INTO THE WOODS - Scottsdale Desert Stages Theatre - July 8 - August 7, 2016

Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, Book by James Lapine

Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Sundays at 2 pm

Once upon a time there was childless baker and his wife that wished to begin a family, but have been cursed by an evil witch. To break the spell the couple must journey into the woods and complete the witch’s list of tasks. Along the way the baker meets Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel and other classic fairy tale characters. Together they all venture into the woods to find their happily ever after

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ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST, Desert Stages Theatre, September 5 - October 26, 2014

In this powerfully gritty drama Randle McMurphy is convicted of statutory rape and chooses to serve time in a mental hospital rather than state prison.  He soon becomes the bane of Head Nurse Ratched’s existence.  Injected with moments of raw humor this play will leave audiences astonished by its climax.

Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Sundays at 2 pm (no performance on 10/5)

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Director: Louis Farber
Stage Manager: Ruth Farber
Set Designer: Paul Filan
Lighting and Sound Designer: Louis Ihrig
Costume Designer: Virginia Olivieri
Props: Tiffany Atkinson, Matthew Villarreal
Hair/Makeup Designer: Joe Navan

Cast: (in order for appearance)
Chief Bromden: Reginald Graham
Aide Williams: Brent Coatney
Aide Warren: Keller Perry
Nurse Ratched: Shari Watts
Nurse Flinn: Valerie German
Dale Harding: Scott Hyder
Billy Bibbit: Austin Kiehle
Cheswick: Wade Moran
Scanlon: Joe Navan
Martini: Omar Zamora
Ruckley: Devon Nickel
Randle P. McMurphy: Trevor Starkey
Dr. Spivey/Aide Turkle: John Mueller
Candy Starr: Kellie Dunlap
Sandra: Raven Woessner

REVIEWS:

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

-Gil Benbrook, TalkingBroadway.com

13 Must-See Plays This Fall in Metro Phoenix

-Katie Johnson, Phoenix New Times

Strong cast, direction drive 'Cuckoo's Nest'

-Michelle Hoffman, Scottsdale Republic

-Michelle Hoffman, Scottsdale Republic

FOOTLOOSE, Desert Stages Theatre, October 3 - November 2, 2014

Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Saturdays & Sundays at 2 pm

Music and dance are banned in a sleepy rural community. Newcomer Chicago teen Ren McCormack takes on the town’s high-powered minister in a tough uphill battle to bring melody and movement to the local scene. Hardened hearts are transformed, the ban is lifted and it all happens just in time for the most rousing senior prom this side of the Windy City! Everyone ultimately kicks off their Sunday shoes, cut loose, footloose!

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HARVEY, Desert Stages Theatre, November 7, 2014 - January 11, 2015

Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Sundays at 2 pm

Good old Elwood P. Dowd has a best friend. His name is Harvey. Harvey is friendly, amusing and loyal. Elwood takes Harvey with him everywhere he goes. He is always sure to introduce him to folks. He orders drinks for Harvey at their favorite local bar. Yes Harvey is a very good friend indeed. He also happens to be an imaginary 6’3 ½” rabbit. The family is very worried about Elwood.

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Click here to see production photos from this show.

Director: Virginia Olivieri
Set & Props Designer/Stage Manager: Brent Coatney
Lighting and Sound Designer: Louis Ihrig
Costume Designer: Tamara Treat
Hair/Makeup Designer: Virginia Olivieri

Cast:
Elwood P. Dowd: Rick Davis
Veta Louis Simmons: Donna Kaufman
Myrtle Mae Simmons: Madeline Hickman
Ruth Kelly: Virginia Olivieri
Duane Wilson: Clayton Marlowe
William Chumley, M.D.: J. Kevin Tallent
Betty Chumley/Miss Johnson: Ginger Muth
Lyman Sanderson, M.D.: Keaton Honaker
Judge Omar Gaffney: Michael Relland
Mrs. Ethel Chauvenet: Linda Davis
E. J. Lofgen: Brent Coatney

THE WIZARD OF OZ, Desert Stages Theatre, November 14 - December 21, 2014

Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Saturdays & Sundays at 1 & 3 pm

A young girl from Kansas opens the door to a gloriously strange land, and so begins one of the most beloved tales of all time! Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Man and Cowardly Lion follow the yellow brick road in search of what they already have; a home, a brain, a heart and courage. Few stories have transcended time and space like the wonderful Wizard of Oz. For the young, and the young at heart, experience it again for the first time!

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42ND ST, Desert Stages Theatre, January 9 - February 8, 2015

Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Saturday & Sundays at 2 pm

Peggy is terrified to fill diva Dorothy’s dancing shoes and decides to go back home to Allentown. It takes some coaxing by director Julian to convince Peggy to change her mind but she finally agrees. Before the curtain rises on her opening night debut, Julian utters the now famous show biz line “You’re going out there a youngster but you’ve got to come back a star!” Will she? C’mon along and listen to the lullaby of Broadway!


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Cast, photos and review links will be added when available.

LOMBARDI, Desert Stages Theatre, January 23 - March 15, 2015

Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Sundays at 2 pm

It’s 1965, the Green Bay Packers are having a stellar season, and they’re on their way to the championship. “Look Magazine” reporter Michael McCormick wants to find out all he can about their amazing coach.  In this highly critically acclaimed drama, you’ll meet the man whose name graces the Vince Lombardi Super Bowl Trophy. Lombardi is considered by many to be the greatest coach that ever lived or as Michael McCormick puts it, “the most imperfect, perfect man I ever met.”

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Cast, photos and review links will be added when available.

DISNEY BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, JR - Desert Stages Theatre - February 20 - March 29, 2015

Once upon a time…so begins a timeless musical tale but in this story our heroine Belle, living in a quiet village, dreams of having books to read! Her life takes an unexpected and exciting turn that leads to a darkened castle where once there was joy but now only gloom. Living there is a frightful beast attended to by a colorfully odd and magical assortment of characters. Slowly, something magical happens as Belle learns to look beyond what only the eye can see. Soon the beast is transformed, joy returns and with a library filled of books they live happily ever after!

Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Saturdays & Sundays at 1 & 3 pm


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WITNESS FOR THE PROSECUTION, Desert Stages Theatre, March 27 - May 17, 2015

Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Sundays at 2 pm

Leonard Vole is accused of murdering elderly, wealthy widow Mrs. Emily French. His lawyer is convinced of his innocence until the will is read revealing a substantial bequest to Leonard.  This brilliant Agatha Christie courtroom drama is filled with suspenseful plot twists that hold up still today. The climax is so startling that audiences should swear under oath not to reveal it!

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Cast, photos and review links will be added when available.

SHREK THE MUSICAL, Desert Stages Theatre, April 10 – May 10, 2015

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Cast, photos and review links will be added when available.

THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE, Desert Stages Theatre, April 30 - May 17, 2015

April 30 to May 17, 2015
Thursdays at 7 pm, Saturdays at 2 pm & Sundays at 7 pm

Music and Lyrics by William Finn
Book by Rachel Sheinkin
Conceived by Rebecca Feldman
Additional Materials by Jay Reiss
Originally Directed on Broadway by James Lapine
Originally produced on Broadway by David Stone, James L. Nederlander, Barbara Whitman, Patrick Catullo Barrington Stage Company, Second Stage Theatre

The six very different youngsters who signed up for The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee are in for the competition of a lifetime! Follow the story of the wackiest spelling bee yet in Putnam County as you learn more about the colorful background of each contestant and how each made their way to the competition. Who will take home the First Place prize? This musical comedy will have you laughing-out-loud all night long!

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WILLY WONKA, JR. Desert Stages Theatre, May 22 - June 21, 2015

Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Saturdays & Sundays at 1 & 3 pm

Five golden tickets are hidden in Wonka chocolate bars and the world goes bonkers to find one! Winners receive a tour of Willy Wonka’s mysterious factory and a year’s supply of scrumdiddlyumptious chocolate bars. When Charlie Bucket, a poor boy with a widowed mom and bedridden grandparents, finds one of the priceless tickets his life is changed beyond his imagination!

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RUMORS, Desert Stages Theatre, June 5 - July 26, 2015

Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Sundays at 2 pm

When guests arrive at a formal dinner party in a high class New York townhouse they immediately sense something is terribly wrong. There are no servants, the hostess is missing and the host, the Deputy Mayor of New York, has shot himself in the ear lobe upstairs in the bedroom. His lawyer quickly concocts a story to protect him from gossip but too many missteps result in a night of hilarious rumors. This is as zany as Neil Simon gets in an upscale farce that goes awry!

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Cast, photos and review links will be added when available.

HAIR, Desert Stages Theatre, July 10 - August 9, 2015

Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Saturday & Sundays at 2 pm

When the moon is in the seventh house and Jupiter aligns with Mars, it’s not only the dawning of the Age of Aquarius …it’s time for Hair! A politically active group of long-haired hippies live a psychedelic bohemian lifestyle in New York and fight involvement in the Vietnam War. The make-love-not-war mantra of the turbulent 60s is revisited in this graphic, award-winning rock musical.

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Cast, photos and review links will be added when available.