Armed with catchy melodies, divine moves and gobs of hair product, Altar Boyz is a hilarious, holy-inspiring musical comedy about five small-town boys– Matthew, Mark, Luke, Juan and Abraham–trying to save the world one screaming fan at a time. Presented as a concert in real-time, Altar Boyz sweetly satirizes the phenomenon of boy bands, the popularity of Christian-themed music, and excess product placement in contemporary American culture. The group's amusingly pious pop act features slick dance moves, heavenly harmonies, and laugh-out-loud lyrics such as "Girl You Make Me Wanna Wait" and "Jesus Called Me on My Cell Phone."
The new Chicago production of Altar Boyz is directed by Stafford Arima and choreographed by Christopher Gattelli (both of the original New York creative team). Arima's other directing credits include the West End production of Ragtime and The Pajama Game at the Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire, as well as serving as Associate Director for Seussical–The Musical on Broadway. He has directed Altar Boyz in Seoul (Korea), Detroit, St. Louis and New York. Gattelli's credits include High Fidelity (Broadway), Bat Boy: The Musical! (Off-Broadway), and tick, tick…BOOM! (Off Broadway and National Tour). For television, Gattelli was a resident choreographer for "The Rosie O'Donnell Show" and the 2000 Tony Awards®. Arima and Gattelli will be reinterpreting their original vision for Chicago audiences.
"Chicago is one of those exceptional cities where theater thrives in such an infectious way that it is easy to be inspired by its energy," said Arima. "This is no ordinary town, so we have approached the show in a fresh way that is completely unique and individual for Chicagoans to call their very own."
The "Boyz" are: Brian Crum (Mark), most recently seen in the Broadway, Chicago and National Tour of Wicked; Devin DeSantis (Matthew) a Northwestern graduate and star of numerous productions at Marriott Theatre and Chicago Shakespeare; Nick Verina (Abe), hot off his appearance in Forbidden Broadway: SVU at the Royal George Theater; and Tyler McGee (Luke) and Adam Zelasko (Juan), recent alums of Altar Boyz regional productions in Long Beach and Michigan, respectively. Radio legend Roy Leonard will be heard as "the Voice of G.O.D." Joey Haro and David Morrison will understudy all roles.
