CRT Downtown Announces 2017 Winter/Spring Season

Cortland Repertory Theatre Downtown will start the New Year running with a winter/spring season full of fun and interesting events at the new performing arts center located at 24 Port Watson Street in historic downtown Cortland. Admission prices vary per event.

Starting in January, a series of monthly TRIVIA NIGHTS are planned for the third Thursday of the first three months of the year. Starting at 7:00 PM on January 19, February 16 and March 16, trivia buffs in teams of four will answer up to seven rounds of five questions each. Family and friends, couples and groups are invited to gather for friendly competition, with prizes for each round plus a grand prize winner overall. Admission is $5.00 per person, and a beer/wine cash bar will be available.

On February 10 and 11, audiences are invited to take a trip back in time with Scott Moreau and his Died Drunk boys in their concert WALKIN' THE LINE: A TRIBUTE TO Johnny Cash. Moreau, sounding remarkably like the legendary singer, leads a journey through the music that made Johnny Cash the Man In Black. With stories and anecdotes told in Johnny's own words, this amazing show features the songs The Ring Of Fire, Folsom Prison Blues, Walk The Line, Man In Black and many more. If you close your eyes, you'll swear you're with man himself! Moreau first appeared at CRT in the summer of 2008 as the title role in the musical Johnny Guitar. Since then, he has toured the United States and Canada with the Tony Award winning musical Million Dollar Quartet as Johnny Cash, and also appeared in productions in Tokyo and a lengthy run at Harrah's Casino on the Las Vegas strip. In between, he has performed this Cash tribute show across the country. Performances of Walkin' The Line begin at 7:30, and tickets are $35.00, and a beer/wine cash bar will be available.

After the second Trivia Night on February 16, CRT prepares audiences to be astonished with mentalist Paul Draper in MYSTERIES OF THE MIND on Saturday, February 18 at 7:30. Direct from Las Vegas, this interactive, family friendly and educational evening of entertainment weaves mind reading, mystery and storytelling into a theatrical journey in which the audience is the star of the show. Draper is an anthropologist, magician and mentalist who has traveled the world in search of magic and mysteries. He reaches into minds, tells what people are thinking and predicts a person's actions before they make them. From his research as an anthropologist, he relates entertaining stories about ancient men and women of mystery who created stunning feats of the mind that are then recreated before your eyes. As an expert in his field, Draper has appeared on the History Channel, A&E, HBO, Travel Channel, and HGTV. He has lectured at Yale University, Apple Headquarters, The World Famous Magic Castle in Hollywood and The Magic Circle in London. As a respected Las Vegas entertainer, Paul has performed at Planet Hollywood Hotel and Casino and hundreds of shows at the Venetian Hotel and Casino on the Las Vegas Strip. Tickets are $25.00, and a beer/wine cash bar will be available..

Next up comes the CRT Guild's Annual Mystery Dinner Theatre with three performances: Saturday, March 4, Friday March 10 and Saturday March 11. Performed by the Acme Mystery Company from Syracuse, this year's production is DEATH JOINS THE CLUB. Noses up, everyone! You and the other members of the posh Pfieffer Hills Country Club are gathering to consider applications for membership and you want to look your snobby best. Members of the wealthy elite are dying to get in, or rather are waiting for you to die so they can get in. A word to the wise: some applicants are less patient than others. Doors will open at 6:30; the meal will be provided by Linani's Catering of Homer and includes appetizer, dinner, desert and coffee. A beer/wine cash bar will be available. Ticket prices have an Early Bird Special of $50.00 if purchased by January 31, after which, tickets will be $55.00.

Following the third Trivia Night on March 16, CRT welcomes stand-up COMEDIan Keith BARANY on March 18 at 7:30...because who doesn't need a laugh in an upstate New York winter? This former NYC native, now living in Utah has a "fresh, original, comic voice" and has been called "the wittiest comic working today". A clean (PG-rated) comedian, he's also worked as a TV writer for Seinfeld, The Jimmy Kimmel Show and the Emmy Awards, and has been the comedy headliner on nine overseas US military tours. A steady performer in Vegas, Keith has appeared at the Stardust, Excalibur and Caesar's to name a few, and appeared with Jerry Seinfeld, Joan Rivers, Ray Romano and Jon Stewart. Tickets are $20.00 with a beer/wine cash bar available.

The glamour of Broadway comes to Cortland on March 25 at 7:30, as Broadway singer, actress and recording artist Jeri Sager makes her Central New York debut with her cabaret act THIS BROAD'S WAY. Sager will perform a songbook of some of the best loved Broadway songs, done cabaret style with piano accompaniment. A veteran of numerous touring productions, Sager has delighted international audiences of all ages and is best known for her portrayal of Grizabella in Cats, Fantine in Les Miserables and Eva Peron in Evita. She performs all over the US, England, the Caribbean, Japan, Mexico and Canada, and has had the honor of singing for Presidents Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush, Pope John Paul II and while with the USO, for both American and British troops. It's a classy, New York City style night on the town, right here in Cortland! Tickets are $25.00 and the beer/wine cash bar will be available.

Next up, CRT produces the comedy THE QUEEN OF BINGO, by Jeanne Michels and Phyllis Murphy, with performances running from March 29 - April 9. Where can two sisters on the other side of fifty go to add a little zest to their lives? BINGO! On any regular bingo night at St. Joseph's, you can find Father Mac, Cindy Conklin, Marge Meranski, and the many colorful regulars we meet through the eyes of Sis and Babe. They are sisters and best friends who love the game: Sis is a good loser who just loves to play, while Babe is a player who has always got to win. They complement each other - and drive each other crazy - in ways only sisters can. They dish the dirt, dig up memories, giggle like school girls, and share their insecurities in this funny and heartwarming evening. A jackpot of a show, this comedy even includes a bingo game with the audience! Tickets are $32.00 for adults and $30.00 for seniors and students.

Wrapping up the spring, Todd Meredith and his band returns with THE RAVE-ONS: "ALL REQUEST" on April 28 and 29 at 7:30. You've heard them tell the story of Buddy Holly and The Crickets, and recreate Buddy's last concert. Now, hear them tell YOUR story! When purchasing tickets, audience members be given a Rave-Ons song list and have the opportunity to fill out request cards, choosing their favorite song from the list and explaining why it is special to them, their spouse or anyone! Todd and the band will share these stories and perform the songs. The result is a completely unique concert, chosen completely by the audience. The vast song list includes favorites by Buddy Holly, Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Check Berry and classic 50's hits by other great artists, plus many pop songs by Buddy's successors. Tickets are $35.00, and beer/wine cash bar will be available.

For more information on any of these shows or events, please visit www.cortlandrep.org. Tickets are available for purchase online at the theatre's website, or by calling 800-427-6160 or by visiting CRT Downtown at 24 Port Watson Street in Cortland. The theatre's 46th Anniversary summer season, held at the Little York Pavilion, will be announced soon.

To post a comment, you must register and login.