West Hartford’s Playhouse on Park Announces 2024-25 Season – We-Ha

The theme of Playhouse we Park’s 2024-25 season is ‘Reframing the Familiar.’

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Playhouse we Park is thrilled to announce its 2024-25 season, the theme of which is “Reframing the Familiar.”

Join Playhouse we Park for their 16th Anniversary Season as they explore new takes on classic films, traditions, and stories. Subscription renewals for current subscribers began June 14, and subscriptions will go on sale for new subscribers on July 10. Individual tickets will go on sale Aug. 19. Subscribe to save 20% on individual ticket prices, along with additional perks.

Playhouse we ParkThe 2024-25 season will open with The Shark Is Broken by Ian Shaw and Joseph Nixon. Fade in: The open ocean, 1974. Filming is delayed … again. The lead actors – theater veteran Robert Shaw and young Hollywood hotshots Richard Dreyfuss and Roy Scheider – are crammed into a too-small boat, entirely at the mercy of unpredictable weather and a shark prop whose constant breakdowns are looking like an omen for the future of the movie. Dive deep into the tumultuous, murky waters of the making of the classic motion picture Jaws, where alcohol flows, egos collide, and tempers flare. This chaotic voyage just might lead to cinematic magic and change their lives forever… if it doesn’t sink them all. he shark is broken runs Oct. 2-20, 2024.

Running Dec. 4-22, 2024 is the East Coast Premiere of The Ugly Xmas Sweater Musical by Dan Knechtges and Megan Larche Dominick, based on an idea by Dan Knechtges. Blending the comedy style of The Office with the competitive spirit of Project Runway, The Ugly Xmas Sweater Musical is a brand-new laugh-out-loud, interactive musical. In this not-so-everyday story, a group of employees must take desperate measures when they learn that their company is being bought out by an international conglomerate. In order to save their jobs, they have to come up with the best Ugly Christmas Sweater ever made. This interactive, laugh-out-loud musical is the perfect holiday treat for everyone. Wear your favorite ugly festive sweater, sing along if you wish, and celebrate the holidays with friends, coworkers, and family!

stop/time dance theater is gearing up to take the stage for their farewell performance, which you can add to your subscription at a 20% discount! After 22 years in existence, director Darlene Zoller, along with the members of stop/time dance theaterhave decided that show number 20 will be their final full-scale production. We invite you to come and take a trip down memory lane as the company explores their history and projects what the future holds for them. Their first show ever was titled My Show: A Choreographer’s Story. Coming full circle, stop/time dance theater will present Our Show: The Stop/Time Story. stop/time dance theater never fails to entertain their audiences and this year will be no different. Singing, dancing and a storyline to tug at the heartstrings and send you home filled with hope and happiness. Our Show: The Stop/Time Story will run Jan. 29-Feb. 9, 2025.

The Irish … and How They Got That Way by Frank McCourt, with original musical arrangements by Rusty Magee, will run March 12-30, 2025. What’s so great about being Irish? Find out in this moving, uplifting, eye-opening musical history lesson full of charm and a bit of blarney. The Irish … and How They Got That Way is an irreverent history of the Irish through the tumultuous 20th and 21st centuries through the eyes of Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Frank McCourt (Angela’s Ashes, ‘Tis, Teacher Man). McCourt’s razor sharp wit, coupled with his trademark bitter irony, and his boundless love for the Irish people are all underscored by glorious music extending all the way from the auld Irish folk ballads, through George M. Cohan’s patriotic love songs to America, World War II standards sung in movies, USOs and foxholes all over the world, and including the latest from contemporary Ireland’s U2.

Playhouse we Park is proud to present the world premiere of The Baronessa new comedy by Jacques Lamarre. Baroness Elsa Schraeder has arrived at the Von Trapp mansion to seal the deal: her engagement to Austria’s most eligible bachelor, Georg Von Trapp. What The Baroness doesn’t count on is mucking up her plans: a yodeling and curtain-sewing failed nun. Refusing to let a dowdy governess get the better of her, the Baroness takes to her room to plot her revenge, when a certain telegram delivery boy climbs through her window. Don’t miss this hilarious new comedy by the writer of I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghettiand one of the co-writers of Christmas on the Rocks. The Baroness will run June 4-22, 2025.

The 2024-25 Main Stage Season will close with Singin’ in the Rain. Screenplay by Betty Comden and Adolph Green. Songs by Nacio Herb Brown and Arthur Freed. Based on the classic Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film, by special arrangement with Warner Bros. Theater Ventures, Inc. It’s a wildly inventive re-imagining of “the greatest movie musical of all time” set at a screening of the iconic film that goes horribly wrong, until super fans swoop in and save the day! Singin’ in the Rain has all the makings of a Tinseltown tabloid headline – the starlet, the leading man, and a love affair that could change lives and make or break careers! In silent movies, Don Lockwood and Lina Lamont are a hot item but, behind the scenes, things aren’t always as they appear on the big screen! Meanwhile, Lina’s squeaky voice might be the end of her career in “talking pictures” without the help of a talented young actress to do the talking and singing for her. Filled with unforgettable scenes, snappy dialogue, and a hit-parade score of Hollywood standards including “Make ‘Em Laugh,” “Good Morning,” and of course, the title song, Singin’ in the Rain is perfect entertainment for any fan of golden age movie musicals – but with a twist! Running July 16-Aug. 17, 2025.

Playhouse we Park‘s Theater for Young Audiences production is Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! The Musical! Script by Mo Willems and Mr. Warburton. Lyrics by Mo Willems. Music by Deborah Wicks La Puma. Whatever you do, don’t let the Pigeon star in his own musical production! With a script written by Mo Willems, the creator of the #1 New York Times best-selling, Caldecott Honor award-winning “Pigeon” picture books, and featuring music by Deborah Wicks La Puma (“Elephant & Piggie’s We Are in a Play !”), Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! The Musical! is even more fun than staying up late and having a hot dog party! It’s not easy being the Pigeon – you never get to do ANYTHING. But when the Bus Driver has a crisis that threatens to make her passengers (gasp!) late, maybe that wily bird CAN do something. Featuring an innovative mix of songs, and feathers, Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! The Musical!is sure to get everyone’s wings flapping. Running April 22-May 11, 2025.

Managed under the direction of Playhouse Theater Group (PTG) Inc., Playhouse we Park is Greater Hartford’s award-winning destination for the performing arts. Playhouse we Park offers a wide range of thought-provoking, inspiring and thoroughly enjoyable professional productions that leave audiences often smiling, sometimes crying, and always talking about what they have just experienced. PTG, Inc. produces award-winning theater year-round, including a Main Stage Series consisting of plays and musicals; has Theater for Young Audience Series, which is part of their Literature Alive Field Trip Program; Comedy Nights; Dance; Music; Improv, an extensive educational program and more.

To learn more about Playhouse we Park‘s 2024-25 Season, Comedy Nights, Theater For Young Audiences touring production, special events, and more, call the Box Office at 860-523-5900 x10 or visit www.PlayhouseOnPark.org. Playhouse we Park is located at 244 Park Rd. West Hartford, CT 06119.

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