One theater classic and a musical version of another will be joined by a newer comedy and a disco musical as part of the seven productions that will make up the 93rd season of the Chattanooga Theatre Centre.
The schedule will feature theater staples "Fiddler on the Roof" and "Miracle on 34th Street, the Musical." Joining them will be "A Midsummer Night's Disco," a sort of a Shakespeare meets Donna Summer mash-up, and "Peter and the Star Catcher," a newer work based on a novel by humorist Dave Barry and author Ridley Pearson.
Overall, the season will showcase a wide swath of what theater can offer with "two productions that blend old and new, one show that just concluded a run in 2014, a show that's 'ripped from the headlines' new, a play from a popular playwright/actor that is not yet published and a play that probably hasn't even been written yet," according to a news release.
"Our audiences told us this season, by their attendance, that they prefer the more-recent productions to the older, familiar ones," says George Quick, executive director of the CTC. "So while we open with a big musical that's known to all ["Fiddler"], the rest of the season breaks newer ground. We're saying to our patrons 'Trust us – you're going to love it,' and we think they'll come along."
Series subscription tickets for the season will be offered to current subscribers beginning May 14, then will be available to the general public beginning June 14.
2016-2017 Season
* "Fiddler on the Roof": MainStage Musical, Sept. 9-25. Music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick and book by Joseph Stein. The season opener is a big musical packed with beloved songs. Set in a closely knit Russian village in 1905, it's the story of a father's efforts to preserve traditional values in the face of changing social mores and the growing anti-Semitism of Czarist Russia.
* "The Library": Circle Theatre, Oct. 28-Nov. 6. By Scott Z. Burns. First produced in 2014, it's tells the tale of a girl who survives a deadly shooting at her high school; she struggles to tell her story but is painted in a different light by the media when other stories take hold.
* "Miracle on 34th Street": Main Stage, Dec. 9-23. Music and lyrics by Meredith Willson. Based on the movie of the same name, it was revitalized in 2007 in a new musical that became a hit.
* "Love/Sick": Circle Theatre, Feb. 10-26. By John Cariani. It's so new it's not yet published. The play offerss 10 vignettes about love in the style of the much-loved and oft-performed "Almost, Maine," which Cariani also wrote. The author describes it as "an imperfect romance for imperfect lovers and dreamers."
* Festival of New Plays: Main Stage, April 7- 23. A completely new work for the New Plays Festival – the ninth biennial festival in which the work of local playwrights is showcased.
* "A Midsummer Night's Disco": Circle Theatre, June 2-July 1. This CTC original is a reimagined tale of creation of misplaced love under disco lights on boogie nights.
* "Peter & The Starcatcher": MainStage, July 14-30. Based on the novel by humorist Dave Barry and author Ridley Pearson. Conceived for the stage by directors Roger Rees and Alex Timbers, the script was written by Rick Elice with music by Wayne Barker. It's the backstory of Peter Pan before Wendy and the Lost Boys came along.