Album: Launch - Steve Galluccio's In Piazza San Domenico

Steve Galluccio autographing his book

STEVE GALLUCCIO LAUNCHES PAPERBACK OF HIS HIT PLAY 'IN PIAZZA SAN DOMENICO'

By Richard Burnett (Photos: Richard Burnett)

Montreal playwright Steve Galluccio – best-known for scripting the films Mambo Italiano and Funkytown – launched the paperback version of his hit 2010 play In Piazza San Domenico at Montreal's Centaur Theatre on September 11.

Galluccio signed books at the 5 a 7 cocktail and the original Piazza cast – as well as assistant director Adam Blanshay who flew in from New York – were all on hand to do a reading from the book.

Galluccio, meanwhile, is not sitting on his laurels. He is currently writing his guide to Montreal called Montréal à la Galluccio (Les Éditions de l’Homme) which will be published in the spring of 2012. And Galluccio recently secured the French Canadian rights for the hit Broadway play 39 Steps.

We will not be presenting the play as part of a festival or theatre season. We’re doing this on our own, likely in several different theatres. So there is risk involved.


“[Producer] Denise Robert and I saw the play together in New York [last year] and absolutely fell in love with it,” says Galluccio. “Our next trip to New York we negotiated the rights for French Canada. So we’re bringing it to Montreal in 2012. We’ve hired our cast and crew, our director is Benoit Pelletier and the translation was done by [theatre veteran and 39 Steps stage manager] Lucianna Burcheri. We start rehearsals in November and previews will begin in June 2012.”

Adds Steve, “We will not be presenting the play as part of a festival or theatre season. We’re doing this on our own, likely in several different theatres. So there is risk involved.”

Meanwhile, what about that planned Broadway musical based on Mambo Italiano with renowned NYC producers Jean Cheever and Tom Polum, whose rock musical Toxic Avenger did boffo business Off-Broadway? Find out the answers in Three Dollar Bill.

Centaur artistic director Roy Surette introduces Galluccio and the cast

Actors Ellen David, Christina Broccolini and Jocelyne Zucco

Actors Vittorio Rossi, Michel Perron and Carl Alacchi

Piazza cast (L to R): Ellen David, Christina Broccolini, Jocelyne Zucco, Mara Lalli, Vittorio Rossi, 

Michel Perron, Carl Alacchi and Guido Cocomello

Steve Galluccio introduces the cast and scene

Piazza cast reading (L to R): Ellen David, Christina Broccolini, Jocelyne Zucco, Mara Lalli, 

Vittorio Rossi, Michel Perron, Carl Alacchi and Guido Cocomello

Steve Galluccio (R) with his Canadian Encyclopedia biographer, author Alan Hustak

The cast sign each other’s book copies after the reading

Centaur Theatre’s Roy Surette, Steve Galluccio and Broadway producer Adam Blanshay

Steve Galluccio and Broadway producer Adam Blanshay, who was also 

assistant to the director for Piazza and flew in from NYC for the book launch