Petrouchka
Music by Michelangelo Sosnowitz
Directed and Choreographed by Matthew Neff
The busy gray city streets disappear as a homeless man conjures a fantasy world where he becomes a carnival barker. All eyes are on him as he presents a trio of dolls: The Soldier, The Ballerina and The Jester, Petrouchka. As he commands their tale of love and jealousy to unfold, reality and make-believe blur tragically in this dramatic dance musical based on a 1911 Ballet Russe production.
Ron Todorowski comes from Pittsburgh, PA where he began his training at the age of 8. He has worked professionally in musical theater, concert and commercial dance and currently can be seen on Broadway in the Twyla Tharp/Frank Sinatra show, Come Fly Away. Other Broadway credits include: Wicked, Guys and Dolls, The Times They Are A Changin, Movin Out and Footloose. Ron received the 2005 Best Actor Helen Hayes Award for his performance as Eddie in Movin' Out for the first national tour and was part of London's West End production in 2006. Off Broadway he played Kegs in Andrew Lippa's, The Wild Party and was part of the first national tour of Barry Manilow's Copacabana. As a concert dancer he's been a member of Complexions Contemporary Ballet, Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet, The Parsons Dance Company and Mia Michaels RAW as well guesting for many others. Recent TV credits include appearances on SNL, The Tony Awards, The Today Show and the VH1 Video Music Awards. Ron was the Assistant Choreographer for the Lyric Theater's production of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and assisted Mia Micheals in the creation of Celine Dion's A New Day at the Colosseum in Las Vegas.
Ed Kresley began his career as one of Jerome Robbins’ dancers in West Side Story. He went on to appear in Bye Bye Birdie and to assist Gower Champion on Hello Dolly! As Supervising Archivist and Associate Director of the American Dance Machine, he recreated many Broadway dance classics for the repertoire and occasionally appeared with the company. Mr. Kresley has choreographed major rock videos, TV shows and movies. He has also choreographed and directed musical theatre throughout the US, England, France, Italy, Japan and Israel.
Matthew Neff has experience that varies from theater to film, to concert dance. His performances in musical tours include: George M! (Archie/Dance Captain),The Music Man (Linus Dunlop), and Oklahoma! (Jesse Chalmers/Dance Captain).and many regional theater productions. He can be seen dancing in Sony Pictures/Revolution Films’ musical movie, Across The Universe, directed by Julie Taymor. You can also find him in Avril Lavigne’s music video He Wasn’t and Clear Blue Tuesday directed by Elizabeth Lucas. In the world of concert dance, he has had the opportunity to perform works by Charlotte Griffin, Jose Limón, Mark Morris, Chet Walker and had the opportunity to be a part of Anna Sokolow’s Memorial at the Joyce Theater.
Neff’s choreography has also been performed in various showcases and competitions including the finals for the Youth American Grand Prix (YAGP) in NYC. His choreography has also been seen in Puck'd: What Fools These Mortals Be, The Telluride AIDS Benefit, Oklahoma! at Summer Lyric Theatre in New Orleans, musical numbers for Pacific Encore's upcoming film, the music video Junk for Project Jenny Project Jan, both the reading and showcase of the new rock musical, Crazy Head Space, The Who’s Tommy directed by Gabriel Barre at Connecticut Repertory Theatre. He currently is choreographing for recording artist Antonella Barba, from American Idol, on her live performances as well as her debut music video, Jersey Girl.
web.mac.com/matthewneff
Michelangelo has written music for HBO, The History Channel, VH1, USA Network, Animal Planet, PBS, Phillips Norelco, Garnier Fructîs, Acuvue, CONCACAF (Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football) TCM and ABC. He has also scored Independent Short Films such as Spirit, The Underground, Soldier Boy, Lazy Sundays, See Me, Aamala and is currently scoring his first feature length film, A Novel Romance starring Steve Guttenberg and Shannon Elizabeth. Current projects also include the original rock musical Crazy Head Space with creator Elisabeth Davis, which ran at the @ Seaport Theater in NYC, and the score to the original play Peking Roulete, which was featured in the 2010 Midtown Int’l Theater Festival. Michelangelo has also composed music for Industrial Films, Off-Off Broadway Theater, Children's Theater, Public Radio, Television Pilots, TV Show Intros, Commercials, Video Games, World Documentaries, Rock/Pop demos, Elevator Muzak (seriously!), Video Magazines, Aerobics Music (seriously!) and music for the Jumbotron at Madison Square Garden, (sung by the Harlem's Boy's Choir). Michelangelo also writes and plays for the all-star band, Rabbits Against Magic, performing at numerous colleges, music festivals and clubs, as well as a steady stream of shows in NYC and the North East. His music has been played on hundreds of college radio stations across the United States, making CMJ's Top 100 Most Added List at #11, and featured on several AAA and Internet radio stations, including Pandora. His music and reel can be found at www.nomeansyesproductions.com
An excerpt from the score of Petrouchka
"Michelangelo began composing for Petrouchka in Sept 2009. The entire score is some of the most beautiful and haunting music I have ever heard. His music is a great gift for me to bring to life at NYMF."
- Matthew Neff
(Director/Choreographer)
Credit: Original Score by Michelangelo Sosnowitz




