The Light in the Piazza at Oklahoma City University

The Tony Award-winning musical romance The Light in the Piazza will take center stage Nov. 3-5 at Oklahoma City University’s Bass School of Music.

Three weekend performances will be held 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday in OCU’s Burg Theatre, 2501 N. Blackwelder.

Reserved tickets ($15) are available from www.okcu.edu/tickets or 405.208.5227.

The Spotlight production, featuring piano accompaniment and minimal costumes and sets, will be directed by Karen Coe Miller. Music direction is by Chuck Koslowske. Lighting design is by Kennedy Nichols; stage manager is Amelia McKey.

The New York Observer praises the work as “of such consummate beauty, truth, energy … you leave the theater filled with joy and revived by hope for the future.”

The Light on the Piazza marked the Broadway debut of Richard Rodgers’ grandson, composer/lyricist Adam Guettel. Based on Elizabeth Spencer's 1960 novella, the story follows a protective mother and sheltered daughter as they encounter unexpected emotions while spending the summer in Italy.

Alumna Kelli O’Hara originated the role of daughter Clara Johnson in the show’s 2005 Broadway premiere, earning her first Tony Award nomination. The musical won six Tony Awards, including Best Original Score.

This weekend's OCU production features Caroline Pillow and Anna-Marie Wright as Margaret Johnson; Kat Smith and Emily Trnka as Clara Johnson; Catherine DeVincenzi and Liana Paglia as Franca Naccarelli; Sierra Jimenez and Olivia Hartshorn as Signora Naccarelli; Michael Mariniello and Lucas Semrau as Fabrizio Naccarelli; Jared Barbee and Nikolas Theriault as Giuseppe Naccarelli; and Zane Brolin and Andrew Massey as Signor Naccarelli. In The Ensemble: Jane Ahn, Hannah Kurowski, Morgan Lane, Alyssa Tanti, Cameron Brown, Tim Troilo, Nicholas Montgomery and Ezra Moore.

OCU’s Oklahoma Opera and Music Theater Company concludes its fall season Nov. 17-19 twin bill of one-act operas, Jake Landau’s 2021 Pietà paired with Puccini’s Suor Angelica, performed in Italian with English supertitles.

For news on the Bass School of Music and details of upcoming events, visit www.okcu.edu/music .

Authors

• Adam Guettel
• Alfred Uhry
• Arthur Laurents
• Craig Lucas
• Elizabeth Spencer

Tony Awards and Nominations for The Light in the Piazza