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Thursday, Aug 07 2:46 PM

Calculus: The Musical! Hits the Road

Know Theatre of Cincinnati is thrilled to announce the national tour of Calculus: the Musical!, which are scheduled to take off on Oct. 20 and tour through Spring 2009.

Calculus: the Musical! is a musical “review” about the history and concepts of calculus. The show includes such numbers as Triggy Rules, Physics Extravaganza and Darcside. Calculus was created by Sadie Bowman, a writer, actor and musician, and Marc Gutman, a high school calculus teacher. Both hail from the Minneapolis area where they have contributed widely to the arts and educational communities. The two created a show that combined the energy and fun of musical theatre with the complexity of calculus theories and history. The musical, which started on the Fringe Festival circuit has been successfully performing at high schools, colleges, teachers’ conferences and corporate events nationwide.

Calculus: the Musical! was first seen in Cincinnati at the 2007 Cincinnati Fringe Festival where they received the coveted “Audience Pick of the Fringe” award. Bowman and Gutman returned to Know Theatre in March 2008 for 8 performances which sold out in a matter of a few weeks. Gutman and Bowman have been touring their creation for the past two years and have taken a hiatus for the 2008 summer season to travel around Europe.

When Producing Director, Eric Vosmeier, heard that the duo wanted to take a break from touring, he began discussing plans to pick up the rights and having Know Theatre host the local and national tours.

Vosmeier has made plans for Know Theatre of Cincinnati to launch official local and national tours of Calculus as an extension of Know Theatre’s “Know-to-Go” educational series. “This is a huge step for Know Theatre’s education program.” says Vosmeier. “Having a math-based education tour is unique. Having one that sells out consistently and receives the kind of acclaim Calculus has received locally and nationally is incredibly exciting”. Two of Know Theatre’s resident actors will perform Calculus: The Musical! in Greater Cincinnati schools, while two non-resident performance (yet to be cast) will tour the show nationally.

“We’re thrilled to be able to take Calculus’ existing model and help streamline it. This will enable us to bring Calculus to an even broader audience both locally and nationally”, Vosmeier says.

Bowman and Gutman will arrive in Cincinnati on September 15 for a week of script work and planning. Rehearsal will commence on September 22 when the actors for the national tour arrive in town. The rehearsal process will begin with a week-long calculus intensive taught by Marc Gutman.

Sadie Bowman will join the Know Theatre staff as Education Coordinator. She’ll assist in running all of Know Theatre’s educational programming, but will focus on booking the national tour. Artistic Director, Jason Bruffy says, “We’re thrilled to have Sadie join our team. She has the experience and contacts from their two years of touring with Calculus and she will help ensure that Know Theatre’s first national education tour is a success.”

Know Theatre is currently calling for headshots and resumes for actors and musicians interested in pursuing the national tour. The actors must have strong skills in singing, acting and playing instruments. They are also expected to have strong algebra skills and a desire to teach.

In addition to the tour, there are also plans to have performances as part of the new Know Education Saturdays, which will take place once at month at Know Theatre of Cincinnati.

Know Theatre is currently booking shows locally and nationally, with intentions to hit cities such as Minneapolis, MN, Toronto, Canada, New York, NY and many more.

For more information on Calculus: The Musical! and booking, contact Eric Vosmeier at evosmeier@knowtheatre.com or call (513) 300-KNOW (5669).

National and local tours will be funded in part by our Know-To-Go Education’s 2008-09 Season Sponsors:

Education Sponsor:
Louis & Melba Schott Foundation
Through Fifth Third Bank

Design Sponsor:
Andrew Jergens Foundation
Through Greater Cincinnati Foundation

Additional funding provided by:
Fine Arts Fund
The Toyota Foundation
Summerfair Foundation
Ohio Arts Council's “Arts Access” program