Two new-to-Pittsburgh Tony-winning Best Musicals, another recent audience favorite and a couple of classics highlight the upcoming 2008-09 Broadway Series.

"Jersey Boys," the 2006 Tony winner about the life and mob ties of band members of the Four Seasons, and "Spring Awakening," the 2007 winner about youthful rebellion and adult repression in 19th-century Germany -- but with a rock 'n' roll score -- are newcomers to the PNC Broadway Across America-Pittsburgh series.

For the season kickoff in September, back by popular demand is "Wicked," one of the fastest-selling two-week engagements in the history of the series. The musical that's still going strong on Broadway sold out in less than five hours for its Benedum Center run in 2006.

The lone play on the slate is "Frost/Nixon," which is due as a feature film in June. On Broadway, it starred Frank Langella, who won the Best Actor Tony for his portrayal of a complex, post-pardon Richard Nixon, and Michael Sheen as the British talk-show host David Frost. They'll reprise their roles in the movie version, while stage and screen actor Stacy Keach channels the ex-president in the touring production.

Other offerings are "A Chorus Line," now enjoying a successful revival in New York; the timeless "Fiddler on the Roof"; and, for the kids, "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang."

• "Wicked": Sept. 3-Oct. 5, Benedum Center
" 'Wicked' is not just another pretty face, but it's a serious, even tormented tale told with great invention and good humor," wrote Post-Gazette theater critic Christopher Rawson. Even so, there were young children in the audience singing along to Stephen Schwartz's catchy songs when it was here in 2006. The hot-ticket musical is an alt version of what happened in Oz when the Wicked Witch of the West met Glinda the Good Witch -- long before the crash-landing of Dorothy and her little dog.

• "Frost/Nixon": Dec. 2-7, Benedum Center
How did David Frost, a down-on-his-luck talk-show host, elicit the apology that the rest of the world was waiting to hear from former President Nixon? The play by Peter Morgan ("The Queen") imagines the behind-the-scenes dynamics as Frost, with a small band of American advisers, tries to outsmart the cunning, manipulative Nixon during their historic television showdown.

• "Jersey Boys": Jan.7-Feb. 1, 2009, Benedum Center
If you're of a certain age or you keep your radio dial on oldies stations, you'll be able to sing along with Frankie Valli, Bob Gaudio, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi, who sold 175 million records as the Four Seasons. From "Big Girls Don't Cry" to "Rag Doll" to "Oh What a Night" to "Can't Take My Eyes off You," the music will be familiar, even as the story based on the band members' real lives -- and some real-life crimes -- unfolds.

• "Fiddler on the Roof": Feb. 17-22, 2009, Benedum Center
Based on the stories of Sholom Aleichem, the oft-revived "Fiddler" has become a "Tradition" for theater-goers. The production headed here stars Topol, now 72, who played Tevye in the 1971 movie based on the long-running Broadway smash.

• "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang": March 10-15, 2009, Benedum Center
Magical car that flies -- what, you need more? The musical by brothers Richard and Robert Sherman is based on the 1968 film starring Dick Van Dyke as an eccentric inventor with two children, who with their grandfather and the extravagantly named Truly Scrumptious must outwit the dastardly villains who are after their remarkable car.

• "A Chorus Line": April 7-12, 2009, Benedum Center
With music by Pittsburgh Symphony Pops leader Marvin Hamlish, this "singular sensation" shows the triumph and heartbreak of dancers vying for roles on a Broadway chorus line. The winner of nine Tonys and the Pulitzer Prize for drama, "A Chorus Line" is among Broadway's longest-running musicals.

• "Spring Awakening": May 26-31, 2009, Heinz Hall
This "explosive and engaging rock musical," as the PG's Rawson wrote in his review of last year's Tony winner, is powered by an energetic, youthful cast, Duncan Sheik's award-winning score and Steven Sater's adaptation of Frank Wedekind's 1891 play. The clash of awakening adolescent sexuality and adult repression had explicit lyrics and some uncompromising scenes on the Broadway stage. It will be interesting to see how it all translates to the touring production. Of the Broadway version, Rawson wrote, " 'Spring Awakening' spills off the stage into the emotional life of us all."

More information: Subscription packages range from $126 to $447 (compared to $103-$423 this season). For information, call 412-456-1390 or 1-800-828-9200 outside Pittsburgh, or visit pgharts.org/pncbroadway. Groups call 412-471-6930.