Theatre & Dance Mainstage 2021 - 2022
The 2021-2022 Season will be a season of imagination that we are embracing at every level. As we return to live performances, we are coming together to ensure the safety of our performers, crew members, staff, and patrons. Our productions are all rooted in ensemble work and embrace the concept of "ensemble" in many innovative iterations. With ensemble shows, the idea of a lead character becomes less important - secondary to the intentions of what can do: bring members of the cast and crew together to create a cohesive, entertaining story, in which audiences can experience, witness, and be moved.
Fun Home
Music by Jeanine Tesori
Book & Lyric by Lisa Kron
Based on the graphic novel by Alison Bechdel
November 18-20, 2021
University Theatre, Theatre Hall
Directed By John Mariano
Musical Direction by Courtney Sherman
Choreography by Denise Carlson Gardner
When her father dies unexpectedly, graphic novelist Alison dives deep into her past to tell the story of a volatile, brilliant, one-of-a-kind man whose temperament and secrets defined her family and her life. Moving between past and present, Alison relives her unique childhood playing at the family’s Bechdel Funeral Home, her growing and understanding of her own sexuality, and the looming, unanswerable questions about her father’s hidden desires. Recommended for ages 14+ due to mature subject matter and strong language.
Circle Mirror Transformation
By Annie Baker
February 24-26, March 2-5
Jean Weidner Theatre, Weidner Center
Directed By Rebecca Stone Thornberry
When four lost New Englanders who enroll in Marty’s six-week-long community-center drama class begin to experiment with harmless games, hearts are quietly torn apart, and tiny wars of epic proportions are waged and won, A beautifully crafted diorama, a petri dish in which we see, with hilarious detail and clarity, the antic sadness of a motley quintet. Contains strong language.
Picasso at the Lapin Agile
By Steve Martin
April 22-23, 28-30
University Theatre, Theatre Hall
Directed By Alan Kopischke
This absurdist comedy places Albert Einstein and Pablo Picasso in a Parisian café in 1904, just before the renowned scientist transformed physics with his theory of relativity and the celebrated painter set the art world afire with cubism. In his first comedy for the stage, actor/comedian Steve Martin plays fast and loose with fact, fame, and fortune as these two geniuses muse on the century’s achievements and prospects.
Student-Directed Studio Productions (TBA)