Pacific Conservatory Theatre Announces 2021-22 Season

Play readings, musicals, comedies and dramas are back on the stage for PCPA's 2021-22 season, presented in three venues on the Central Coast.

Interplay Play Readings are returning to the Severson Theatre September 23rd through 25th. Two fresh picked plays Quack and The Humans.

The Humans Winner of the 2016 Tony Award for Best Play. Breaking with tradition, Erik Blake has brought his Pennsylvania family to celebrate Thanksgiving at his daughter's apartment in lower Manhattan. As darkness falls outside the ramshackle pre-war duplex, eerie things start to go bump in the night and the heart and horrors of the Blake clan are exposed. "{An} inestimably kind, rich and beautiful play...truly remarkable and exceptionally moving...few writers of his generation have achieved anything quite like THE HUMANS, a play about the horrors of ordinary life and the love we need to counter them." - Chicago Tribune. Directed by Mark Booher.

Quack - Millions of women across America rely on Dr. Irving Baer and his daytime talk show to help them lose weight, manifest their destinies, and take their health into their own hands. Then, a take-down piece of journalism goes viral, leaving his career hanging in the balance, his marriage on the rocks, and his carefully maintained public persona in peril. In the frenzy of crisis management that follows, on thing becomes clear...if Irving Baer is going to fall from grace, he's bringing everyone else with him. Eliza Clark's hilarious new comedy exposes the shaky foundations of the wellness industry, the fleeting nature of 21st-century fame, and the relationship between the powerful men who dole out advice and the women who are supposed to receive it with a smile. Directed by Don Stewart.

A holiday production of The Secret Garden, Spring Version is set for November 11- December 23rd in the Marian Theatre.

PCPA's own Roger DeLaurier will be directing The Secret Garden, where a young Mary Lennox is sent from British colonial India to a home she has never known in Yorkshire, England. There she finds a mysterious house and a family shrouded in secrets. As curiosity overcomes sadness, Mary finds the key to unlock healing and hope, through the magic and restorative power of nature and friendship. This entrancing musical adaptation of Frances Hodgson Burnett's treasured novel marks its 30th anniversary of its Broadway debut. The Secret Garden abridged 'spring version' by the original writing team, retains the spellbinding score and inspiring story that will delight audiences of all ages.

As You Like It playing February 17th through March 6th in the Marian Theatre is a comedic love story for the ages, Rosalind and her cousin Celia take fate into their own hands when the dangers of an oppressive court and a controlling Queen become too much to bear. In disguise, they escape to the Forest of Arden, where they unexpectedly encounter a band of likewise banished forest dwellers, including Orlando, Rosalind's newly discovered heart-match. All the world's a stage in one of Shakespeare's most musical of masterpieces, inspiringly envisioned for today's audiences, where foolish lovers and lovely fools seek freedom in the forest and discover lively romance and lasting redemption. Directed by Emily Trask.

Mother Road playing March 10th through 27th in the Severson Theatre.

Octavio Solis' visionary play, inspired by John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath, picks up 90 years after Steinbeck's masterpiece. This timely sequel takes us on a journey of highway and heart that could easily begin right here in the Santa Maria Valley. Hard-worn and ailing, William Joad (last remaining cousin to Tom Joad of Steinbeck's story), seeks and finds young Mexican-American migrant farmworker, Martin Jodes. They are bound together by a surprising and serendipitous blood knot that holds the keys to their fates, and brands them travel partners in an epic journey down the Mother Road - the literal Route 66 and the figurative root of their shared legacy - as they both find a way home. Directed by Robert Ramirez.

Into the Woods playing April 28th through May 15th in the Marian Theatre, then plays under the stars in the Solvang Festival Theater, August 11th through September 4th. This magical musical brings everyone's favorite storybook characters together for a fractured fairytale like you've never seen. When the Baker and his wife learn that a Witch's curse has left them childless, the two set off on a journey into the woods to break the spell. There, paths cross and stories interweave including, Cinderella, who wishes to attend the King's Festival, Jack, who wishes his cow would give milk, and even a big bad wolf. Wishes are granted, but the consequences follow closely behind. The stirring script and sophisticated score, by James Lapine and Stephen Sondheim, combine in a rare modern classic that is poignant and enchanting. Directed by Roger DeLaurier.

The Agitators makes its way back to the Severson Theatre June 23rd through July 10th. You may recall this live play reading from last fall during our virtual zoom series. Young abolitionists, Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony, are full of hopes, dreams and seemingly common purpose when they meet in Rochester in the 1840s. However, as they grow to become great agents of change, their movements collide, and their alliance and friendship is severely tested. From auspicious beginnings in Rochester, through a civil war, and to the highest halls of government, The Agitators is the story of the turbulent and enduring forty-five year friendship between two of America's greatest agitators. Mat Smart's historical play of rebellion and revolution, personal passion and sacrifice, reverberates powerfully in our America of today. Directed by Mark Booher.

Rodgers and Hammerstein's The Sound of Music comes to the Marian Theatre June 30th through July 31st. It is directed by resident artist Kitty Balay. When problematic postulant, Maria, proves too high-spirited for the religious life, she is dispatched to serve as governess for the seven children of a widowed naval Captain. Her hard-won rapport with the youngsters, and her generosity of spirit, gradually soften the sternness of the broken-hearted Captain. With love in the air, but war on the horizon, the family find their Austrian homeland occupied by Nazi forces who demand submission and service. Inspired by the true story of the Von Trapp family, and their daring escape over the mountains to Switzerland, The Sound of Music remains one of the most inspirational and beloved musicals of all time. Directed by Kitty Balay.

Native Gardens plays August 25th through September 3rd in the Marian Theatre and then plays under the stars at The Solvang Festival Theater September 9th through 17th. Gardens and cultures clash, turning friendly neighbors into feuding enemies in this hilarious comedy of good intentions and bad manners. Pablo, a high-powered lawyer, and doctoral candidate Tania, his very pregnant wife, are realizing the American dream when they purchase a house next door to community stalwarts Virginia and Frank. But a disagreement over a long-standing fence line soon spirals into an all-out war of taste, class, privilege, and entitlement. The hilarious results guarantee no one comes out smelling like a rose. Directed by Catalina Maynard.

Tickets for Season 58 go on sale in October. INTERPLAY tickets on sale now for September. Interplay tickets are $10 per ticket.

Ticket prices are $23.75 - $62. Visit www.pcpa.org or call the box office 805-922-8313. Box Office hours are Wednesday through Sunday 12:30pm - 7pm.

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