Music Theatre of Wichita will celebrate its Fabulous Fortieth Season with a summer full of magical musicals. MTWichita's versatile repertory company will perform The Music Man, Finian's Rainbow, Sunset Boulevard, Xanadu and The Little Mermaid from June through August. Purchase your tickets for this unforgettable season now!
The Music Man
June 8 - 12
This ‘river city' story was chosen to complement the River Festival, which will take place simultaneously. Handsome Ed Watts has been asked to star in this production, which will be directed by Mark Madama and choreographed by Peggy Hickey - both of whom have worked on other successful productions of this show. The wonderful Thomas W. Douglas will be returning to conduct all five shows next season.
Director - Mark Madama
Choreographer - Peggy Hickey
Musical Director - Thomas W. Douglas
Finian's Rainbow
June 22 - June 26
Finian's Rainbow, whose recent Broadway revival was greeted with the best reviews of the season, contains an embarrassment of musical riches - "How Are Things in Glocca Morra?," "Old Devil Moon," "Look to the Rainbow" and "When I'm Not Near the Girl I Love," to name just a few. Our audiences will now get to experience the lively and fanciful story that connects these wonderful songs. Wayne Bryan direct, with former company members Lyndy Franklin Smith and Jeromy Smith returning for their first choreographic assignment with MTW. Bruce Brockman is creating the brand new scenery.
Director - Wayne Bryan
Choreographers - Lyndy Franklin Smith and Jeromy Smith
Musical Director - Thomas W. Douglas
Sets - Bruce Brockman
Costume Designer - Sarah Reever
Sunset Boulevard
July 6 - 10
Sunset Boulevard is the haunting musical drama that Andrew Lloyd Webber created out of the 1950 film noir classic. Silent film star Norma Desmond reclusively lives forgotten in her opulent Hollywood mansion, until struggling screenwriter Joe Gillis stumbles into her web. "You're Norma Desmond," he realizes. "You used to be big!" ... prompting her famous response, "I AM big. It's the pictures that got small!" Two of Norma's ballads, "With One Look" and "As If We Never Said Goodbye," became popular hits, but the whole score is terrific. Mark Madama is directing this one, too, with spectacular new sets by J Branson.
Director - Mark Madama
Musical Director - Thomas W. Douglas
Sets - J Branson
Costume Designers - George Mitchell and Deborah Roberts
Xanadu
July 20 - 24
Xanadu is just the silliest thing ever! Based on the notoriously unsuccessful 1980 film musical with Olivia Newton-John and Gene Kelly, the stage version has a wickedly funny sense of humor. The plot? A Greek muse springs to life out of a chalk painting, inspiring a handsome young artist to fulfill his greatest potential - by opening a roller disco! You have to see it to believe it, and we dare you not to tap your toes to songs like "Magic," "Whenever You're Away from Me" and that catchy title tune. Director-choreographer Roger Castellano will get his ‘groove thing going' on this one! New sets will be created by Robert A. Kovach, making his MTWichita debut, and the hip 80s costumes will be created by Tiia E. Torchia. Leg warmers are definitely welcome on this one!
Director/Choreographer - Roger Castellano
Musical Director - Thomas W. Douglas
Sets -Robert A. Kovach
Costumes - Tiia Torchia
Disney's The Little Mermaid
August 5 - 7 and 10 - 14
Disney's The Little Mermaid is our season finale, and what a coup for us to get the rights! The Disney Company selected only three theatres in the country to present the post-Broadway regional debuts of this beloved tale. The 1989 film spawned the Oscar winning hit "Under the Sea," but other intoxicating songs like "Kiss the Girl" and "Part of Your World" are equally memorable. Because of the amazing technical needs of this show, we'll take a couple more days to rehearse it, opening on Friday August 5, playing out the weekend, and then returning for another full week, starting on Wednesday, August 10. (And for those with young Princesses in their family, the Saturday matinee on August 13 will also allow children 3 and 4 years old to attend, waiving for one performance only the restriction that children be at least 5.) Wayne Bryan is also directing this one, with sets by J Branson (who had done all of MTWichita's other Disney shows so memorably). Choreographer Linda Goodrich returns to MTWichita, after her stellar work on such shows as West Side Story, Seussical, Good News!, Cabaret, The Producers and Singin' in the Rain.
Director - Wayne Bryan
Choreographer - Linda Goodrich
Musical Director - Thomas W. Douglas
Sets -J Branson
Costume Designer - Leon Dobkowski
