Fall 2024
Footloose
Sept. 27-29
FOOTLOOSE (1998)
Mainstage Musical: Kirkpatrick Auditorium - 7:30 p.m. Sept. 27-28 & 2 p.m. Sept. 29, 2024
SYNOPSIS: The Oscar-nominated score from this 鈥�80s favorite springs to life in a coming-of-age musical celebrating love, rebellion, and the power of forgiveness.
INSPIRATION: Stage adaptation of the hit 1984 movie, which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year
OF NOTE: Story inspired by a ban on dancing in Elmore City, Oklahoma
CRITICAL ACCLAIM:&苍产蝉辫;鈥淔ootloose is all about fun and the carefree nature of being a teen, which of course is never fully appreciated at the time鈥t should do well, cornering not only the teenage market, but all those who remember the eighties with fondness too." 鈥� British Theatre Guide
Director: David Herendeen
Music Director: Matthew Mailman
Stage Adaptation: ,
Music: Tom Snow
Lyrics:
Additional Music: Eric Carmen, Sammy Hagar, Kenny Loggins,
The Drowsy Chaperone
Oct. 4-6
THE DROWSY CHAPERONE (1998)
Spotlight Opera: Burg Theatre - 7:30 p.m. Oct. 4-5 & 2 p.m. Oct. 6, 2024
SYNOPSIS: When a devoted Broadway fan plays his favorite cast album 鈥� from the fictional show The Drowsy Chaperone 鈥� characters come to life in a hilarious musical farce.
INSPIRATION: A comic spoof of old musicals created by a group of friends for a Canadian stag party.
OF NOTE: Winner of five Tony Awards in 2006, including Best Book and Best Original Score
CRITICAL ACCLAIM:&苍产蝉辫;鈥淭he perfect Broadway musical.鈥� 鈥� New York Magazine
Director: Karen Coe Miller
Music Director: Chuck Koslowske
Music and Lyrics: Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison
Book: Bob Martin and Don McKellar
The Ballad of Baby Doe
Nov. 15-17
THE BALLAD OF BABY DOE (1956)
Mainstage Opera: Kirkpatrick Auditorium - 7:30 p.m. Nov. 15-16 & 2 p.m. Nov. 17, 2024
SYNOPSIS: An American rags-to-riches love story inspired by a real 19th-century Colorado miner, the opera explores universal truths about love and loss.
INSPIRATION: The rise and fall of 鈥淪ilver King鈥� Horace Tabor and his wives
OF NOTE: The opera was commissioned and premiered by Central City Opera, and debuted at New York City Opera in 1958, starring Beverly Sills in the title role.
CRITICAL ACCLAIM:&苍产蝉辫;鈥�The main pleasure for this listener Sunday night came from Douglas Moore's score鈥t is fluent, easy, inventive." 鈥� The New York Times
Director: David Herendeen
Music Director: Jan McDaniel
Music: Douglas Moore
Librettist: John Latouche
Spring 2025
Head Over Heels
Feb. 14-16
HEAD OVER HEELS (2015)
Spotlight Opera: Burg Theatre - 7:30 p.m. Feb. 14-15 & 2 p.m. Feb. 16, 2025
SYNOPSIS: A bold musical comedy from the team that rocked Broadway with Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Avenue Q and Spring Awakening, set to the music of the iconic 1980s rock band The Go-Go鈥檚. A royal family embarks on a quest to save their kingdom from extinction 鈥� only to discover the key to their realm鈥檚 survival lies within.
INSPIRATION: Music of the 1980s 鈥済irl group鈥� The Go-Go鈥檚
OF NOTE: A debut at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival preceded the show鈥檚 2018 Broadway premiere
CRITICAL ACCLAIM: "Forty years after The Go-Go鈥檚 formation, Head Over Heels does more than preserve the band鈥檚 iconic hits in amber. For two hours and 15 minutes, it鈥檚 enough to pull the world back into sync." 鈥� Entertainment Weekly
Director: Karen Coe Miller
Music Director: Chuck Koslowske
Music and Lyrics: The Go-Go鈥檚
Book: Jeff Whitty, adapted by James Magruder
Strawberry Fields/Gianni Schicci
Feb. 21-23
Mainstage Opera Twin Bill: Kirkpatrick Auditorium - 7:30 p.m. Feb. 21-22 & 2 p.m. Feb. 23, 2025
STRAWBERRY FIELDS (1999)
SYNOPSIS: An elderly woman in New York鈥檚 Central Park imagines the scenes unfolding around her are part of an elaborate opera she is reluctant to leave.
INSPIRATION: The garden-within-a-garden dedicated to John Lennon
OF NOTE: This one-act opera was commissioned by Glimmerglass, NYC Opera and WNET鈥檚 Great Performances Series.
CRITICAL ACCLAIM: 鈥淚t is a moving work鈥ears in the audience flowed nearly as plentiful as on a good Madame Butterfly night." 鈥� New York Newsday
Music: Michael Torke
Libretto: A.R. Gurney
GIANNI SCHICCHI (1918)
SYNOPSIS: Scheming relatives plot to falsify a wealthy man鈥檚 will in Puccini鈥檚 comedy classic.
INSPIRATION: An incident from Dante鈥檚 Divine Comedy
OF NOTE: Lauretta鈥檚 aria has become one of opera鈥檚 most popular.
CRITICAL ACCLAIM: 鈥淥ne of the world鈥檚 best jokes immortalized in a masterpiece of a score.鈥� 鈥� Gramophone
Music: Giacomo Puccini
Libretto: Giovacchino Forzano
Director: TBA
Music Director: Jan McDaniel
Anything Goes
April 11-13
ANYTHING GOES (1934; 2022 revision)
Mainstage Musical: Kirkpatrick Auditorium - 7:30 p.m. April 11-12 & 2 p.m. April 13, 2025
SYNOPSIS: A Cole Porter classic, this musical comedy voyage of the S.S. American is packed with witty, madcap passengers who dance and sing 鈥� including Anything Goes, You're the Top, It鈥檚 Delovely and I Get a Kick Out of You 鈥� while romantic complications ensue.
INSPIRATION: 1936 film starring Bing Crosby and Ethel Merman
OF NOTE: The 1987 and 2011 Broadway revivals won a total of six Tony Awards.
CRITICAL ACCLAIM: 鈥淭he genius of Anything Goes lies in the combination of seriously good music with a plot so gloriously inconsequential that a state of blithe, uncomplicated bliss is reached.鈥� 鈥� The Guardian
Director: David Herendeen
Music Director: Matthew Mailman
Music and Lyrics: Cole Porter
Book: Guy Bolton, P.G. Wodehouse
