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Main Street Theater Sets 2016-17 Season
By: Tyler Peterson May. 31, 2016
The new season will take place in the company's 2 residences: its Rice Village space on Times Blvd. and in midtown on Main Street at the MATCH. Founded in 1975 on Main Street, the company has operated out of its Rice Village home since 1982 and has recently completed a total renovation of that space. The organization has also become an anchor tenant of the MATCH, housing the theater's offices and professional Theater for Youth in the multi-theater venue. All MainStage performances (for adults) will take place at 2540 Times Blvd., 77005, and all Theater for Youth performances (for families and school groups) will take place at 3400 Main Street, 77002.
2016 - 2017 MainStage Season
The Revolutionists
Regional Premiere
Sept. 3 - Oct. 2, 2016
Marie Antoinette and Charlotte Corday walk into a bar... Okay, not exactly, but The Revolutionists is a whirling fantasia of a tale about four fiery, renegade women whose lives collide during the French Revolution. At the height of the Reign of Terror, playwright Olympe de Gouges, assassin Charlotte Corday, activist Marianne Angelle, and former queen Marie Antoinette plot murder, try to beat back extremist insanity in Paris, and explore how we actually go about changing the world in this irreverent, brutal comedy.
This marks the 3rd production of The Revolutionists which had its world premiere in February of 2016.
Wolf Hall
Regional Premiere
Based on the Novels by Hilary Mantel
Adapted for the Stage by Mike Poulton
Part One: Oct. 22 - Dec. 18, 2016
Part Two: Oct. 29 - Dec. 18, 2016
This dramatic event features two exceptional plays set in the court of Henry VIII and adapted from Hilary Mantel's novels. In Part One (Wolf Hall), the court of Henry VIII is in utter upheaval as the King rages over his lack of a male heir. The shrewd and ambitious Thomas Cromwell inserts himself into the political scene to help the king pursue his passion for Anne Boleyn and secure an annulment from Katherine of Aragon. Part Two (Bring Up the Bodies) charts Anne's downfall, the rise of Jane Seymour, and Cromwell's alliances with his greatest enemies. Featuring a cast of 23, Parts One and Two will run in repertory.
Main Street's will be the first U.S. production of Wolf Hall outside of Broadway.
Copenhagen
Feb. 11 - Mar. 12, 2017
"No one understands my trip to Copenhagen. Time and time again I've explained it. To Bohr himself, and Margrethe. To interrogators and intelligence officers, to journalists and historians. The more I've explained, the deeper the uncertainty has become. Well, I shall be happy to make one more attempt." -Heisenberg in Copenhagen
In 1941, German physicist Werner Heisenberg went to Copenhagen to see his Danish counterpart, Niels Bohr. Together they had revolutionized atomic science in the 1920s, but now they were on opposite sides of a world war. In this incisive yet very human drama, the spirits of Werner Heisenberg, Niels Bohr and Bohr's wife Margrethe, meet after their deaths to attempt to answer the question that Margrethe poses in the first line of the play, "Why did he [Heisenberg] come to Copenhagen?" Copenhagen is a powerful rumination on why we do what we do as human beings. 2000 Tony Award for Best Play.
Grand Concourse
Regional Premiere
By Heidi Shreck
Apr. 1 - 30, 2017
Having dedicated her life to religious service, Shelley runs a Bronx soup kitchen with unsentimental efficiency, but lately her heart's not quite in it. Her brisk nature masks an unsettling fear that her efforts are meaningless. When Emma - an idealistic but confused college dropout - arrives to volunteer, her reckless mix of generosity and self-involvement pushes Shelley to the breaking point. With keen humor and startling compassion, Heidi Schreck's play navigates the mystery of faith, the limits of forgiveness, and the pursuit of something resembling joy. A finalist for the 2015 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, a nominee for the 2015 Lucille Lortel Award, Grand Concourse also made The Kilroys List in 2014.
Native Gardens
Regional Premiere
By Karen Zakarías
May 20 - June 18, 2017
Gardens and cultures clash, turning friendly neighbors into feuding enemies in this hilarious new play. Pablo, a high-powered lawyer, and doctoral candidate Tania, his very pregnant wife, are realizing the American dream when they purchase a house next door to community stalwarts Virginia and Frank. But a disagreement over a longstanding fence line soon spirals into an all-out war of taste, class, privilege, and entitlement.
This marks the 2nd production for Native Gardens which had its world premiere in January of 2016.
PSC at MST:
Main Street continues its partnership with Prague Shakespeare Company once again in 2016 - 2017
Much Ado About Nothing
Directed by Guy Roberts
Dec. 31, 2016 - Jan. 15, 2017
Shakespeare's beloved comedy of love, languish and language in a smart new production from Prague Shakespeare Company. Set in World War II Britain, a group of nurses, wounded servicemen and patriots produce a radio broadcast of Much Ado About Nothing to raise morale of the troops on the front. Featuring Her Britannic Majesty's Ambassador to the Czech Republic Jan Thompson, OBE as Beatrice, Jessica Boone as Hero, Guy Roberts as Benedick and Karel He?mánek Jr. as Claudio.
2016 - 2017 Theater for Youth Season
Main Street Theater's professional Theater for Youth program produces plays based on children's literature for families and school groups, reaching over 100,000 audience members yearly. In March of 2016, American Theatre Magazine, the national theater magazine published by Theatre Communications Group, named Main Street Theater one of the top 20 theaters in the United States for Theater for Youth programming. Main Street's 2016 - 2017 Theater for Youth Season will, for the first time, offer special accommodations for children with learning differences: sensory-friendly performances and American Sign Language interpreters will be available on specific dates.
Duck for President
Based on the book by Doreen Cronin
Sept. 27 - Oct. 29, 2016
Duck for President! Duck for President! He's had enough of Farmer Brown's oppression, he's fighting for change! Unhappy with the working conditions on Farmer Brown's farm, Duck campaigns to put himself in charge. In this hilarious tale by Doreen Cronin, the author of Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type, Duck seeks nothing less than the highest office in the land. Our fellow Americans, we present to you Duck for president! Recommended for Pre-Kindergarten and up.
Fancy Nancy Splendiferous Christmas
Based on the book by Jane O'Connor
Nov. 7 - Dec. 17, 2016
What could be fancier than Christmas? Presents with elegant wrapping paper, festive decorations, Christmas cookies with sprinkles - and who could forget the tree? After all, there is no such thing as too much tinsel. Ooh la la! This year, Nancy is especially excited. After selling some of her old gowns and accessories, Nancy has enough money to buy a brand-new sparkly tree topper. She can't wait to decorate the Christmas tree. But when things don't turn out the way Nancy planned, will Christmas still be splendiferous? Based on the New York Times bestselling picture book by Jane O'Connor. Recommended for Pre-Kindergarten and up.
Mockingbird
Based on the book by Kathryn Erskine
Winner of the National Book Award
Jan. 24 - Feb. 19, 2017
In Caitlin's world, everything is black or white. Things are good or bad. Anything in between is confusing. That's the stuff Caitlin's older brother, Devon, has always explained. But now Devon's dead, and her father cries a lot. Caitlin wants to move past it, but as an eleven-year-old girl with Asperger's, she doesn't know how. When she reads the definition of "closure" in the dictionary, she realizes that is what she and her father need. In her search for closure, Caitlin discovers that not everything is black and white--the world is full of colors--messy and beautiful, and it is through this discovery that she embarks on a road which leads her to find both healing and closure. Commissioned by the Kennedy Center, Julie Jensen's play is an adaptation of Kathryn Erskine's National Book Award-winning novel of the same name. Recommended for Fifth Grade and up.
Ramona Quimby
Adapted from the books by Beverly Cleary
Feb. 28 - Apr. 1, 2017
Unpredictable. Exasperating. Boisterous and independent. That's Ramona Quimby, alright! She's always aggravating her older sister, Beezus, constantly getting into trouble, and sometimes "making a big, noisy fuss" when things don't go her way. But as this feisty third-grader learns, even though life isn't fair and you often have to make sacrifices, sticking together as a family is the most important thing of all, and even though sisters may not always agree, they can still be good to have around! Adapted by Obie Award-winning playwright Len Jenkin. Recommended for Kindergarten and up.
Goosebumps the Musical - Phantom of the Auditorium
Based on the book by R.L. Stine
Apr. 11 - May 20, 2017
Brooke and Zeke are excited to star in their school's next hit musical, The Phantom, until they hear a rumor that the show is cursed! Mysterious events start happening at the theater, and no one can be sure if it's just coincidence or the work of...The Phantom! This silly and (only a little) spooky musical is based on the beloved series from R.L. Stine. Recommended for First Grade and Up.
Photo by Mikki Schaffner
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