Northern Stage Announces WAITRESS, BEAUTY AND THE BEAST And More for 2024/25 Season

Northern Stage has announced its 2024/25 Season, offering five main stage productions in the Byrne Theater at the Barrette Center for the Arts.

This season features Sisters by Matthew Libby from October 2 to 20, 2024; Disney's Beauty and the Beast from November 20, 2024 to January 1, 2025; King James by Rajiv Joseph from January 29 to February 16, 2025; The Vermont Farm Project: A Farm to Stage Musical from March 12 to 30, 2025; and the Broadway smash hit Waitress from April 23 to May 25, 2025. Continuing its commitment to a wide breadth of theater programming, Northern Stage will also present developing new works and one-night-only musical events throughout the season. 

Young theater lovers of the Upper Valley can anticipate another robust season from Northern Stage's Education department. This July, the Summer Music Theater Intensive (SMTI) will present Cabaret from July 30 to August 4, 2024.  Northern Stage will also offer exciting and engaging titles for Youth Ensemble Studio (YES) students, including Peter and the Starcatcher and Disney's Frozen KIDS. 

"Innovation leads the season with a new play centered on what it is to be human in a digital world, and with a world premiere musical piece focused on our regional farming community,” says Producing Artistic Director Carol Dunne. “Where we live is as important as what we do. Our upcoming season is a grand adventure building upon the joyous emergence of live theater as integral to the life of our community and region.”

MAIN STAGE SEASON IN THE BYRNE THEATER:

 

Northern Stage kicks off the 2024/25 season with Sisters by Matthew Libby, winner of the 2022 Neukom Literary Arts Award for Playwriting, running October 2 to 20, 2024 in the Byrne Theater at the Barrette Center for the Arts. Told over the course of 90 years, Sisters is the story of Matilda and Greta, a pair of sisters, growing up, learning from each other, dealing with responsibility and loss, fighting viciously, drifting apart, and eventually coming back together. They're just like any other sisters, except Greta is an artificially intelligent computer program. Directed by Northern Stage favorite Aileen Wen McGroddy (Sense and Sensibility), Sisters is a poetic play about what it means to be human in a computerized world.  

This holiday season, Northern Stage will bring joy and magic to the Upper Valley with Disney's Beauty and the Beast, reimagined to uplift and resonate with us now. Directed by Producing Artistic Director Carol Dunne, this fresh and imaginative production of the romantic “tale as old as time” will delight both longtime fans and those new to the story, reminding us all of the power of love and courage. Performances begin November 20, 2024 and run through January 1, 2025.

Continuing the season in 2025 will be Rajiv Joseph's King James with performances from January 29 to February 16, 2025. LeBron James' extraordinary tenure with the Cleveland Cavaliers brought hope to a city that had lost its sense of promise. In Rajiv Joseph's powerful new play, superfans Matt and Shawn are brought together through their shared worship of “King” James. Over 12 years, from LeBron's rookie season to an NBA Championship, the men navigate a turbulent friendship through their shared love of basketball, reminding us of the power of sports to connect, inspire, and unite us in good times and bad. King James is “a touching examination of male friendship and the powerful social currents beneath it” (The New York Times).

With the arrival of mud season in Vermont comes the world premiere of The Vermont Farm Project: A Farm to Stage Musical, with book by Jessica Kahkoska and music and lyrics by Tommy Crawford, running March 12 to 30, 2025. Developed and directed by Northern Stage's BOLD Associate Artistic Director Sarah Elizabeth Wansley, this brand new indie-folk musical is an ode to farming in Vermont, inspired by two years of interviews with farmers in the Upper Valley and beyond. The heartwarming musical, developed right here at Northern Stage, follows the stories and songs of an eclectic agricultural community through one day in the life of working on the land and asks us to consider what we harvest and what we leave behind.

The 2024/25 season Will Close with the hit Broadway musical Waitress, with performances from April 23 to May 25, 2025. The Broadway smash is based upon the motion picture written by Adrienne Shelly, with book by Jessie Nelson and music and lyrics by 6-time Grammy nominee Sara Bareilles. Jenna is caught in a dead-end marriage and a dead-end job, where making pies is her one source of joy. An unexpected pregnancy jolts her into action, and she starts making big changes. With her best friends and coworkers by her side, Jenna bakes a new life, one pound of butter, sugar, and flour at a time. This charming musical romantic comedy will be the first production of Waitress in the area. 

Northern Stage's 2023/24 Main Stage Season will culminate March 13 through April 14 with the Olivier and Tony Award-winning comedy The Play That Goes Wrong by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, and Henry Shields, directed by Peter Hackett. More information and tickets can be found HERE.

Northern Stage will continue its commitment to the development of new work for the American theater with several new projects as part of its New Works Now initiative. Designed to enrich the theater experience of our audiences and artists who are hungry for daring and impactful stories, New Works Now has helped rebrand Northern Stage as a bold and visionary theater. The 2023/24 mainstage season will be followed by New Works Now Festival (April 25 - May 5), featuring the winner (Instagirl by Jessica Moss) and finalist (angel's share by Dominic Finocchiaro) of the 2023 Neukom Institute Literary Arts Award for Playwriting, together with Literature to Life's stage presentation of The Great Gatsby, newly adapted and developed by Kelvin Grullon. Bookending the festival will be a newly added NWN Cabaret, curated and directed by Northern Stage resident artist Kevin David Thomas. Join Northern Stage for a joyous evening of song and dance and Broadway anecdotes on May 5, 2024 at 7:30 PM to celebrate New Works Now. More information on Northern Stage's New Works Now Festival can be found at HERE. 

Jazz at the Junction, Northern Stage's one-night-only summer special concert, will be back by popular demand on Tuesday, July 9, 2024 in the Byrne Theater. A celebration of local jazz artists we know and love, this concert will feature the Upper Valley Jazz All-Stars, curated by Hanover High School Band Director Ian Gollub, saxophonist Michael Zsoldos, and many more. 

The annual workshop readings of the winner of the 2024 Neukom Institute Literary Arts Award for Playwriting will take place in early 2025. Established in 2018, the annual Neukom playwriting award considers plays and other full-length works for the theater that address the question, “What does it mean to be a human in a computerized world?” The award is a partnership between the Neukom Institute, the Department of Theater at Dartmouth College, and Northern Stage. Information on the Neukom Award application will be posted HERE.

EDUCATION PROGRAMMING:

The 2024/25 Education season begins with Summer Musical Theater Intensive (SMTI) Cabaret, based on the play by Jon Van Druten and stories by Christopher Isherwood, with book by Joe Masteroff, music by John Kander, and lyrics by Fred Ebb, July 30 to August 4, 2024. Each summer, Northern Stage's celebrated professional-level theater training program SMTI offers opportunities for students ages 12-18. Winner of 12 Tony awards, including Best Musical in 1967 and Best Revival in 1998, and, most recently, 7 Olivier Awards, including Best Musical Revival in 2022, Cabaret is one of the most influential musicals written for the American stage. Directed by Broadway and Northern Stage veteran Kevin David Thomas, this year's SMTI will not be one to miss for young theater lovers. More information and registration can be found HERE. 

Every summer, Northern Stage offers half-day camps for students ages 6-12. All camps focus on teamwork, self-confidence, acting techniques, and singing. This year's summer camp programming at Northern Stage has been expanded due to popular demand. 2024 summer camps run the weeks of June 17 to 21, June 24 to 28, August 12 to 16, and August 19 to 23. This year's offering includes seven camps for 6-8 year old actors, a one-week camp for 9-12 year old actors, and a 2-week mini-intensive for 9-12 year old actors (June 17-28). More information and registration can be found HERE. 

In fall 2024, the YES (Youth Ensemble Studio) company will present Peter and the Starcatcher by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, adapted for the stage by Rick Elice, performing October 4 to 6, 2024. YES is thrilled to be taking on this exciting and hilarious play, where students will explore this adventurous prequel to Peter Pan. Directed by Robert David Grant, students will rehearse and perform this piece in the intimate Schleicher Rehearsal Studio.

The new year will see 4th through 8th graders onstage in Disney's Frozen KIDS, performing February 22 and 23, 2025 in the Bryne Theater in The Barrette Center for the Arts. Directed by Northern Stage's Assistant Director of Education Sam Empey, YES and YES Jr. will combine for this special presentation of a 30-minute adaptation of Disney's Frozen, featuring all the beloved characters and songs from the original film. 

YES's full company Showcase will take place in the spring, performing May 2 and 3, 2025. Directed by Robert David Grant, Sam Empey, and Kevin David Thomas, YES's third annual Showcase features musical theater songs and scenes selected to provide each and every student actor with an opportunity to take center stage and shine. The YES Spring Showcase is an evening of celebration that spotlights each YES company member to the community.  

More information on Northern Stage's 2024/25 Education season can be found HERE.

TICKET INFORMATION 

Early Bird Subscriptions and Pick-3 Subscriptions for the 2024/25 Season will be on sale on March 12. Subscribers may save up to 45% off single ticket prices. Single tickets will be available for purchase beginning July 15, 2024. For tickets and information, call the box office at (802) 296-7000 or visit northernstage.org/subscriptions.

About the Northern Stage

Northern Stage (northernstage.org) is a regional non-profit LORT-D professional theater company located in White River Junction, VT. Northern Stage actively engages its audiences with world-class productions and extensive educational and community outreach programs in its new home, the Barrette Center for the Arts. Founded in 1997, the company has offered more than 150 professional productions of new works, classics, and musicals. Now in its 26th Season, Northern Stage serves over 50,000 people. In 2014, the company launched a new play festival that has cultivated seven world premiere productions and three Off-Broadway transfers, including The New York Times Critic's Pick Only Yesterday. Northern Stage's breadth of programming supports the company's mission of “changing lives, one story at a time.”

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