Tilden Arts Center To Present URINETOWN: THE MUSICAL

The Tilden Arts Center at Cape Cod Community College will present Mark Hollman and Greg Kotis's "Urinetown: The Musical," winner of three Tony Awards. Evening performances will take place at 7:30 p.m. on April 5, 6, 7, 13, 14, 20 and 21. Matinees will be offered at 2 p.m. on April 7, 14 and 21. All performances will be held on the Main Stage of the Tilden Arts Center.

Tilden Arts Center Coordinator and producer Vana Trudeau is thrilled to have assembled a talented production team - with Holly Erin McCarthy in the director's seat, vocal director Anthony Teixeira, choreographer Hannah Carrita, scenic designer Mark Hopkins, lighting designer Greg Hamm, costume designer Amy Brereton Canaday and conductor Natalie Sheeler. CCCC alumni Kimberly Monteiro and Melanie Marhefka serve as production stage manager and properties manager, respectively.

The idea for "Urinetown" was born in 1995 when Greg Kotis (who grew up in Wellfleet), traveling in Europe, encountered pay-per-use toilets at the Luxembourg Gardens in Paris. The story imagines a city, drained by a terrible water shortage, where private toilets are a thing of the past, and the lines for public amenities are all backed up. As the true nature of "Urinetown" is flushed out, the people revolt, fighting for their right to "go," despite rising fees and tightly clenched bureaucratic practices. With a steady stream of humor, the show parodies popular theater conventions and playfully pokes fun at itself, resulting in a hilariously innovative American musical. The moral of the story according to director McCarthy? "Never the less, pee persisted."

The cast contains a number of well-known local favorites, including Celia Cota (Yarmouthport) as Little Sally, Emma Fitzpatrick (Sandwich) as Hope Cladwell, Daniel Fontneau (Cotuit) as Caldwell B Cladwell, Blake Gronlund (Barnstable) as Bobby Strong, Caitlin Mills (Chatham) as Penelope Pennywise, Ari Lew (Yarmouth) as Officer Lockstock, Holly Hansen (Yarmouth) as Officer Barrel, and Doug Sivco (Centerville) as Senator Fipp. Also appearing are Barry Lew (Leominster), Janet Geist Moore (Sandwich), Jon Madison (South Yarmouth), Gretchen Pope (West Dennis), Nora Canaday (Cotuit), and CCCC students Andrew Gates (Bourne), Oliver Kuehne (Centerville), Wil Moser (Centerville), Shauna Joseph (East Sandwich), Jalal Akel (Hyannis) and Carissa Wells (Yarmouthport).

Tickets range in price from $10 to $20 and can be purchased by calling the Tilden Arts Center box office at 508.375.4044 or by visiting TildenArtsCenter.Eventbrite.com.