ROCK OF AGES Will Come To The Hershey Area Playhouse This Summer

The Hershey Area Playhouse is ready to rock with its first in-person show since the pandemic. Rock of Ages takes you back to the time of big bands with big egos playing big guitar solos and sporting even bigger hair! This Tony Award-nominated Broadway musical features the hits of bands including Night Ranger, REO Speedwagon, Pat Benatar, Twisted Sister and more, with a rock band appearing on stage throughout the entire production. The show will run July 22, 23, and 24 at 7 pm; July 25 at 2 pm; July 29, 30, and 31 at 7 pm, and August 1 at 2 pm.

"I can't think of a better way to reopen the Hershey Area Playhouse than with Rock of Ages, a raucously addictive and indulgent celebration of '80s rock at its best," says Director Jasmine Bucher, recipient of a 2018 Tony Award Honorable Mention for Excellence in Theatre Education. . "Audiences are in for a rare treat as this ridiculously talented group of performers rocks the roof right off the playhouse."

It's the tail end of the big, bad 1980s in Hollywood, and the party has been raging hard. Aqua Net, Lycra, lace, and liquor flow freely at one of the Sunset Strips last legendary venues, a place where sex machine Stacee Jaxx takes the stage and scantily clad groupies line up to turn their fantasies into reality. Amidst the madness, aspiring rock star (and resident toilet cleaner) Drew longs to take the stage as the next big thing (and longs for small-town girl Sherri, fresh off the bus from Kansas with stars in her eyes). But the rock 'n' roll fairy tale is about to end when German developers sweep into town with plans to turn the fabled Strip into just another capitalist strip mall. Can Drew, Sherri and the gang save the strip - and themselves - before it's too late? Only the music of hit eighties bands has the answer.

With a 100 percent volunteer cast and production team, this show features an extraordinary cast of 20 talented performers ranging in age from 18 to nearly 60, who are thrilled to be performing live once again. Rehearsals blended digital vocal and characterizations rehearsals in 2020 with live rehearsals in 2021. The delay of 1 year enabled the playhouse to receive the most up-to-date script that included a new song.

Hungry to perform again, two cast members travel nearly 2 hours for rehearsals. With Hershey Area Playhouse regulars as well as a new crop of performers, the show represents the best of what community theatre offers.

Rock of Ages is for mature audiences only and includes adult language, and references to sex, drugs, AND rock and roll! The show will take place in person on the Playhouse stage, and current CDC and local guidelines will be followed. Tickets are $23, and can be purchased at hersheyareaplayhouse.com.

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