SCC's Center Stage Theatre announces productions for 2013-14

Published: 07/23/2013

The first play of the season is John Steinbeck’s Tony Award winning “The Grapes of Wrath.” The play, adapted by Frank Galati and directed by Hal Berry, emeritus faculty member at SCC, tells the story of the Joad family shattered by depths of the Great Depression of the 1930s. They, along with millions of Americans, struggled to survive the national crisis. Steinbeck’s message is that of universal oneness. The story is told with music of the Depression’s famous folk artist, Woody Guthrie, vivid and contrasting lighting and an ensemble dramatizing the movement of people west to find a better life in California. Auditions will be at 7 p.m. Monday-Tuesday, Aug. 19-20, with callbacks at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 21. There are parts for 18 men and 14 women. Performances will be Oct. 2-6 with a matinee performance for high school students at 10 a.m. Thursday, Oct. 3.

“On Golden Pond,” is a classic American comedy and drama by Ernest Thompson that will be directed by Lynne Snyder, SCC associate professor of theater. The play is about a retired couple, Ethel and Norman Thayer, who spend every summer at their home on Golden Pond, Maine. This year, their adult daughter and her fiancé visit, bringing along his 13-year-old son. The turbulent relationship between father and daughter, the generation gap between young and old, and the difficulties, joys and fears facing a couple in the twilight years of a long marriage combine to give this play insight into the modern family. In the end, they all learn from one another. Auditions will be at 7 p.m. Monday-Tuesday, Oct. 7-8, with callbacks at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 9. There are parts for three men, two women and one boy. Performances will be Nov. 20-24 with a matinee performance for high school students at 10 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 21.

Lonna Wilke, SCC associate professor, will direct “The Elephant Man,” the Tony Award winning play, by Bernard Pomerance. The play is based on the life of John Merrick, who lived in London during the latter part of the 19th century. Merrick, a horribly deformed young man and victim of rare skin and bone diseases, has become the star freak attraction in traveling sideshows. Found abandoned and helpless, he is admitted to London’s prestigious Whitechapel Hospital. Under the care of a celebrated young physician, Frederick Treves, Merrick is introduced to London society and slowly evolved from an object of pity to an urbane favorite of the aristocracy and literati only to be denied his ultimate goal, to become a man like any other. Auditions will be at 7 p.m. Tuesday-Wednesday, Jan. 21-22, with callbacks at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 23. There are parts for six men and two women. Performances will be March 5-9 with a matinee performance for high school students at 10 a.m. Thursday, March 6.

David Belke’s “Next Year’s Man of Steel” directed by Jeff David, adjunct faculty member at SCC, is about a struggling and opportunist writer, Everett Gardner, who lives in New York in 1940. Gardner is given the chance to make a mark in the still infant comic book industry by creating a hero, which turns out to be more difficult than he expects. While badgered by a desperate publisher, partnered with an uncooperative artist and distracted by his intriguing young wife, the task might prove to be impossible. Gardner finds that heroes can arise from the most unexpected places. Auditions will be at 7 p.m. Monday-Tuesday, March 10-11, with callbacks at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 12. There are parts for three men and one woman. Performances will be April 23-27 with a matinee performance for high school students at 10 a.m. Thursday, April 24.

The final show of the season will be “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels,” an energetic musical based on the book by Jeffrey Lane, with music and lyrics by David Yazbek. The musical, directed by Lynne Snyder, SCC associate professor of theater, with music direction by Catherine Murray, centers on two competing con men living on the French Riviera. At first, the suave and experienced Lawrence Jameson takes the less sophisticated rookie, Freddy, under his wing. But soon, Freddy tries to compete directly with Lawrence. The competition comes to a peak when they agree that the first man to extract $50,000 from the female heiress, Christine Colgate, wins and the other must leave town. A battle ensues that will keep audiences laughing, humming and guessing until the end. Auditions for vocals and acting will be at 7 p.m. Tuesday-Wednesday, May 20-21, and dance auditions will be at 6 p.m. Thursday, May 22. Callbacks will be at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 22. There are parts for three men, three women and a chorus. Performances will be July 22-27.

All shows will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday-Saturday and 2 p.m. on Sundays in the theater of the Donald D. Shook Fine Arts Building (FAB) on the SCC campus, located at 4601 Mid Rivers Mall Drive in Cottleville.

Tickets are $8 for the general public; $6 for senior citizens and students; and free for SCC students with a valid I.D. Center Stage Theatre also offers “Budget Wednesdays,” where tickets are just $5 for Wednesday night productions. SCC student tickets will remain free with valid I.D. High school matinees are $5 per student and one free chaperone ticket is provided for every 15 students in attendance. High school matinee shows are at 10 a.m. on Thursdays.

For the first time, season tickets for will be available for purchase starting Aug. 1, 2013.

Center Stage Theatre shows are selected for mature audiences. Theater patrons should contact the SCC Young People’s Theatre for performances geared toward younger audiences.

For more information about Center Stage Theatre, contact Lonna Wilke at 636-922-8420. For tickets, call 636-922-8050 or visit www.stchastickets.com.

St. Charles Community College is a public, comprehensive two-year community college with associate degrees and certificate programs in the arts, business, sciences and career-technical fields. SCC provides workforce training and community-based personal and professional development as well as cultural, recreational and entertainment opportunities. For more information, visit www.stchas.edu.