Introducing... Our 2008-09 Season!
We are very excited about our 2008-09 season at the Grand Rapids Civic Theatre and School of Theatre Arts. Our goal is to provide West Michigan families with the highest quality community theatre productions possible. This current season has certainly been one of our best ever, with sold-out performances beyond our expectations. Now get ready for another exciting season filled with a great lineup of plays and musicals to entertain you!
1776
Book by Peter Stone,
Music & Lyrics by Sherman Edwards
September/October 2008
Our season kicks off with the patriotic musical hit, 1776. The birth of our nation blazes into vivid life in a most unconventional way through musical theatre. 1776 is a funny, insightful musical drama that explores the men behind the national icons: proud, frightened, uncertain, irritable, charming, often petty and ultimately noble figures determined to do the right thing for a fledgling nation.
Bunnicula
Book and lyrics by Jon Klein
Based on the “Rabbit-Tale of Mystery” novel by Deborah and James Howe
October 2008
Chester the cat and Harold the dog have a happy and content life, until one day their family brings home a sweet little bunny. Or is it? Get ready for a fantastic theatre experience that will have your entire family on the edge of your seats.
A Wonderful Life
Written by Sheldon Harnick and Music by Joe Raposo
November 2008 Early January 2009
A Wonderful Life is an inspirational musical based on the classic Frank Capra film, “It’s a Wonderful Life”, starring Jimmy Stewart, which, in turn, was based on the 1938 short story by Philip Van Doren Stern, “The Greatest Gift”. This 2005 Broadway concert is making its regional debut at the Grand Rapids Civic Theatre this holiday season.
A Raisin in the Sun
By Lorraine Hansberry
January/February 2009
Set in Chicago’s South Side during the 1950s, this groundbreaking play revolves around the divergent dreams and conflicts within three generations of the Younger family. Sacrifice, trust and love among family, and their heroic struggle to retain dignity in the face of a changing world is a searing and timeless document of hope and inspiration. This powerful drama is a pivotal play in the history of the American Black theatre.
The Producers
Music & Lyrics by Mel Brooks
Book by Mel Brooks & Thomas Meehan
March 2009
The popular Tony® Award-winning musical comes to the Civic stage. Based on the Academy Award-winning 1968 comedy film, The Producers tells the story of down-on-his-luck theatrical producer Max Bialystock and Leo Bloom, a mousy accountant. Together they hatch the ultimate scam to raise more money than needed for a sure-fire Broadway flop and pocket the difference. This is sure to be one of Grand Rapids’ best theatrical productions of the year!
The Foreigner
By Larry Shue
April/May 2009
Get ready for a classic comedy about mistaken identity. A shy Brit escapes his stressful life on holiday in backwoods Georgia. To avoid the local yokels, he poses as a foreigner who speaks “no English,” making him the perfect person with whom all share their deepest secrets and sinister schemes. His discoveries lead to a wildly funny chain of events where everything goes awry.
Willy Wonka
Adapted for stage from Roald Dahl’s classic film Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory
May/June 2009
Join the world-famous candy man and his Oompa Loompas as they lead Charlie, the spoiled-rotten Veruca Salt, gluttonous Augustus Gloop, gum-chewing Violet Beauregarde, and television junkie Mike Teevee through a labyrinth of candied delight. A scrumptious musical theatre treat for your entire family!
SUMMER REPERTORY PRODUCTIONS
Sleeping Beauty
By Charles Way
August 2009
Once upon a time... get ready! Here comes a modern, funnier version of one of your favorite tales. Briar Rose is an independent and in-your-face kind of princess with a half-witted half-dragon to keep her safe. Enter the Prince of course and you’ve got a funny and amazing adventure that’s sure to please your whole family.
The Pirates of Penzance Junior
Book and Lyrics by Sir William S. Gilbert, Music by Sir Arthur S. Sullivan
August 2009
Before Pirates of the Caribbean, there were the dreaded Pirates of Penzance! Get ready for this wacky and hilarious musical farce of sentimental pirates, befuddled policemen, dim-witted young lovers, dewy-eyed daughters and “the very model of a modern Major-General” all morally bound to the often-ridiculous dictates of honor and duty.
Questions? 616-222-6650 toll free: 866-455-GRCT
