Every year, both the UA and Broadway in Tucson bring a variety of shows to campus to entertain the masses. The Arizona Repertory Theatre features student and professional actors, whereas Broadway in Tucson brings national tours to the Tucson community.
The season for ART starts off with Neil Simon’s 1963 show “Barefoot in the Park.” This romantic comedy focuses on the life of a newly married couple, Corie and Paul Bratter, and whether their marriage will survive the differences between them. These differences arise from the fact that Paul is a lawyer and Corie is a flower child.
“Barefoot in the Park” runs from Sept. 20 to Oct. 11.
“Cabaret” follows in the lineup shortly after “Barefoot in the Park,” open from Oct. 18 to Nov. 8. This play, winner of the Tony Award for Best Musical, focuses on the romance between a British singer and an American journalist against the backdrop of Berlin as the Nazi Party gains control over the German government. The show is notable for the master of ceremonies, who is often regarded as bisexual or sexually ambiguous.
This show has been featured in a film rendition starring Liza Minnelli and has been on the stage for almost 50 years.
Broadway in Tucson starts off its season with the family-friendly show “Annie.” This show stems from a 1920s comic strip titled “Little Orphan Annie.” It is better known to the masses through the two films it has spawned, one in 1982 and a more recent hip-hop revival produced by Jay-Z.
The show originally premiered on Broadway in 1977 and focuses on a young, redheaded orphan named Annie, who, despite her circumstances in Depression-era New York, holds out hope that her family will come for her one day.
As the Christmas season approaches, an assistant to billionaire Oliver Warbucks, also colloquially known through the show as “Daddy” Warbucks, arrives at the orphanage that houses Annie in hopes of inviting a young orphan to his mansion for the holiday.
This show features well-known songs such as “Tomorrow” and “It’s the Hard-Knock Life.” “Annie” runs from Sept. 29 to Oct. 4 at Centennial Hall. Tickets are currently on sale.
The main attraction for the first half of Broadway in Tucson’s season is “The Phantom of the Opera.” The show has been running in theaters across the world for almost 30 years.
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s show is based on the early 20th century French novel by Gaston Leroux. The story focuses on the young ingénue Christine Daaé, who is a dancer at the Opera Populaire. Daaé quickly skyrockets as a soprano thanks to the tutelage of a mysterious “Angel of Music.”
However, things at the Opera Populaire become violent as the new managers refuse to pay the Opera Ghost’s ransom on the opera house. That and the arrival of Raoul De Chagny, a childhood friend who falls in love with Christine, create a situation reminiscent of the 1987 film “Fatal Attraction.”
“The Phantom of the Opera” will be running from Oct. 21 to Nov. 1 at Centennial Hall.
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