JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, CARRIE THE MUSICAL and More Set for Circle Theatre's 2014 Season

Starting off the Main Stage season in May of 2014 is the rock musical JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, running May 8 through 24. This rock opera with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyrics by Tim Rice is a thought-provoking and emotional dramatization of Christ's final days. Propelled by a stirring score, by turns driving and majestic, satirical and tender, JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR illuminates the transcendent power of the human spirit with a passion that goes straight to the heart.

The second play of the season is the Marc Camoletti farce, DON'T DRESS FOR DINNER. This comedy by the author of BOEING BOEING, running June 5 through 21, follows the story of Bernard as he plans a romantic weekend with his chic Parisian mistress whilst his wife Jacqueline is away. He has arranged for a cordon bleu cook to prepare gourmet delights, and has invited his best friend, Robert, along too to provide the alibi. It's foolproof; what could possibly go wrong? Well.... suppose Robert turns up not realizing quite why he has been invited. Suppose Robert and Jacqueline are secret lovers, and consequently determined that Jacqueline will NOT leave for the weekend. Suppose the cook has to pretend to be the mistress and the mistress is unable to cook. Suppose everyone's alibi gets confused with everyone else's. An evening of hilarious confusion ensues as Bernard and Robert improvise at breakneck speed.

Taking the stage in July of 2014 is the comedy ONE MAN TWO GUVNORS. This critically acclaimed Broadway hit is set in Brighton, England, and takes us back to 1963, where Francis Henshall is looking to make his mark. Fired from a skiffle band and in search of work, he finds himself employed by small-time gangster Roscoe Crabbe, in town to collect a fee from his fiance?e's gangster father. But Roscoe is really Rachel, posing as her own dead brother; herself in love with Stanley Stubbers (her brother's killer) who, in turn, becomes our hero's other 'guvnor'. Fighting a mounting sense of confusion,

Francis goes out of his way to serve both bosses. But with the distractions of a pneumatic bookkeeper, a self-important actor and select members of the criminal fraternity (not to mention his own mammoth appetite) to contend with, how long can he keep them apart? This hilarious comedy by Richard Bean runs July 10 through 26.

The fourth play of the season is a musical lovingly ripped off from the classic film comedy Monty Python and the Holy Grail: MONTY PYTHON'S SPAMALOT. This Broadway showstopper with book and lyrics by Eric Idle and music by John Du Prez and Eric Idle will run August 7 through 23. Winner of three Tony Awards (including Best Musical), this musical comedy retells the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table, and features a bevy of beautiful showgirls, not to mention cows, killer rabbits, and French people. Did we mention the bevy of beautiful showgirls?

The fifth and final production of the 2014 Circle season will be CARRIE THE MUSICAL. This musical thriller, based on the novel by Stephen King, will run September 4 through 20. This musical tells the story of Carrie White, an outcast who's bullied by the popular crowd, and virtually invisible to everyone else. At home, she's at the mercy of her loving but cruelly over-protective mother. But Carrie's just discovered she's got a special power, and if pushed too far, she's not afraid to use it...Set today, in the small town of Chamberlain, Maine,Carriefeatures a book by Lawrence D. Cohen (screenwriter of the classic film), music by Academy Award winner Michael Gore (Fame, Terms of Endearment), and lyrics by Academy Award winner Dean Pitchford (Fame, Footloose).

In addition to the 2014 Main Stage Series, Circle Theatre will present a special engagement production (Circle On The Side) in January, a family production (Magic Circle) in June and a Summer Concert Series.

The 2014 Circle On The Side, special engagement production will be the black comedy THE LYONS by Nicky Silver. This funny, furious tale of family annihilation will run January 16-25 and will feature the outstanding talents of Kitty Carrico Carpenter, Dylan Harris, Ruth Ann Molenaar, Becky Monterusso, Don Vanden Heuvel and Kyle VanDyke.

The 2014 Magic Circle Production, written by Randy Wyatt, will be a re-telling of the classic children's fairytale Sleeping Beauty: SLEEPING BEAUTY (SOMEWHERE IN

TIME). In this delightful adaptation, a furious uninvited faerie crashes the royal christening of a baby princess to make a terrible prophecy: that the princess is doomed on her 16th birthday. Despite the spells and fevered plans of all the kingdom's magical creatures, the princess does indeed prick her finger on a cursed spinning needle, and the creatures must sacrifice their magic and memories to preserve her and hurtle her prince far into the future. But can true love conquer time? Drawing from Norwegian folklore, this new incarnation on a classic tale will mesmerize the entire family.

The 2014 Summer Concert Series directed by and featuring Kelly Carey, will showcase the iconic music of artists Billy Joel & Elton John (PIANOMEN), The Eagles (TAKE IT TO THE LIMIT), Simon & Garfunkel (FEELIN' GROOVY) and the musical stories of Harry Chapin (KEEP THE CHANGE).

2014 will mark Circle Theatre's 62nd year of producing plays and musicals for West Michigan audiences. The theatre first produced shows at the Rowe Hotel before moving to the Pantlind Hotel and the pavilion in John Ball Park. Circle Theatre now shares a performing arts center with Aquinas College and the Catholic Secondary Schools at the Aquinas College Performing Arts Center. Information regarding season ticket subscriptions, Magic Circle and the Summer Concert Series can be gathered by calling the Circle Theatre box office at (616) 456-6656 or by visiting the theatre's website at www.circletheatre.org.

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