“An American In Pari”s is a must-see new musical. If you love classic 1950s Hollywood, Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire, and Gershwin’s music, “An American In Paris” is the musical for you. It’s the most awarded new musical of 2015 and winner of four Tony Awards. You can see it at Portland’s Keller Auditorium through May 21, 2017.
Leigh-Ann Esty as Lise Dassin and McGee Maddox as Jerry Mulligan are a perfect dancing pair. While the show we saw featured Esty as an understudy for the evening, many of the choreography numbers felt like she and Maddox had been dancing together for years. Their fluidity was so natural!
McGee Maddox and Sara Esty in An American in Paris. Photo by Matthew Murphy.
“An American In Paris” is inspired by the 1951 Academy-Award winning film of the same name and is the romantic story about an American soldier, a mysterious French girl, and an indomitable European city, each yearning for a new beginning in the aftermath of war.
Nick Spangler, McGee Maddox and Etai Benson. Photo by Matthew Murphy.
“An American In Paris” is directed and choreographed by 2015 Tony Award-winner Christopher Wheeldon, and the show features the music and lyrics of George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin, and a book by Craig Lucas.
An American in Paris Touring Company. Photo by Matthew Murphy.
The creative team for “An American In Paris” is also comprised of Tony Award-winners Bob Crowley (set and costume designer) and Natasha Katz (lighting designer); Jon Weston (sound designer); 59 Productions (projection designer); Rob Fisher (musical score adaption, arrangement and supervision); Todd Ellison (musical supervisor); David Andrews Rogers (musical director/conductor); Christopher Austin and Bill Elliott (orchestrations); Sam Davis (dance arrangements); Telsey + Company/Rachel Hoffman, C.S.A. (casting); Rick Steiger (production supervisor); Dontee Kiehn (associate director and associate choreographer); and Sean Kelly (associate choreographer and resident director).
An American in Paris Touring Company. Photo by Matthew Murphy.
It’s truly mesmerizing and suitable for ages middle school and up. My 12-year-old and I saw it for her birthday and she loved it. La La Land was one of her favorite movies this past year, and she is spot on when she said this musical reminded her of that movie with its nostalgic, classic Hollywood feel and classic dance numbers.
“An American In Paris” won four 2015 Tony Awards, four Drama Desk Awards, four Outer Critics Circle Awards, the Drama League Award for Best Musical, three Fred and Adele Astaire Awards, and two Theatre World Awards. The musical was included on the Year’s Best lists of The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Entertainment Weekly, The New Yorker, the Associated Press, The Hollywood Reporter, and The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The Masterworks Broadway Original Broadway Cast recording of “An American In Paris” was nominated for the Best Musical Theater Album Grammy Award.
Not familiar with music by the Gershwins? You’re bound to know a few of these numbers even if you didn’t realize they were Gershwin numbers! The score of “An American In Paris” includes the songs “I Got Rhythm,” “Liza,” “‘S’Wonderful,” “But Not For Me,” “I’ll Build a Stairway to Paradise,” and orchestral music including “Concerto in F,” “Second Prelude,” “Second Rhapsody/Cuban Overture,” and “An American In Paris.”
The production opened to widespread critical acclaim at the Palace Theatre on Broadway on April 12, 2015, after its world premiere run at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris November 22, 2014–January 4, 2015. The New York production closed on October 9, 2016, after playing more than 600 performances. A West End production of “An American In Paris” opened in March 2017 at the Dominion Theatre.
For Ticket and Performance Information
- Friday, May 19 7:30pm – Audio Described Performance
- Saturday, May 20 2:00pm and 7:30pm
- Sunday, May 21 1:00pm | 6:30pm – Open Caption Performance
Wheelchair seating is available at all performances. For information on ADA seating, please call the Portland Opera Box Office at 503-241-1802.
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