XANADU to Open at MATCH Houston, Presented by The Garden Theatre

The Garden Theatre has announced its plans to bring the stage adaptation of a cult classic to life in Xanadu at MATCH. Featuring the familiar fantasy story accompanied by the hit soundtrack of the original film led by Olivia Newton-John and Gene Kelly, the production will run August 14-30, 2026 at Midtown Arts and Theater Center Houston (3400 Main St.) in the heart of midtown.

'I'm thrilled that we are bringing Xanadu to the stage,' says Founding Artistic Director and director of this production, Logan Vaden. 'It's over the top, hilarious, and just plain fun. It's a show an audience can walk into and forget the rest of the world for 90 minutes.'

'I've loved this show for over a decade,' Vaden continues. 'It's always a go-to listen when I need a pick-me-up. The movie is a campy, good time, but the musical takes that and multiplies it by 25. And don't get me started on the ways we're trying to get the audience involved in the action! I truly cannot wait for Houston to experience Xanadu.'

Based on the Universal Pictures cult classic movie of the same title, which starred Olivia Newton-John and Gene Kelly in his final film role, Xanadu is hilarity on wheels for adults, children and anyone who has ever wanted to feel inspired. This Tony Award-nominated, hilarious, roller skating, musical adventure about following your dreams despite the limitations others set for you, rolls along to the original hit score composed by pop-rock legends, Jeff Lynne and John Farrar.

Xanadu follows the journey of a magical and beautiful Greek muse, Kira, who descends from the heavens of Mount Olympus to Venice Beach, California in 1980 on a quest to inspire a struggling artist, Sonny, to achieve the greatest artistic creation of all time - the first ROLLER DISCO! (Hey, it's 1980!) But, when Kira falls into forbidden love with the mortal, her jealous sisters take advantage of the situation, and chaos abounds.

Xanadu is a moving, electrifying tale of endless fun that will keep audiences in stitches while the original legendary, chart-topping tunes lift them out of their seats. You'll want to keep the music in your head and Xanadu in your heart... forever.

The film version of Xanadu premiered in 1980, written by Richard Christian Danus and Marc Reid Rubel, and directed by Robert Greenwald. While the movie received panned critical response, the soundtrack went on to become one of the most beloved in Hollywood history. The movie was adapted into a musical featuring music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar and a book by Douglas Carter Beane. The Broadway production premiered in 2007, earning 4 Tony Award nominations including Best Musical and Best Book of a Musical. Following the Broadway run, the musical enjoyed a successful US national tour as well as numerous notable regional productions.

The cast of Xanadu are all local professionals including Kristen Herink as Clio/Kira, Miles Estes as Sonny Malone, Morgan Kaupert as Melpomene, Arianna Bermudez as Calliope, Brad Goertz as Danny Maguire, Christopher Aviles as Terpiscore, Tristan Flores as Thalia, Sia Kuresa as Euterpe, and Erin Marie Lamb as Erato. Snow Adeera and Elliot Schein round out the cast as swings. The production team consists of Logan Vaden as director, Jake Cummings as music director, Courtney Chilton as choreographer, Nicholas White as technical director/scenic design, Jacob Zammaripa as light designer, Sami Denton as Costume Designer, Sara Denton as assistant director and stage manager, and Sloane Teagle as production manager.

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