Goodspeed Announces Creative Teams for 2018; Don Stephenson, Hunter Foster, Sarna Lapine, and More

Two-time Tony Award-winning Goodspeed Musicals has assembled six exciting teams to helm the eclectic group of productions planned this season: an exuberant musical extravaganza, a glorious classic, a hilarious musical within a musical, an intimate musical tour-de-force, a timeless and unconventional new musical and the return of our popular holiday show with new surprises for all ages.

Tickets for productions at The Goodspeed in 2018 are on sale now. Single tickets for the three shows scheduled for The Terris Theatre go on public sale March 26 at 10:00 a.m.

The first of three productions planned for Goodspeed in East Haddam, Conn. will be Will Rogers Follies A Life in Revue - a spirited, Tony-winning Best Musical which will run from April 13 - June 21 [Official Press Opening May 2]. production will be directed by Don Stephenson who helmed the Goodspeed productions of Guys and Dolls and Roar of the Greasepaint - The Smell of the Crowd. Will Rogers Follies will be sponsored by Updike, Kelly & Spellacy, P.C.

Next up at The Goodspeed will be the first-ever Goodspeed production of Lionel Bart's Oliver!. The musical featuring Charles Dickens' beloved orphan will run from June 29 - September 8 [Official Press Opening July 18]. Oliver! will be directed by Rob Ruggiero, marking Ruggiero's eleventh production for Goodspeed Musicals. Oliver! will be sponsored by Liberty Bank, Masonicare at Chester Village and The Shops at Mohegan Sun.

This fall at The Goodspeed The Drowsy Chaperone, a hilarious valentine to show tunes and show people, will run from September 21 - November 25 [Official Press Opening October 10]. Tony Award-winning spoof will be directed by Hunter Foster. The Drowsy Chaperone will be sponsored by Amica Insurance and Robinson + Cole.

Nearby at The Terris Theatre in Chester, Conn., the intimate, hilarious and heart-breaking new musical You Are Here will run May 18 - June 10. You Are Here will be directed by Sarna Lapine who directed the acclaimed 2017 Broadway revival of Sunday in the Park with George.

This summer Cyrano, a timeless story featuring new music by members of the Grammy Award-winning band The National will run August 3 - September 2. Cyrano will be directed by Princess Grace Award recipient Erica Schmidt. National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu recently approved Goodspeed Musicals for an Art Works grant for the further development of Cyrano.

Closing out the season will be the further-developed A Connecticut Christmas Carol, an adaptation of the Dickens holiday classic spiced with the flavor of the Nutmeg State which will run November 30 - December 30. A Connecticut Christmas Carol will be directed by Hunter Foster, who directed the 2017 production of A Connecticut Christmas Carol and Summer of '42, both at The Terris Theatre. The production will be choreographed by Lisa Shriver.

Tickets for productions at The Goodspeed in 2018 are on sale now.

Beginning at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday, March 26, 2018, single tickets for the three productions at The Terris Theatre may be purchased by visiting The Goodspeed Box Office, open seven days a week at 6 Main Street, East Haddam, Conn.; by calling 860.873.8668; or on-line at goodspeed.org. Special ticket packages are still available: see three shows at The Goodspeed OR The Terris Theatre for only $108 or see all six shows for just $216. Contact the Box Office for details. Ticket cost may vary by performance; please call for current pricing. All prices are subject to change.