The Underground

The celebration of original one-acts returns for its third year!

Written by women from all over the country, directed by women from across the Twin Ports, and performed by local community actors, this short play festival highlights the female voice and everything it has to say.

The past first and second year of this festival attracted more than 250 submissions, and this pool will be narrowed down to 6-8 for performance. Each selected piece is an unpublished, original one-act or monologue, and will be a non-musical script.

• Standard Ticket: $20

Book by Tom Jones
Music by Harvey Schmidt
Lyrics by Tom Jones
Based on Les Romanesques by Edmond Rostand

“Try To Remember” a time when this romantic charmer wasn’t enchanting audiences around the world.

The Fantasticks is a funny and romantic musical about a boy, a girl, and their two fathers who try to keep them apart. The narrator, El Gallo, asks the audience to use their imagination and follow him into a world of moonlight and magic. The boy and the girl fall in love, grow apart and finally find their way back to each other after realizing the truth in El Gallo’s words that, “without a hurt, the heart is hollow.”

• Directed by Christine Winkler Johnson
• Standard Ticket – $20

Written by Sarah Ruhl
Based on the Greek tale of Orpheus and Eurydice

In Eurydice, playwright Sarah Ruhl reimagines the classic myth of Orpheus through the eyes of its heroine.

Dying too young on her wedding day, Eurydice must journey to the underworld, where she reunites with her father and struggles to remember her soulmate whom she left behind. With contemporary characters, ingenious plot twists, and breathtaking visual effects, the play is a fresh look at a timeless love story.

• Directed by Robert Lee
• Tickets: Standard – $20

Written by Neil Simon

Playwright Neil Simon got his first big break in the early ‘50s as a staff writer on Sid Caesar’s fabled television series Your Show of Shows, and this comedy takes a fictionalized look at the backstage chaos that went into producing one of the landmarks of television’s golden age.

People everywhere gather around the TV each week to watch their favorite comedian Max Prince. He’s loud, brash and larger than life. His temper tantrums and one-liners have the power to make careers – or make misery for the writers working around him. The network censors want to change the show to make it more “advertiser-friendly.” But messing with Max can only mean the jokes and jabs will get funnier and wilder in an uncertain future, as the world of television heads for a change.

• Directed by Nathan Carlblom
• Tickets: Standard – $20

This rock-musical comedy follows the beautifully tragic life story of transgender East German-born Hansel Schmidt.

After suffering a botched sexual reassignment surgery, Hedwig tours the world attempting to conquer the demons of her past. This hilarious and powerful production will speak to those who understand what it’s like to desperately be searching for your other half.

Written by Ken Ludwig
Based on the book ‘The Hound of the Baskervilles’ by Arthur Conan Doyle

Comedic genius Ken Ludwig transforms Arthur Conan Doyle’s classic The Hound of the Baskervilles into a murderously funny adventure.

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Sherlock Holmes is on the case. The male heirs of the Baskerville line are being dispatched one by one. To find their ingenious killer, Holmes and Watson must brave the desolate moors before a family curse dooms its newest heir.

Watch as our intrepid investigators try to escape a dizzying web of clues, silly accents, disguises, and deceit. Does a wild hellhound prowl the moors of Devonshire? Can our heroes discover the truth in time? Join the fun and see how far from elementary the truth can be.

• Directed by Justin Peck
• Presenting Sponsor Audio Visual Resources (AVR)

Written by Joe Paley
Composed by Marvin Laird

Ruthless! The Musical tells the story of the beautiful and talented 8-year-old Tina Denmark who will do anything to play the lead in her school play… ANYTHING!

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Tina knows she was born to play Pippi Longstocking, and she will do absolutely anything to win the part in her school musical…including murder!

A very funny, fast-paced and wickedly twisted musical comedy, this aggressively outrageous hit garnered rave reviews during its long Off-Broadway run.

• Directed by Rob Hadaway