2008 Musical Theatre Season
Season Subscritions Now On Sale For A Round Barn Filled With Musical Classics
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The 2008 season of Broadway musicals that will play in repertory
with the 22nd season of Plain and Fancy is official. The
Fantasticks, The Music Man, Carousel, Kiss
Me Kate, and A Wonderful Life will run for a total of
over 350 performances in the coming season.
No season of classic
musicals could begin without a production of The Fantasticks. The
Fantasticks opened
in 1960 and by the time the final curtain was brought down in 2002,
had played 17,162 performances thus becoming the longest running
musical in U.S. history. The show’s producer Lore Noto stepped into
the role of Hucklebee in 1971 and by 1986 had performed in well over
6,000 performances, garnering another longest running record. The
Fantasticks is now in revival in the Snapple Theatre on Broadway
starting a new run at its own record. Fittingly Tom Jones and Harvey
Schmidt wrote The Fantasticks for
a summer theatre production at Barnard College. “Try to Remember” and “Soon
It’s Gonna Rain” became
part of the national culture. In reflection, the Wall Street Journal
called The Fantasticks “The Perfect Musical” upon its revival
in 2006.
New artistic director Jeremy Littlejohn says, “In the 10 years that I have worked in the professional theatre world, never has such a dynamic season of classics been more anticipated. Each show has a level of reputation, history and tradition that is unparalleled in any other Round Barn Theatre season to date. The challenges and responsibilities are a bit overwhelming, but the reward will be felt more deeply by the audience, cast and staff when our vision comes to fruition.”
The Round Barn will fittingly follow The Fantasticks with its own revival of The Music Man, Meredith Willson’s autobiographical tribute to John Phillips Sousa and the bands of memory. Produced in the second year of repertory with Broadway’s Dirk Lumbard as Harold Hill, a tap dancing take on the role made famous by Robert Preston and played in revival by Eddie Albert, Dick Van Dyke, and Craig Bierko with Dirk Lumbard as understudy. It brought regional attention to the new theatre’s intentions of providing professional musical theatre at its highest levels. Derek Martin, tap dancing protégée of Lumbard’s, will assume the role of the slick talkin’ Hill. Morton DaCosta and Barbara Cook debuted on Broadway in Amish Acres signature musical Plain and Fancy as the director and Hilda Miller in 1955. Two years later they were teamed again as director and Marian the Librarian in one of the biggest hits of all time. The original cast recording remained on Billboard’s charts for 245 weeks. No Broadway songs are better known that “Seventy-Six Trombones,” “The Wells Fargo Wagon” and “Gary, Indiana.”
Perhaps only Rodgers and Hammerstein’s favorite musical, Carousel, is fitting to follow the opening two shows of the 2008 season, Time magazine named it the “Best Musical of the Twentieth Century.” It came on the heals of Oklahoma! and announced to the world that the musical stage was changed forever. The love story of Billy Bigelow, who is allowed to return to earth for one day after taking his own life, and the sense of hope and dignity that he instilled in his wife Julie Jordan and their child is perhaps Oscar Hammerstein’s greatest literary feat. Combined with the music of Richard Rodgers and original dances by Agnes de Mille, the adaptation of Ferenc Molnar’s play “Liliom,” is a seamless piece of American Broadway musical at the height of its Golden Era. “If I Loved You,” “June is Bustin’ Out All Over” and “You’ll Never Walk Alone” are simply perfect pieces of musical theatre.
Peru, Indiana’s Cole Porter is no stranger to any stage in America. But of all of his hits, Kiss Me Kate is considered universally as his masterpiece. One of the most sophisticated and finely crafted musicals of all time, it certainly can follow in the footsteps of The Fantasticks, The Music Man, and Carousel. Some of the most clever, funny, and romantic songs ever written came from the pen of Cole Porter. His songs include "Night and Day," "I Get A Kick Out of You," "You're the Top," "Begin the Beguine," and "My Heart Belongs to Daddy.”
In 1948 Kiss Me Kate stormed the Tony Awards receiving the statue for Best Musical, Best Author of a Musical, Best Composer and Lyricist, Best Costume Design, and Best Producer of a Musical. The show went on to run for four years exceeding 1,000 performances.
The Round Barn Theatre’s Christmas Show, which has featured Cinderella, Peter
Pan, A
Christmas Carol, and The Wizard of Oz, turns to A Wonderful Life to cap the season of classics. The 1946 Holiday film It's A Wonderful Life produced and directed by Frank Capra and staring Jimmy Stewart, was based on the short story, "The Greatest Gift" written by Philip Van Doren Stern. It took Sheldon Harnick, Fiddler on the Roof’s lyricist, to faithfully adapt the film to the musical stage. Joe Raposo, best known for his Sesame Street winners, “Being Green” and “Sing” wrote the music that make this holiday classic come to life through song and dance. 
Each
show will again feature a Theme Buffet on select Friday evenings
and Threshers Dinner with all other performances may be purchased as dinner—theatre
packages. Season subscriptions go on sale July 26, 2007, offering
early subscribers a multitude of special events, including a staged reading
of Carmelina,
Joseph Stein’s recently revised
musical he wrote with Alan Jay Learner, and spring and fall Second
Stage productions of Lost In Yonkers and, for the
first time, a non-musical classic, Thorton Wilder’s Our Town on
The Round Barn Theatre stage. Call the box office for information at
(800) 800-4942 or visit AmishAcres.com.
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