TUCSON, AZ – Arizona Repertory Theatre (ART), the public laboratory for the professional training programs of the UA School of Theatre, Film & Television, announces its line-up of productions for the 2020/2021 season. A diverse collection of classic and contemporary titles ranging from a Pulitzer Prize-winning musical to a new, outrageous dark comedy, the season continues the School’s long tradition of outstanding training for Theatre students and advances its commitment to offering exceptional programming to the public.

“This season we feature new works like Bright Star and the stage adaption of Shakespeare In Love, as well as the modern masterpiece Sunday in the Park with George. We’re also very proud to be partnering with Arizona Theatre Company on a new work called Hot Pink, or Ready to Blow, offering Southern Arizona the first look at this hilarious retelling of a classic myth,” said Assistant Professor Hank Stratton, Artistic Director of Arizona Repertory Theatre. “We aim to deliver the high quality that our audiences have grown to expect from ART, including imaginative state-of-the-art design concepts. My personal goal is to provide imaginative, engaging, and entertaining theatre arts to our loyal subscribers and community.”

The Green Bird opens the season in September with a wildly modern adaptation of the classic commedia dell’arte play. Next is Bright Star, the musical written by Steve Martin and Edie Brickell and inspired by their Grammy-winning bluegrass album Love Has Come For You. The fall semester will close with Shakespeare in Love, the brilliantly funny stage adaptation of the film of the same title, in which Shakespeare suffers from writer’s block while writing a new play, tentatively titled “Romeo and Ethel, the Pirate’s Daughter.” The season will continue in the New Year with a co-production between ART and Arizona Theatre Company on the “hilarious and dizzyingly fun” Hot Pink, or Ready to Blow. The play, from comedy writer/performer Joanie Drago, is a fearless twist on the classic high school comedy. Next is a contemporary take on Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure, and the season wraps with one of the most acclaimed musicals of our time, Sunday in the Park with George, Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Pulitzer Prize winner based on a fictionalized version of the enigmatic painter, Georges Seurat.

Arizona Repertory Theatre is integral to the development of many actors, designers, technicians, dramaturges, writers, and producers who go on to work in the highest levels of the theatre, film, and television industries. In addition to his success on the TV series Stitchers, alumnus Kyle Harris was on Broadway this season in The Inheritance. Vinessa Vidotto will soon complete filming on season 4 of Netflix’s Lucifer, and Zackry Colston is the newest member of the world-renowned Groundlings in Los Angeles. Broadway and West End lighting designer Philip Rosenberg recently returned to design Arizona Theatre Company’s Music Man. Hilary Noxon has been an assistant scenic designer on five Broadway productions and an assistant art director on TV programs like God Friended Me, Katy Keene, and Gotham.

 

Ticket Information

Subscription renewals and new subscriptions will go on sale soon. Subscriptions will be available at the College of Fine Arts Box Office by phone at (520) 621-1162 or in person at 1025 N. Olive Road, inside the Marroney Theatre on the University of Arizona campus. Hours of operation are Monday – Friday from 1-5pm.

Single tickets will go on sale Monday, August 24, 2020, and may be purchased by phone at (520) 621-1162 or online at tickets.arizona.edu.

Learn more about Arizona Repertory Theatre at theatre.arizona.edu.

 

Arizona Repertory Theatre 2019-2020 Season

The Green Bird
by Hillary DePiano
Produced by special arrangement with Playscripts, Inc. www.playscripts.com

September 20 – October 11, 2020 | Tornabene Theatre

The king is lost, the queen is buried alive, the kingdom is in ruins, and all is bleak . . . but this is a comedy after all! When nobody else is worthy of the title of hero, it’s up to twins, Renzo and Barbarina, to unravel the mystery of the Green Bird in time to save everyone from themselves.  In this modern adaptation of Carlo Gozzi’s classic commedia play, Hillary DePiano gives us a wild, chaotic road to “happily ever after” that is paved with curses, clowns, demons, enchanted fruit, and a talking statue who keeps losing control of the story he’s narrating. This ain’t your grandma’s commedia dell’arte.

 

Bright Star
Inspired by a True Story

Music, Book & Story by Steve Martin
Music, Lyrics & Story by Edie Brickell
Produced by Joey Parnes, Sue Wagner, John Johnson
Zebulon LLC, Jay Alix & Una Jackman, Len Blavatnik, James L. Nederlander, Carson & Joseph Gleberman, Balboa Park Productions, The Shubert Organization, Jamie deRoy/Catherine Adler/Cricket Jiranek
In Association With Rodger Hess, A.C. Orange International, Broadway Across America, Sally Jacobs & Warren Baker Diana DiMenna, Exeter Capital, Agnes Gund, True Love Productions And The Old Globe
“Bright Star” is presented through special arrangement with and all authorized performance materials are supplied by Theatrical Rights Worldwide, 1180 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 640, New York, NY 10036. www.theatricalrights.com

October 18 – November 8, 2020 | Marroney Theatre

Inspired by a true story and featuring the Tony®-nominated score by Steve Martin and Edie Brickell, Broadway’s Bright Star tells a sweeping tale of love and redemption set against the rich backdrop of the American South in the 1920s and ’40s. When literary editor Alice Murphy meets a young soldier just home from World War II, he awakens her longing for the child she once lost. Haunted by their unique connection, Alice sets out on a journey to understand her past—and what she finds has the power to transform both of their lives. With beautiful folk and country melodies and powerfully moving characters, the story unfolds as a rich tapestry of deep emotion. An uplifting theatrical journey that holds you tightly in its grasp, Bright Star is as refreshingly genuine as it is daringly hopeful.

 

Shakespeare in Love
by Tom Stoppard, Lee Hall, and Marc Norman
“Shakespeare in Love” is presented by special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc., a Concord Theatricals Company.

November 8 – December 6, 2020 | Tornabene Theatre

We all know William Shakespeare as a brilliant, imaginative, funny, trendsetting playwright whose work has held up to the test of time better than any other. We know he lived in the 16th century and that he performed plays for the Queen, but how did Shakespeare become the Shakespeare we know today? In this exciting play by Lee Hall, adapted from the screenplay by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard, we get to witness a version of what might have been. Did Shakespeare have writer’s block from time to time? Did he need a muse to write his famous tragedy Romeo and Juliet? Lee Hall’s version of this successful screenplay follows the same story of Shakespeare meeting and falling in love with an aristocratic woman who wishes she could be an actor, and transforms it for the stage, just as Shakespeare did with stories in his day.

 

Hot Pink, or Ready to Blow
by Joanie Drago

February 7 – 28, 2021 | Marroney Theatre

Co-produced with Arizona Theatre Company
When New Pompeii’s annual sacrifice fails to satisfy the local volcano’s appetite for virgins, three totally 80’s teenage girls concoct a brilliant plan to save themselves. Presented in partnership with Arizona Theatre Company, this audacious and fearless twist on the classic high school comedy incinerates double standards, as our heroines take control of their destiny by following one simple rule: get laid or die trying! We are pleased to welcome guest director Veronika Duerr, along with playwright Joanie Drago, who will continue their collaboration on this hilarious new work.

 

Measure for Measure
by William Shakespeare

March 15 – April 4, 2021 | Tornabene Theatre

Measure for Measure is one of Shakespeare’s richest, and perhaps controversial plays, mixing comedy and drama in a story of love and power. As the newly appointed leader, Angelo wants to rid the city of moral decay—until he falls for a young nun pleading for the life of her brother. Justice, lust, hypocrisy, and redemption take center stage in this timeless classic, along with bold characters and illustrative, weaponized language.

 

Sunday in the Park with George
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Book by James Lapine
Originally Directed on Broadway by James Lapine
Orchestrations by Michael Starobin
Originally Produced on Broadway by The Shubert Organization and Emanuel Azenberg
By arrangement with Playwrights Horizons, Inc. New York City which produced the original production of “Sunday in the Park With George” in 1983
Sunday in the Park With George is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI. www.MTIShows.com

April 11 – May 2, 2021 | Marroney Theatre

Inspired by the painting, A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte by Georges Seurat, Sunday in the Park with George, Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s stunning masterpiece, merges past and present into beautiful, poignant truths about life, love and the creation of art. One of the most acclaimed musicals of our time, this moving study of the enigmatic painter, Georges Seurat, won a Pulitzer Prize and was nominated for an astounding ten Tony Awards, including Best Musical.

 

About Arizona Repertory Theatre
Arizona Repertory Theatre (ART) is a theatre company within the University of Arizona College of Fine Arts School of Theatre, Film & Television. ART presents six productions each season designed to educate and train theatre students, and provide wildly entertaining experiences for audiences. ART performs over 80 performances each season from September through May. ART comprises students from the Acting and Musical Theatre program with design and production support provided by students in the Design and Technology program. Arizona Repertory Theatre invites audiences to experience the future of theatre and ‘See Tomorrow’s Stars Today.’