BULL DURHAM Will Debut In Durham For Theatre Raleigh's 2024 Season

"Bull Durham, The Musical," an adaptation of the 1988 hit movie about the Durham Bulls minor league baseball team, will debut in the Triangle as part of Theatre Raleigh's 2024 season.

Theatre Raleigh will produce the musical at Reynolds Theater at Duke University from Sept. 10-24, 2024. This is the first time the musical will be performed in Durham, let alone the Triangle area. Theater-goers can guarantee themselves seats by purchasing Theatre Raleigh season subscriptions; single tickets will not be available for purchase until spring 2024.

"I've been cheering on the creation of 'Bull Durham, The Musical' from the stands for a while, so it was a no brainer when the writers approached me with the opportunity to bring the show to the very place where it all began!" said Lauren Kennedy Brady, Theatre Raleigh's producing artistic director. "Triangle audiences are going to experience the dynamic choreography, incredible music and the beloved story of Crash, Nuke and Annie all just a fly ball away from the Durham Bulls ballpark."

"Bull Durham, The Musical" is one production in a packed 2024 schedule for the professional, nonprofit theatre company known for bringing Broadway stars to its North Raleigh stage for musicals and dramas, as well as a new concert series. Kennedy Brady, who performed in Broadway productions of "Sunset Boulevard," and "Les Miserables," came home to Raleigh to take over the theater company and has since created a regional hub for performing arts.

The other shows in the 2024 schedule include the musicals "Jane Eyre" and "Tick, Tick...Boom!" a musical from Jonathan Larson, the Pulitzer Prize and Tony award-winning creator of "Rent;" as well as the Tony Award-wining play, "Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike," and the Obie Award-winning play, "Curse of the Starving Class." Those productions will be performed at the Theatre Raleigh Arts Center on Old Wake Forest Road in North Raleigh.

Pricing levels for single ticket season subscriptions are: $145 for seniors, students and military; $155 for adults; and $200 for Dress Circle, or preferred seating. (Prices do not include sales tax.) To purchase, go to https://theatreraleigh.secure.force.com/ticket/#/subscriptions.

Here is the 2024 season lineup:

Tick, Tick… Boom! – April 10-21, 2024

Before "Rent," there was "Tick, Tick... Boom!" This autobiographical musical comes from Jonathan Larson, who won a Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award for composing "Rent." The musical tells the story of a young composer and the sacrifices that he made to achieve his big break in theatre. His girlfriend wants to get married and move out of the city. His best friend is making big bucks on Madison Avenue. Jon is still waiting tables and trying to write the great American musical. Set in 1990, this compelling story of personal discovery is presented as a rock musical filled with instantly appealing melodies and a unique blend of musical theatre styles. Everyone will love this youthful, endearing and thoughtful piece, and will surely embrace the universal ideal of holding onto your dreams through life's most difficult challenges.

Jane Eyre, May 29 – June 9, 2024

Charlotte Brontë's great love story comes to life with music. This beloved tale of secrets and the lies that secrets create, of unimaginable hope and unspoken passion, reminds us what it is to fall deeply, truly and completely in love. Nominated for five Tony Awards, "Jane Eyre" explores religion, sexuality and protofeminism, all while enchanting audiences with a timeless love story. Jane's story begins in Gateshead, where she is in the unfortunate care of her cruel Aunt Sarah and cousin, John, as per her uncle's dying wish. The miserable young orphan is finally rescued when she is sent away to attend Lowood School for Girls. After six years, Jane Leaves Lowood and is shortly after hired as a governess at Thornfield Hall. Here, she meets Mr. Edward Rochester, thus beginning her passionate and heart-wrenching journey of love, loss and the struggles of morality.

Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike – July 17-28, 2024

"Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike" is the award-winning play that tells the story of middle-aged siblings, Vanya and Sonia. They share a home in Bucks County, Pa. where they bicker and complain about the circumstances of their lives. Suddenly, their movie-star sister, Masha, swoops in with her new boy toy, Spike. Old resentments flare up, eventually leading to threats to sell the house. Also on the scene are sassy maid Cassandra, who can predict the future, and a lovely young aspiring actress named Nina, whose prettiness somewhat worries the imperious Masha. The play won the 2013 Tony Award for Best Play, the 2013 New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best Play, the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play, and Drama League Award for Outstanding Production of a Play.

Bull Durham, The Musical – Sept. 10-22, 2024

The Bull Durham musical is based on the classic 1988 film starring Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins. It tells the story of three lives brought together by America's two favorite pastimes: baseball and love. Veteran catcher 'Crash' Davis has been brought to the Durham Bulls to prepare rookie Ebby Calvin 'Nuke' LaLoosh, a hot rod pitcher with a 'million dollar arm and a five-cent head' for the majors. Annie Savoy, self-appointed high priestess and muse of the Bulls, has a hard decision to make. Every season she transforms one lucky player from an also-ran to an all-star by sharing with them her wisdom, experience and bed. The love triangle heats up quickly as each character struggles with their own desires and hopes for what the future holds. Bull Durham is a pitch perfect blend of comedy, drama, and steamy romance. The musical is written by the film's original screenwriter, Ron Shelton (writer and director of "Bull Durham," "White Men Can't Jump" and "Tin Cup"), who has adapted his screenplay and the music and lyrics are composed by Susan Werner.

Curse of the Starving Class – Nov. 6-17, 2024

This classic Sam Shepard play was the winner of the 1977 Obie Award for Best New American Play. The setting is a farmhouse in the American West, inhabited by a family who has enough to eat but not enough to satisfy the other hungers that bedevil them. The father is a drunk, the mother a frowzy slattern, the daughter precocious beyond her years, and the son a deranged idealist. After the family decides to sell the house to raise money, tragedy ensues. In the end the characters become a metaphor for the underside of American life—benighted innocents pursuing a dream that remains beyond their reach.

Tickets are also still available for the theater's final productions of its 2023 season: "Barbecue" from Oct. 18-29, 2023 and "The 1940's Radio Hour" from Dec. 13-24, 2023. For tickets, go to: https://theatreraleigh.secure.force.com/ticket/#/

 

---

Join Team BroadwayWorld

Are you an avid theatergoer? We're looking for people like you to share your thoughts and insights with our readers. Team BroadwayWorld members get access to shows to review, conduct interviews with artists, and the opportunity to meet and network with fellow theatre lovers and arts workers.

Interested? Learn more here.

---

Test and expand your Broadway knowledge with our new game - The Broadway Match-Up! How well do you know your Broadway casting trivia?	Play the Daily Game, explore current shows, and delve into past decades like the 2000s, 80s, and the Golden Age. Challenge your friends and see where you rank!
How well do you know your Tony Awards history? Take our never-ending quiz of nominations and winner history and challenge your friends.	Can you beat your friends? Play today’s daily Broadway word game, featuring a new theatrically inspired word or phrase every day!