Katie Thompson and Wade McCollum to Star in WE FOXES in Concert at MSU

Katie Thompson and Wade McCollum star in a staged concert of We Foxes, a new musical by Ryan Scott Oliver, will be held September 22-24, 2017, at Wharton Center's Pasant Theatre on the Michigan State University campus.

We Foxes is described as "a southern Gothic thriller set in small-town, 1945 Missouri. It's the story of Willa, a tough and unmannered orphan girl, and her adoption by the crafty Sheriff's wife, Vesta Quimby. When Willa discovers the dark secrets beneath the floorboards, a war cuts them apart and Willa must fight to survive. It is a story of intense human struggle, deliverance, and the great salvation found only through oneself."

Oliver is a Jonathan Larson Grant recipient, Richard Rodgers Award winner, Lortel Award nominee, and a Dramatists Guild Fellow. He has won numerous ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers) awards, has been a guest lecturer at Harvard University, and a recipient of residencies at 5th Avenue Theatre, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, Weston Playhouse, Cap 21, the York Theatre, Running Deer Ranch, Pace University, Harvard University, San Diego State University, Playwrights Horizons, and more.

The ?máGen program at MSU has invited Oliver to be a composer-in-residence September 11 - 24, 2017. This staged concert is a collaborative venture with the MSUFCU Institute for Arts & Creativity at Wharton Center and MSU College of Arts & Letters' Department of Theatre.

"?máGen is such a great program for everyone involved - from the MSU and high school and middle school students to the Broadway performers," said MSU Assistant Professor of Theatre Brad Willcuts. "There are so many opportunities for creative collaboration and Ryan Scott Oliver's We Foxes will be a fantastic challenge!"

We Foxes was commissioned by Broadway Across America and has been in residence at the 5th Avenue in Seattle, Goodspeed, TheatreWorks, Silicon Valley's Writer's Retreat, Pace New Musicals, CAP 21, and the Weston Playhouse. It premiered at The York Theatre Company in 2014.

Along with Oliver, the ?máGen program has engaged several other visiting artists as part of this two-week residency, including director, Marshall Pailet (Baghdaddy/Off-Broadway and Triassic Parq/Off-Broadway); dramaturg, Matthew Schneider (Allegiance/Broadway, Memphis/National Tour); actor, Katie Thompson (Pump Boys and Dinettes/Off-Broadway; Giant/Off-Broadway); actor, Wade McCollum (Wicked/Broadway and Ernest Shackleton Loves Me/Off-Broadway); Ethan Carlson (Oliver's Assistant); and stage manager, Paige Conway.

Working alongside the visiting artists will be the MSU ?máGen team, including MSU Musical Director Dave Wendelberger and MSU Department of Theatre faculty members Brad Willcuts (Amazing Grace/Broadway), Alisa Hauser (Beauty and the Beast, Thoroughly Modern Millie/Broadway), and Kris Koop Ouellette (The Phantom of the Opera/Broadway).

Admission is $15 for the public and $10 for students. Tickets are available from the Wharton Center Box Office, 1.800.WHARTON, whartoncenter.com.

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