September - October 2009
The stage play, written by Robert Harling, was originally staged off-Broadway. All of the action takes place on one set - Truvy's beauty salon - which is part of her house. There are six characters (all female) that appear on stage. The original stage production opened at the WPA Theatre, In New York City,on March 28, 1987.
November - December 2009
is a musical written by brothers Robert -music - and Willie Reale - book and lyrics - based on the Frog and Toad children's stories written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel. The musical follows the woodland adventures of two amphibious friends, a worrywart toad and a perky frog, with their assorted colorful hopping, crawling and flying companions, over the course of a year. The show broke new ground by bringing professional children's theatre to Broadway, sparking the interest of the age 3-to-10 set. Arnold Lobel's daughter, Adrianne Lobel, commissioned a musical based on her father's characters. She also designed the set, based on her father's writings. Her husband, actor Mark Linn-Baker, adapted the stories into a theatrical script, and later played Toad in the musical's Broadway debut.
February - March 2010
is a 1960 musical with music by Harvey Schmidt, lyrics by Tom Jones, produced by Lore Noto. It tells an allegorical story, loosely based on the play "The Romancers" by Edmond Rostand, concerning two fathers who put up a wall between their houses to ensure that their children fall in love, because they know that children always do what their parents forbid. After the children do fall in love, they discover their fathers' plot and they each go off and experience “the world.” Elements of the play are drawn from the story of Pyramus and Thisbe, winding its way through Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night's Dream, as well as Donizetti's L'Elisir d'Amore. The show's original production off-Broadway ran for 17,162 performances, becoming the world's longest-running musical, over 42 years. The poetic book and breezy, hummable score, including such familiar songs such as "Try to Remember," help make this show so durable.
April - May 2010
is a musical, music and lyrics by Frank Loesser, book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows, based on "The Idyll of Miss Sarah Brown" and "Blood Pressure", two short stories by Damon Runyon. It also borrows characters and plot elements from other Runyon stories, most notably "Pick the Winner". The musical premiered on Broadway at the 46th Street Theatre, opening on November 24, 1950. The play ran for 1,200 performances, winning five 1951 Tony Awards, including the award for Best Musical. On November 3, 1955 the film version was released, starring Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra, and Jean Simmons, with Vivian Blaine reprising her role.