Wright State offers ‘Cabaret,’ ‘Doll’s House’ in 2023-24 season
Wright State University Theatre’s 2023-2024 season will feature a musical theatre classic as well as two premieres and two guest directors.
“In a season (that) features the stories of rising independence, tragic consequences and joyful discovery, audiences will experience one of our most eclectic and varied seasons in recent memory,” said organizers in a news release.
Dates have not been finalized for the seven-show season, but the titles are intact.
The season opens with “The Liar,” a farce adapted from Pierre Corneille by contemporary comic playwright David Ives. This “scintillating comic romp” deals with mistaken identity, wily servants, foolish masters and complicated romance. The play will be directed on the Festival Playhouse mainstage by Head of Acting Josh Aaron McCabe, who appeared last season in the Human Race Theatre Company’s productions of “Deadline” and “Barbecue.”
Next, John Kander, Fred Ebb and Joe Masteroff ’s tuneful yet chilling “Cabaret” will receive a reimagined production under the direction and choreography of Head of Musical Theatre Greg Hellems. Following the rise of fascism in the 1930s and the inevitable costs to the German people, the show contains such numbers as “Maybe This Time,” “Money” and the title song.
In the downstairs Herbst Theatre, the regional university premiere of Katie Kring and Rob Hartmann’s “Kelly The Destroyer vs The Springfield Cobras” will be directed by Senior Lecturer Jamie Cordes. The play concerns Kelly, a new student at Cotesville Magnet High School. Kelly and her friends discover the educational consultant reforming the school is secretly turning the students into high-performing, brainwashed cobras. Kelly seeks to uncover the truth and save the school before it’s too late.
First on the mainstage in the new year will be the area premiere of “By the Bog of Cats,” a tale of greed, betrayal, murder and self-sacrifice directed by Magnolia Theatre Company Artistic Director Gina Handy Minyard. Loosely based on Euripides’ tragedy “Medea,” and set on the bleak, ghostly Irish landscape of the Bog of Cats, this provocative drama “discloses one woman’s courageous attempts to lay claim to that which is hers, as her world is torn in two.”
Next in the Herbst Theatre is a rare chance to see an original classic drama and its contemporary-inspired sequel sideby-side. Henrik Ibsen’s landmark 1879 drama “A Doll’s House,” a story of Nora Helmer’s discovery of her own strength and independence in a world determined to crush her, will be followed a week later by the area premiere of Lucas Hnath’s 2017 Tony Award-nominated “A Doll’s House, Part 2,” centered on Nora’s unexpected return. WSU Artistic Director Marya Spring Cordes will direct the former and Human Race Theatre Company Artistic Director Emily N. Wells will direct the latter.
The season will conclude on the mainstage with William Finn and Rachel Sheinkin’s Tony-winning musical “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” a funny, audience-participatory look at an awkward middle school spelling bee. The production will be directed and choreographed by Distinguished Professor of Musical Theatre Joe Deer.
In addition, the WSU Dance Ensemble will offer a varied evening of dance in the annual Spring Dance Concert, which will feature the work of faculty and guest artists along with community education partners Dayton Ballet II and Dayton Contemporary Dance Company II.
Season tickets can be purchased through Wright State School of Fine and Performing Arts Box Office at (937) 7752500 or online at www. wright.edu/theatre.
Dayton Ballet II, Dayton Ballet ‘Nutcracker’ auditions
Dayton Performing Arts Alliance announces auditions for Dayton Ballet’s pre-professional companies, DBII Junior and Senior, on Saturday, Aug. 19, and auditions for children’s roles in Dayton Ballet’s annual production of “The Nutcracker” on Sunday, Aug. 20. Both auditions take place at the Dayton Ballet Studios located inside the Victoria Theatre, 140 N. Main St., Fourth Floor, in downtown Dayton.
Dancers trained in ballet ages 11-13 ( Junior Company) and ages 14 and up (Senior Company) are being sought. Auditions for ages 11-13 will be held from 10 a.m.-12 p.m. Auditions for ages 14 and up will be held from 1-3 p.m.
Dayton Ballet II is a pre-professional training program available to dancers through audition only. This division is for dancers who are committed to a high level of dance training, strengthening and artistic development, along with elective classes to supplement their dance education. This division includes additional performance opportunities. DPAA notes “participants in both DBII companies will be held to a high technical standard and required to demonstrate responsibility and commitment to their training.”
For more information or to register for auditions, visit daytonballetschool.org/db2auditions.
Auditions for Dayton Ballet’s “The Nutcracker” will be held from 1-5 p.m. Dancers must be 5’6” or shorter and 6 to 13 years of age. Auditions times are as follows: 1:00-2:15 p.m. (ages 11-13), 2:153:30 p.m. (ages 8-10) and 3:30-5 p.m. (ages 6-7). There is no fee to audition. If accepted as a cast member, there is a participation fee of $30. No resume or photos are required to audition.
Audition notables: Any color leotard and tights for female-identifying dancers and a white shirt with black pants/tights for male-identifying dancers; hair needs to be secured and pulled back from the face; eligible dancers should arrive at Dayton Ballet dressed in dancewear, with shoes, warmups and water; bring only what is necessary for the audition due to limited studio space; and students are encouraged not to bring valuables to the audition.
Anyone planning to audition should arrive 30 minutes before your child’s group audition begins. Height and age requirements will be verified by Dayton Ballet staff at the door prior to admission to the audition. Attendance for all “Nutcracker” rehearsals is mandatory.
Dancers will be notified of the status of their auditions via email. Casting is at the sole discretion of the Dayton Ballet artistic team. All casting decisions are final.
To register for auditions for “The Nutcracker,” visit daytonperformingarts.org/nutcrackerauditions23.