Theatre Raleigh Announces 2023 Main Stage Schedule

Theatre Raleigh announces its 2023 main stage season, including such award-winning musicals as "Jersey Boys," and "The Prom" and the world premiere of N.C. playwright Allan Maule's "The Weight of Everything We Know."

"Post-covid, everybody wants to enjoy an amazing night out," said Lauren Kennedy Brady, Theatre Raleigh's producing artistic director. "Our 2023 season is full of fantastic music, vibrant staging and current and nostalgic themes. Joy permeates through all of these particular titles."

Pricing levels for single ticket season subscriptions are: $145 for seniors, students and military; $155 for adults; and $200 for Dress Circle, or preferred seating. (Prices do not include sales tax.)

Anyone who purchases season tickets before Nov. 5 will receive a Theatre Raleigh swag bag while supplies last. To purchase, go to https://theatreraleigh.secure.force.com/ticket/#/subscriptions.

Here is the 2023 Main Stage Season lineup:

JERSEY BOYS - April 5-16, 2023

With phenomenal music, memorable characters, and great storytelling, Jersey Boys follows the fascinating evolution of four blue-collar kids who became one of the greatest successes in pop-music history. Winner of Best Musical at both the Tony Awards and Olivier Awards, Jersey Boys takes you behind the music of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons to discover the secret of a 40-year friendship as the foursome work their way from the streets of New Jersey to the heights of stardom. Audiences will be thrilled with electrifying performances of chart-topping hits including "Sherry," "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Can't Take My Eyes Off You," "Dawn," and "My Eyes Adored You," which brought The Four Seasons their highest honor: induction into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame.

THE WEIGHT OF EVERYTHING WE KNOW - May 31 - June 11, 2023

World Premiere of the new play by North Carolina playwright Allan Maule. In May 2019, the kilogram changed its mass to be based on mathematical precision instead of a physical weight. This was both a huge breakthrough for human knowledge and a completely disaster for a Bumble date between Lucia and Darrow. With her astrophysics research in turmoil and an immigration hearing imminent, Lucia must decide if she can take a leap of faith and trust Darrow's creative instincts as he tries to keep her in the country. "The Weight of Everything We Know" is a romantic comedy about physics, writing, and how we cope with the sudden change of the unchangeable.

THE PROM - Aug. 2-13, 2023

Four eccentric Broadway stars are in desperate need of a new stage. When they hear that trouble is brewing around a small-town prom, they know that it's time to put a spotlight on the issue...and themselves. The town's parents want to keep the high school dance on the straight and narrow, but when one student wants to bring her girlfriend to prom, the entire town has a date with destiny. On a mission to transform lives, Broadway's brassiest join forces with a courageous girl and the town's citizens and the result is love that brings them all together. Winner of the Drama Desk Award for Best Musical, "The Prom" expertly captures all the humor and heart of a classic musical comedy with a message that resonates with audiences now more than ever.

BARBECUE - Oct. 18-29, 2023

The grill is hot, the beer is chilled, and the table is set for a typical O'Mallery family. "Barbecue" centers on around the O'Mallerys, a dysfunctional group of siblings who come together for a barbecue in the park to stage an emergency intervention for their sister Barbara, whose drug habit has gotten out of hand. There are in fact two O'Mallery families, one white and one black. Each appear in different, yet similar scenes that juxtapose to create a dialogue about racial and family politics. Their ham-handed intervention ignites the fuse of this raucous and rollicking new comedy that skewers our warped view of the American family. From Obie and Helen Hayes Award winner Robert O'Hara, this barbecue serves up a healthy helping of sibling love and loathing.

THE 1940's RADIO HOUR- Dec.13-24, 2023

A different time is evoked in this marvelously theatrical and winning show, a live broadcast of The Mutual Manhattan Variety Cavalcade from the Hotel Astor's Algonquin Room on December 21, 1942. The spirit of that bygone era, when the world was at war and pop music meant "Strike Up the Band" and "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy" (both of which are in this show), is accurately captured as the harassed producer copes with a drunk lead singer, the delivery boy who wants a chance in front of the mike, the second banana who dreams of singing a ballad, and the trumpet-playing sound effects man who chooses a fighter plane over Glenn Miller.

Tickets are also still available for the theater's final production of the 2022 season: "Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812." The play opened on Oct. 26 and runs until Nov. 6. For tickets, go to: https://theatreraleigh.secure.force.com/ticket/#/

Theatre Raleigh Arts Center is located at 6638 Old Wake Forest Road, between Atlantic Ave and Capital Blvd. For tickets and more information, go to theatreraleigh.com.

Theatre Raleigh is professional, non-profit theater company based in Raleigh, N.C. dedicated to inclusion and diversity, enriching our community through innovative and intimate theatrical experiences. Theatre Raleigh's origins date back to K.D. Kennedy Jr., and his son, Michael, starting a Hot Summer Nights theater series at the Duke Energy Center for the Performing Arts in 2005. Kennedy's daughter, Broadway star Lauren Kennedy Brady, took over as artistic director in 2008. Brady studied at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and performed on Broadway (Sunset Boulevard, Side Show, Les Miserables, Spamalot and more). Brady uses her Broadway connections to bring in top talent for the company's shows. In June 2020, Brady moved the theater company to North Raleigh. She raised $500,000 as part of an ongoing $1 million capital campaign to convert an 18,000-square-foot space into a hub for performing arts. The centerpiece of the new location - a 3,600-square foot main stage with technical balconies, a sprung floor and flexible seating - opened in August 2022. Theatre Raleigh Arts Center is located at 6638 Old Wake Forest Road, between Atlantic Ave and Capital Blvd. For tickets and more information: theatreraleigh.com.

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