Roger Bean News

City Theater will be open to in person audiences July 23rd through August 1st.

Fort Salem Theater is thrilled to announce their 2021 Summer series! The COVID-conscious productions will mark both the theater’s reopening from the global pandemic, as well as the official grand reopening under new venue owners and management. The curtain rises on the theater’s mainstage with The Marvelous Wonderettes (June 18-27), followed by Next to Normal (July 23-August 1). Limited tickets are available now at www.FortSalem.com.

Scottsdale Desert Stages Theatre has  announced its return to live musical theatre with THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES. Opening Friday, March 12, the show features the many talents of Sara Sanderson as Cindy Lou Huffington, Isabel Julazadeh as Missy Miller, Sara Cleeland as Betty Jean Reynolds, and Sarah Davidson as Suzy Simpson. 

Stage Rights has just published--and will be licensing--ASCAP award-winner Chip Deffaa's 20th play, 'Say it with Music,' a celebration of  Irving Berlin.  The musical play was developed at Deffaa's base in New York, the 13th Street Repertory Theater (Joe Battista, Producing Artistic Director). 

The Idaho Shakespeare Festival has announced its tentative 2021 lineup, after cancelled its 2020 edition due to the health crisis.

5-STAR THEATRICALS has announced a series of workshops and talk backs featuring some of the stars and creative teams from 5-Star's archives of fantastic productions.

Theatrical publisher Stage Rights has announced that the majority of its catalog of musicals and plays are now available for limited streaming production rights.

Manoa Valley Theatre returns for its 52nd season with a stellar lineup of shows that includes a slew of Hawaii premieres, including comedy, musical comedy, drama and a local-kine Hawaii favorite.

The Seacoast Repertory Theatre is carefully planning to resume its mainstage production schedule on July 31 with Cabaret, the award-winning musical that asks, 'what good is sitting alone in your room? come hear the music play.'

Meriden's Castle Craig Players have brought back everyone's favorite 'marvelous' quartet to create a brand new new take on the classic song 'Mister Sandman', in response to the current quarantine and COVID-19 crisis.

The fun never ends at The Winter Park Playhouse as the madcap musical comedy, The Andrews Brothers, continues the theater's 17th season of professional musicals - March 13 through April 11, 2020. This hilarious adventure of mistaken identities and popular songs of the era is pure nostalgic fun! Performances are Friday and Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m., Thursday and Saturday matinee performances at 2 p.m. and select Wednesday, Friday and Sunday matinees at 2 p.m.   

THE ANDREWS BROTHERS sung-through musical is sure to please those who remember the 1940s first-hand, or those of us who appreciate the song stylings of those bygone days. According to Bean, a?oeHere we create the atmosphere of a rag-tag USO team a?' a very real organization with an important and impressive history a?' sing songs familiar to many in the audience, and try to live up to the memory of a legendary singing group.a?? And thanks to the talented, triple-threat performers, Kelley Dorney, Michael D'Elia, Max DeLorch and Grant Hodges, no matter what goes wrong, the show must go on!

International City Theatre opens its 35th anniversary season with a madcap musical salute to the swinging '40s. Written and created by Roger Bean (The Marvelous Wondrettes, Life Could Be A Dream), and with director/choreographer Jamie Torcellini at the helm, The Andrews Brothers opens on Feb. 21 at ICT's home in the Long Beach Performing Arts Center. Performances will continue through March 8, with two low-priced previews set for Feb. 19 and Feb. 20.

The TexARTS Professional Series presents The Marvelous Wonderettes: Dream On written and created by Roger Bean and vocal and musical arrangements by Michael Borth. Performances will take place February 14 - March 1, 2020 at the Kam & James Morris Theatre in Lakeway.

Southeastern Theatre Conference in partnership with Stage Rights, the licensing company that represents The Marvelous Wonderettes, announces A Singular They by Aliza Goldstein as the winning play of the 2020 Ready to Publish playwriting competition.

International City Theatre opens its 35th anniversary season with a madcap musical salute to the swinging '40s. Written and created by Roger Bean (The Marvelous Wondrettes, Life Could Be A Dream), and with director/choreographer Jamie Torcellini at the helm, The Andrews Brothers opens on Feb. 21 at ICT's home in the Long Beach Performing Arts Center. Performances will continue through March 8, with two low-priced previews set for Feb. 19 and Feb. 20.

On Saturday, December 14, I had the pleasure of seeing THE MARVELOUS WONDERETTES at the Ridgefield Theater Barn in Ridgefield, CT. This comedic musical has the audience laughing from start to finish, while keeping everyone entertained with great oldies songs from the 1950s and 1960s. The excellent singing and acting brings all four characters to life, under the writing of Roger Bean, direction of Foster Evans Reese, and musical direction of Benjamin McCormack who leads the talented live band that is onstage, in the back of the stage.

There's no better way to ease into the hijinks and hubbub of the holiday season than with a nostalgic trip down memory lane with the awesomely talented, tremendously charming and oh-so-delightful quartet, aka the Marvelous Wonderettes, in Roger Bean's confectionary Winter Wonderettes, the seasonal follow-up to his popular The Marvelous Wonderettes, which first introduced us to Cindy Lou, Betty Jean, Suzy and Missy.

The Penny Seats Theatre Company is proud to announce that it will take up residency at Stone Chalet Bed and Breakfast Inn and Event Center on Washtenaw Avenue in Ann Arbor. Beginning in 2020, the Inn's Event Center will house all Penny Seats work, including rehearsals and performances throughout the year, with the exception of the group's annual summer outdoor shows in Ann Arbor's West Park.

Seven Angels Theatre in Waterbury kicks off their 2019-20 Equity Mainstage season with the fantastically fun country musical Honky Tonk Laundry.