Playhouse On The Square Closes Main Stage Season With MATILDA

Playhouse on the Square, in partnership with Dottie Jones, Angie Dagastino, Laura Terry and Jim Brasher - in Memory of Happy Jones and Fred Terry, Diane Vescovo and Mike McLaren,

Smith Seckman Reid, Inc., Bob and Jean Wilson of H. Saga International, Inc., and super sponsor Dr. Thomas Ratliff take us back to school with the musical adaptation of a beloved children's novel.

Based on the Roald Dahl novel of the same name, Matilda is an extraordinary girl with a vivid imagination and a sharp mind whose talents are constantly belittled by her cruel parents and hostile headmistress, the wicked Miss Trunchbull. Reclusive, but with an ever-growing imagination and sharp mind, Matilda dreams of a better life - and proves that no matter your age you have the power to control your own destiny.

Playhouse on the Square is proud to introduce Olivia Kaiser as Matilda. Kaiser is from Marion, AR and will be attending fourth grade at Herbert Carter Global Community Magnet School in the fall. The avid young thespian loves to sing and dance and credits her training to Stars in Motion Dance Academy in Southaven, MS. Kaiser also participates in classes with Playhouse on the Square's Theatre School.

Playhouse on the Square Resident Company Members, and real-life married duo, Nathan McHenry (Cabaret, Madagascar: A Musical Adventure) and Brooke Papritz (1984, Little Women: The Broadway Musical) will play Matilda's nefarious parents, Mr. & Mrs. Wormwood, while Emily Pettet, (A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder) is the lovable and positive Miss Honey. Taking on the role of the wicked Miss Trunchbull, is Ryan Scott (A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder).

Published in 1988 by British writer Roald Dahl, Matilda was ranked number 30 among all-time children's novels in a survey published by School Library Journal in 2012. It was the first of four books by Dahl among the Top 100, more than any other writer. Worldwide sales have reached 17 million, and since 2016, sales have spiked to the extent that it outsells Dahl's other works. Matilda was adapted into a 1996 feature film starring Mara Wilson and in 2010, The Royal Shakespeare Company commissioned a new musical version of the book that has performed in the United Kingdom, Australia, and on Broadway.

Performances will run Thursday and Friday, 7:00 pm curtain. Saturday and Saturday Matinees have a 2:00 pm curtain. For tickets, call the Box Office at (901) 726-4656 or visit our website www.playhouseonthesquare.org. Follow with social media using #NAUGHTY901. Group rates available.

Special ticket pricing for opening weekend $25. Pay What You Can performance, sponsored by Arts First and the First Tennessee Foundation is June 27th.

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