TheatreSquared Returns to Live Performance with Seven Full Productions For 2021

Arkansas's largest professional theatre returns to in-person performances following a year of successful streaming offerings and national critical acclaim. After its work was featured among the "Top Theatre of 2020" by The New York Times, and recognition as an "outstanding drama company" by The Wall Street Journal, TheatreSquared welcomes audiences back to its new two-venue facility this week.

"We are thrilled that our audiences will once again be able to enjoy live theatre in person, and we're also taking every possible step to ensure their safety," said Executive Director Martin Miller. "We've worked closely with an infectious disease specialist, and our public health protocols have received the stamp of approval from multiple safety boards, including Actors' Equity Association. We're also excited to continue offering our high-definition, digital streaming option all year long." T2's protocols exceed national standards with air changes more than six times per hour, a high level of outside air supply, MERV-13 filtration, universal PPE requirements, and full vaccination and frequent testing for artists and crew.

The darkly hilarious At the Wedding begins April 28, and the lineup of remarkable, live theatre continues at full speed after that. From My Father's War to Matilda the Musical, and from the music-filled American Mariachi to the world premiere of Designing Women and the five-time Tony-nominated musical Violet, the remainder of 2021 is packed with live theatre.

Due to continued distancing protocols at the theatre, tickets for in-person attendance are extremely limited.

AT THE WEDDING opens on April 28. The play returns for a full production to the stage where it was originally developed during TheatreSquared's 2019 Arkansas New Play Festival and is also slated for production at Lincoln Center Theatre. This funny and heartfelt exploration of falling short of our best intentions will make us all remember "those" wedding guests. Carlo is going to be really well behaved. She's not going to get drunk. She's not going to give any long-winded speeches. And she's definitely not going to try to steal the bride back.

This is a strictly limited engagement, and streaming is limited to Northwest Arkansas only. Playwright Bryna Turner's previous acclaimed play, Bull in a China Shop, was a New York Times Critics' Pick. The play runs through June 13.

Keira Fromm (Miss Bennet; Christmas at Pemberley) directs the production at TheatreSquared. Additional members of the creative team for At the Wedding include William Boles (Scenic Design), Jenn McClory (Costume Design), Jason Lynch (Lighting Design), Christopher Kriz (Sound Design), Michelle LeBlanc (Movement & Choreography), Shawn Irish (Camera Direction), Kris Washington and Alex Worthington (Film Editing).

The play features performances by TheatreSquared veteran Tyler Meredith (Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley) as Carlo-reconnecting with Eva (the bride) played by Brianna Buckley. They are joined by wedding guests Eduardo Xavier Curley-Carillo as Eli, Janet Ulrich Brooks as Maria, Carley Cornelius as Leigh, and Emily Tomlinson (The Wolves) as Carly.

Next on stage is MY FATHER'S WAR, a funny-and deeply moving-time-traveling adventure starring Amy Herzberg. When she puts on her father's 1940s helmet, Amy plunges back into a world at war, surviving one near-death experience after another through luck, chutzpah, and sheer comic timing. Catch this show May 26-June 20, 2021.

In June 2021, TheatreSquared will help celebrate the opening of another brand new venue. In the first live production at the new Fayetteville Public Library, the company will stage MATILDA the Musical-the riotously acclaimed, five-time Tony Award winner and international phenomenon from June 23 to July 18, 2021. Fresh from its hit Broadway run, it's the story of an extraordinary girl who, armed with a vivid imagination, a sharp mind, and books, dares to take a stand and change her own destiny.

AMERICAN MARIACHI by Jose Cruz Gonzalez, taking the stage from August 4-August 29, 2021, is a hilarious and heartwarming new comedy filled with explosive, joyous live music. In what the Denver Post called "A big-hearted, musical tug at the heartstrings", a ragtag group of young women defies tradition-and their parents-by secretly launching an all-female mariachi band.

In September, "Designing Women is under renovation for TheatreSquared's new, permanent home" (New York Times). From the creator of the megahit television series comes DESIGNING WOMEN by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason. It's the middle of a divisive election season while a pandemic rages and Julia, Suzanne, Mary Jo, and Charlene are on the verge of a radical decision. With headline buzz from the national press, this timely, whip-smart, new Southern comedy is set to take the theatre world by storm in a limited engagement from September 22-October 24, 2021.

The season will continue with the joyous, road-trip musical VIOLET, from the Tony Award-winning composer of Fun Home, Jeanine Tesori, and her collaborator Brian Crawley. When Violet hops onto a Greyhound bus traveling across Arkansas towards a miracle in Tulsa, it turns into the journey of a lifetime. "A terrific, heart-stirring musical with tangy flavors of country, gospel, blues, and honky-tonk rock." (NYTimes-Critics' Pick). This five-time Tony Award Nominee was the Winner of Best Musical from the Lucille Lortel, Obie, and Drama Critics' Circle Awards and plays Nov 17-Dec 12, 2021.

Finally, the theatre closes 2021 with a holiday celebration, bringing the return engagement of T2's heartfelt re-imagining of A CHRISTMAS CAROL, which was a popular sensation as more than 10,000 people attended its world premiere in 2019. Now, T2 brings this joyful, magic-filled holiday classic set in a Victorian library to the brand new stage at the Fayetteville Public Library.

Tickets Tickets for TheatreSquared's 15th Anniversary Season are on sale now. Single tickets range from $17-$58.

Subscription packages include full, seven-play packages starting at $119, with four to six play flex packages starting at $69. Benefits for season ticket holders also include savings of up to 20%, free unlimited exchanges, discounted reserved parking, and same-day discounts in the Commons Bar/Cafe and other T2 Restaurant & Hotel Partners.

Through T2's Lights Up! For Access program, supported by the Walmart Foundation, SNAP benefit recipients can purchase $1 tickets, while students and patrons under the age of 30 can purchase $10 tickets. For more information, visit theatre2.org/lights-up. Fully subsidized, free tickets are also available for clients of a number of local community service organizations.

Subscriptions and single tickets can be reserved by calling TheatreSquared at (479) 777-7477 or by visiting theatre2.org/subscribe.