon
Original Choreography by Jerome Robbins
Atlanta Pops Orchestra
John Head, Music Director
Redeemer Episcopal Academy Children’s Chorus
Donna Brelsford, Chorus Master
Starring
Leslie Denniston as Anna
Francis Jue as the King
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With in order of appearance
Manuel Gonzalez as Louis
Tom Thon as Captain Orton & Ramsay
Raul Aranas as Kralahome
Lisa Yuen, Ka-Ling Cheung & Nancy Yang as the Wives
Martin Sola as Lun Tha
Nita Baxani as Tuptim
Nina Negri as Lady Thiang
Steven Eng as Prince Chulalongkorn
Remi Baker as Princess Ying Yaowalak
|
The auditorium of the Plaza Arts Center filled with the Lake Country’s finest as the
crowds piled in for a night of high caliber performances as OPAS collaborated with
the National Asian Arts Project (NAAP) presented Rogers and Hammerstein’s The
King and I. It was the highlight of the season as larger than life characters Leslie
Denniston (as Anna) and Francis Jue (as the King) along with an all-star cast, lit
up the stage alongside children from the Redeemer Episcopal Academy and the
OPAS Children’s Chorus. This amazing ensemble brought to life the tale of the Welsh 
widow Anna Leonowens who travels to Bangkok to teach the Royal Children and
becomes an advisor to the King of Siam.
The Atlanta Pops Orchestra astounded everyone with their remarkable playing,
impressing even the experienced conductor, Kevin Farrell, who ended the show on a
personal note by praising the orchestra, sharing “I have conducted this show all over
the world, and you’ve never played it better.” 
Glancing around the theatre during the performance there seemed to be a smile on
every face and the parents of the children in the Chorus beamed with pride as their
little stars took center stage and momentarily stole the show. A big thank you goes
out to all the members, volunteers, performers and all the rest of the cast and crew
who helped to make this show a success!
Leslie Denniston, (Mrs Anna Leonowens) is very pleased to be a part of this season at
the wonderful Oconee Performing Arts Society. Miss Denniston has appeared as Mrs.
Anna several times, most recently at The St Louis Municipal Opera (MUNY) with her
castmate this evening, Francis Jue.
Miss Denniston’s Broadway credits include Bobbi/ Gabbi in City of Angels, Anne in
Shenandoah (with John Cullum), she created the role of Twyla in To Grandmother’s
House We Go (with Eva Le Gallienne and Kim Hunter), as well as Agnes in Copperfield
and Linda in Happy New Year, for which she received a Theatre World Award. Off
Broadway appearances include Prelude and Lieberstodt (Manhattan Class Co) and
S.N.Behrman’s No Time For Comedy (Mint Theatre). She has starred in many musicals
and plays throughout the country including: Phyllis in Follies, Desiree in A Little Night Music, Anna in The King and I,
Mame, Golde in Fiddler On The Roof, Blanche in Whatever Happened To Baby Jane, Falsettos, The Pajama Game,
My Fair Lady, Camelot, South Pacific, The Sound of Music, and a recent new musical, Winesburg, Ohio. She has also
proudly portrayed Dr Vivian Bearing in the Pulitzer Prize winning play WIT, as well as Stevie in Edward Albee’s The Goat. Film
and Television credits include: Catherine in Pippin (directed by Bob Fosse); the recently released Pride and Glory; Blue
Heaven; The Sopranos; numerous episodes of Law and Order; As The World Turns, and several years on Guiding Light.
“Leslie Denniston is every bit the match for this King,
and deserves all the affection audiences give her.”
- Bob Wilcox, St. Louis Municipal Opera
Francis Jue (King) Francis has played the King several times. His first Mrs. Anna
was Leslie Denniston, under the musical direction of Kevin Farrell, and he is
ecstatic to rejoin them in “Siam.” Last year, Francis won Obie and Lucille
Lortel Awards, plus Drama Desk and Drama League nominations, for the New
York City premiere of David Henry Hwang’s Yellow Face. On Broadway,
he originated the role of Bun Foo in Thoroughly Modern Millie, appeared as
the Madam and the Dutch Admiral in Pacific Overtures, and understudied Song
in M. Butterfly. Other NYC credits include Coraline, Falsettoland, A Language
of Their Own, and No Foreigners Beyond This Point. Francis has won
regional theatre awards for playing the Engineer in Miss Saigon, the Emcee
in Cabaret, Molina in Kiss of the Spiderwoman, the Narrator in Into the Woods, the Amanuensis in The Illusion and Hua
in Red. He has had recurring roles on Law & Order: SVU and One Life to Live.
Baayork Lee (stage director) has been an established part of the New York theatre
scene for her entire life, starting from the age of 5 as Princess Yingyaulak in the
original Broadway production of The King & I, starring legends Yul Brynner and
Gertrude Lawrence. Currently, she is represented on Broadway as choreographer of the
new critically-acclaimed revival of A Chorus Line, of which she originated the role of
Connie Wong in its original Broadway inception.
Ms. Lee’s extensive theatrical experience includes recently directing the New York City
Opera production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella (starring Eartha Kitt, Dick
Van Patten and Ana Gasteyer), and the national tours of The King & I (starring
Sandy Duncan, then Stefanie Powers) and the first national tour of Bombay Dreams.
Additional notable directing credits include The Kennedy Center’s Carmen Jones (starring
Vanessa Williams and conducted by Placido Domingo), the Australian production of Barnum for Cy Coleman, European tours
of Porgy and Bess and Jesus Christ Superstar, Gypsy for The Signature Theater (Arlington, VA), and a 2001 New York
City revival of A New Brain. She was also Associate Director for Barbara Cook: A Broadway Evening. With A Chorus Line,
Miss Lee has directed more than 35 companies all over the world.
As a performer, Ms. Lee’s career includes 11 original Broadway casts from The King & I (with Yul Brynner); Flower Drum Song
(directed by Gene Kelly); Bravo Giovanni; Mr. President; Here's Love; Golden Boy (starring Sammy Davis, Jr.); A Joyful
Noise; Henry, Sweet Henry; Promises, Promises; Seesaw, and culminating in her biographical and most noted role of
Connie Wong in A Chorus Line, with friend and long-time colleague Michael Bennett.
Ms. Lee is also co-author of On the Line: The Creation of A Chorus Line published by William Morrow. Ms. Lee is also honored by
a number of awards bestowed upon her, including the 2003 Lifetime Achievement Asian Woman Warrior Award from Columbia
College in Chicago.
Kevin Farrell (conductor) works as a composer, conductor, arranger, and pianist on both the Broadway and concert stages.
Some of his theatre credits include musical direction of the Tokyo production of Rent; the Tony Award winning Fiddler On the
Roof with Topol; Cathy Rigby in Peter Pan; and Cats, both on Broadway and in Los Angeles. His involvement with The King & I
spans from the Broadway revival with Yul Brynner, for which he was pianist and assistant conductor, to musical direction of the
two most recent US National Tours. He was musical director/supervisor for all four of the US National Tours of Evita and
also conducted its premiere in Rome. He held this same position for the national tour of Bombay Dreams. Mr. Farrell was
the recipient of the Los Angeles Theatre Critic’s award ‘Best Musical Direction’ for the Royal National Theatre’s production of
Carousel. He was twice Music Director of New York’s Radio City Music Hall (during which he appeared as such in the movie
Annie), was for two seasons music director of Lee Theodore’s The American Dance Machine, and is a frequent guest conductor
at the St. Louis Municipal Opera, for which he was nominated in 2007 for the Kevin Kline Award for Best Musical Direction. He
is privileged to have performed for three American Presidents, both in the theatre and at The White House.
As a performer and musical director, Mr. Farrell created the role of Bob in the off-Broadway musical, Open Heart at the Cherry
Lane Theatre. Currently, he is developing a one-man show based the life of pianist/composer/actor/comedian Oscar Levant.
Mr. Farrell has also done much work abroad. In Italy he has conducted concerts highlighting the works of Copeland, Thomson,
and Bernstein. At Venice's La Fenice Opera, he premiered George Gershwin’s Lady Be Good. He has appeared at the San Carlo
Opera house in Naples and at the Verdi Conservatorio in Milan. Last summer he was honored to guest conduct at Maestro
Riccardo Muti's Ravenna Festival.
Kevin Farrell’s arrangements have been heard in the U.S. and on BBC London, and he has composed the incidental music for
productions at New York's Circle in the Square, The New York Fringe Festival and the Berkshire Theatre Festival, among others.
He has conducted international broadcasts with the BBC Concert Orchestra honoring the American composers Irving Berlin and
Jule Styne. For two years Mr. Farrell was a creative consultant for Disney Entertainment and The Disney Channel. Mr. Farrell
resides in New York with his wife, Karin, who is the vice president of On Location Education.
The National Asian Artists Project (NAAP):
The National Asian Artists Project is dedicated to artists of Asian descent, and their potential to positively impact communities
locally, regionally and nationally. NAAP seeks to present artistic projects of the highest standard throughout the country, and
develop outreach programs that will: support the artistic growth of performers, visual and technical artists through professional
employment opportunities; build and cultivate new local and national audiences that encourage patronage and participation in
the arts; nurture and educate professional and non-professional, current and future artists through training opportunities;
and promote and reflect racial/ethnic inclusion, subscribing to the aesthetic that effective artistic growth is fed through
diversity. NAAP believes that the arts in America in its many forms is constantly changing, always encouraging new artistic
voices and communities, and artists of Asian descent have many vital roles to play as part of the evolution.