IRT Announces 2012-13 Season Includes Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

The Indiana Repertory Theatre announces its upcoming 41st season, featuring Grammy-winning vocalist Sylvia McNair in Stephen Sondheim’s A Little Night Music; new takes on classics like Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde and A Midsummer Night’s Dream; a world premiere by James Still; a debut from playwright Matthew Lopez and the return of Millicent Wright as the voice of Charlayne Woodard.

IRT 2012-13 Season

Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde

by Robert Louis Stevenson

from the novella Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher

September 5-30

A smart, sexy and suspenseful new take on Stevenson's look at the evil that lurks in the hearts of men. Hatcher’s adaptation takes us from Victorian drawing rooms to the grim alleyways of London as it examines the inner workings of two very different personalities and the ties that bind them dangerously close.

Read Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde Review Here
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Going Solo Festival

September 18 – October 13

This festival features two intimate one-actor plays.

Syringa Tree

By Pamela Gien

September 19-October 13

Out of the shadow of apartheid comes this joyous, personal tale of ties that cannot be broken. Elizabeth Grace is a young white girl growing up in South Africa in the 1960s, making her way through a world losing its innocence. Along her journey she meets friends and strangers, black and white, young and old. Through her we see the complexities of the world they share—their dreams, struggles and laughter — and their shared humanity.

The Night Watcher

by Charlayne Woodard

September 20-October 15

Family ties reach beyond blood in this moving, one-woman piece by acclaimed playwright Charlayne Woodard. Investigating the social and cultural challenges that come with raising kids, Woodard’s tales of her “children” are transfixing and tragic. Millicent Wright returns to channel the voice of Woodard in the fourth of her autobiographical plays, continuing an IRT cycle from previous seasons that includes Pretty Fire and Neat.

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The House That Jack Built

by James Still

October 30-November 25

The world premiere from IRT Playwright-in-Resident James Still takes us to a rambling Thanksgiving get together in Vermont where friendship and family are intertwined and memories of the past have a place at the table. It’s a funny and affecting visit with three women, their significant others and their not insignificant desire to recapture what they once shared.

A Christmas Carol

by Charles Dickens

November 25- December 24

Join Scrooge, Tiny Tim and a host of spirited ghosts in this timeless story of regret and redemption. The holidays aren’t complete until you’ve treated the family to a tradition that has spanned the decades-- A Christmas Carol at IRT, the season’s most heartfelt gift.

Jackie and Me

by Steven Dietz

adapted from the book by Dan Gutman

January 11-February 16

A young boy’s school report on Jackie Robinson finds him travelling back in time to meet one of the most influential baseball players in history. But a strange twist gives him a unique understanding of the struggles faced by the first black man to play in the major leagues. This tale of an American icon leaves the history books and lands on stage in this brilliantly adapted play based on the young adult novel by Dan Gutman.

Click below to read reviews of past IRT Dietz plays
Dracula Review
Becky's New Car

A Little Night Music

by Steven Sondheim

January 23-February 17

This season, one of Sondheim’s most beautiful works waltzes onto the IRT stage. This captivating tale of romance and loss that exquisitely reminds us: the best dance is done with a partner you love. Inspired by one of Ingmar Bergman’s most enchanting films, this Tony Award Winner for Best Musical features the bittersweet classic, Send In The Clowns. Starring international vocalist Sylvia McNair.

The Whipping Man

by Matthew Lopez

March 5-24

As the Civil War comes to a bloody close, a Passover Seder in a shattered antebellum mansion reveals hidden truths about the nature of freedom and the frailty of family. Everyone carries scars in this emotionally stirring period drama that binds three men whose world has changed forever. What comes next when the end of bondage brings uncertainty rather than liberty? Find out in this impressive debut from playwright Matthew Lopez.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

by William Shakespeare

April 10-May 12

Mistaken identities, love charms and magical encounters all run amok in Shakespeare’s classic comedy set in an Athenian forest inhabited by sprites, fairies and a group of amorous couples who change partners at the drop of a spell. This exuberant tale of young lovers in the woods for a night of mischief is sure to please anyone who remembers the magic of true romance. What fools these mortals be.

For tickets, directions and information, visit IRTLive.com.

Images: submitted by IRT

Elizabeth J. Musgrave is a syndicated fine-living, travel columnist, freelance writer, and performing arts and restaurant critic. Read her new column, Infused, at GottaGo.us and FoodandDrinkDigital.com and catch her as Indy’s Entertainment Adviser on 93 WIBC. Gotta Go is published on Gottago.us, BroadwayWorld.com, in M and Retired Living magazines and several Indianapolis area newspapers. Follow her on Twitter @GottaGo, LinkedIn and Facebook.

IRT Announces 2011-12 Season Includes DRACULA!

IRT Announces 2011-12 Season

SEPT 7-OCT 1
OneAmerica Stage

Wicked and seductive, the original bloodsucker is back in a fresh, faithful adaptation of Bram Stoker‘s horrific tale. The Count has taken residence in London, and only Professor Van Helsing understands the extent of the terror that is about to be unleashed. Transported back to a time where legend and science contend for supremacy, Steven Deitz's script keeps your heart beating 

and blood pumping… we hope.

SEPT 22-OCT 23

Upperstage

IRT’s Going Solo festival of three intimate one-actor plays returns for its third year of audience acclaim. A highlight this season will be an original work by IRT playwright-in-residence James Still. An added advantage for IRT subscribers: you can enjoy your assigned performance and then choose a weeknight performance of either of the other two plays in the series.

JAN 10-JAN 29

        OneAmerica Stage

August Wilson’s final work, completed only months before his death, Radio Golf is the culmination of his play cycle examining the Black experience in each decade of the twentieth century. The voice of modern African American ambition speaks of political growth and urban renewal, but cannot be entirely free of the past. Wilson uses the complexity of his former work to bring us back to the struggle of all Americans as we try to grow beyond our shared history, while still remembering its lessons.

FEB 28-MAR 24
OneAmerica Stage

A playground incident between two boys devolves into a comedy of bad manners as the parents meet to work things out. It’s hard to tell the children from the adults in this edgy satire from Yasmina Reza that catapults the IRT audience into the middle of a war-of-words zone where things are never what they seem. Winner for Best Play at the 2009 Tony Awards.

MAR 13-APR 22
Upperstage

Witty dialogue, glamour and madcap humor bubble out of control in Nöel Coward’s 1925 farce. We follow the story of Julia and Jane, two upper-class friends waiting for a shared secret to arrive at the front door. Can the virtues of married life stand firm against the lure of lost romance? This comedy of manners consists of three acts and a never-ending supply of champagne.

APRIL 17- MAY 20 OneAmerica Stage

In what Time Magazine called “…unforgettable theater,” The Miracle Worker recreates the life and education of Helen Keller. Tragically deaf, blind and ultimately mute due to a childhood illness, the wild child meets her match when Annie Sullivan, a teacher with passion, resilience and cunning wit, arrives to teach Helen her greatest lesson: the gift of communication. Extraordinarily woven by the playwright, this century old story of

fortitude and friendship still stirs audiences today.

OCT 18-NOV 5OneAmerica Stage

One of Shakespeare’s most well known tragedies, Julius Caesar grapples with the universal themes of honor, patriotism and the ultimate betrayal of ruler and friend. Tension reaches a boiling point after Caesar’s brutal assassination, while political scheming spurs power hungry Romans into civil war. A classic piece of theater that echoes current political issues, making this a relevant, not-to-be-missed experience.

NOV 25-DEC 24
OneAmerica Stage

Winter can be a cold, hard place, especially when one man’s heart resists every effort to warm it. Can the spirits of the season prevail in time to save Scrooge from an eternity of miserly misery? Find out when Charles Dickens’ beloved holiday favorite returns. Unwrap the perfect family outing and experience the joy of the IRT’s timeless Christmas classic.