Spreckels Theatre Company Announces 2016 -2017 Season

The acclaimed and award-winning Spreckels Theatre Company in Rohnert Park, Calif. has announced its upcoming season, presented in its two theaters at Spreckels Performing Arts Center in Rohnert Park, Calif.

Spreckels Theatre Company invites audiences to "dream big" through its 2016 to 2017 season of seven productions featuring musicals, comedies and dramas that recall historic events, iconic characters and high-flying adventure with theatrical vision and professionalism.

"We are so overwhelmed by all the great reviews that the critics have lavished upon us. And we are overjoyed by the record-breaking attendance for last season's musical production of 'Disney's The Little Mermaid,' " said Spreckels Theatre Company Artistic Director, Gene Abravaya. "We have set our sights even higher for our 2016-2017 theatrical season. We are looking forward to the challenges and confident that we will meet those challenges successfully both artistically and technically and, by doing so, present the finest entertainment the North Bay has to offer."

"At Spreckels Theatre Company we dream big and strive to tell the stories that no one else can," said Abravaya. "Our 2016-17 season will consist of seven productions, many of which will be North Bay premieres; shows that have never been done in our area because of their magnitude and their particular demands. These are musicals and plays with stories that are both entertaining and enlightening and the journeys they take us on are both fantastic and tragic. They recall true events and history with characters who face great challenges, but persevere through the courage of their convictions."

The season opens Aug. 12 with a main stage production the Broadway musical "Big Fish," followed by Ken Ludwig's fast-paced comedy "Baskerville, A Sherlock Holmes Adventure," opening on Sept. 16. In October, the company brings the Tony award-winning "Titanic, The Musical" to its main stage. The beloved tale of Peter Pan is revisited for the holidays with "Peter and the Starcatcher," a show which is suitable for all ages.

Select Spreckels Theatre Company productions are presented with the new Paradyne projection system, developed by Spreckels Performing Arts Center, combining still images and animations to create multiple backdrop effects - creating a visual aesthetic that's exciting and visually surprising for audiences of the 21st Century.

Spreckels Performing Arts Center is located just off Highway 101 at 5409 Snyder Lane, Rohnert Park, CA 94928.

Here is Spreckels Theatre Company's complete 2016 to 2017 season line-up:

Big Fish
Book by John August
Music and Lyrics by Andrew Lippa
Based on the novel by Daniel Wallace and the Columbia Motion Picture written by John August.
Aug. 12 to Aug. 28, 2016 - Main Stage / Codding Theatre

Based on the celebrated novel by Daniel Wallace and the acclaimed film directed by Tim Burton, this musical centers on Edward Bloom, a traveling salesman who lives life to its fullest. Edward's incredible, larger-than-life stories thrill everyone around him - most of all, his devoted wife Sandra. When their son Will is about to have a child of his own, he searches to find the truth behind his father's epic tales.

Baskerville, A Sherlock Holmes Adventure
By Ken Ludwig
Based on the story "The Hound of the Baskervilles" by Arthur Conan Doyle
Sept.16 to Oct. 9, 2016 - Black Box / Bette Condiotti Theatre

From the award-winning mastermind of mayhem, Ken Ludwig ("Lend Me a Tenor"), comes this fast-paced comedy about everyone's favorite detective solving his most notorious case. Join Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson as they try to escape a dizzying web of clues, silly accents, disguises and deceit as five actors deftly portray more than 40 characters to crack the mystery of "The Hound of the Baskervilles."

Directed by David Yen. Costumes by Pamela Enz.

Titanic, The Musical
Story and Book by Peter Stone
Music and Lyrics by Maury Yeston
Oct.14 to Oct. 30, 2016 - Main Stage / Codding Theatre

"Titanic, The Musical" which opened on Broadway in 1997, won five Tony Awards including the award for Best Musical. This chamber musical traces the tragic maiden voyage of the historic ocean liner Titanic, capturing the stories of workers in the boiler room to first-class attendants, from the poorest passengers to some of the wealthiest men of the Victorian age. With a compassionate book, intelligent lyrics and soaring melodies, "Titanic, The Musical" is a powerful, complex look at one of the most historic events of the 20th Century.

Directed by Gene Abravaya. Music Direction by Tina Lloyd Meals.

Choreography by Michella Snider. Costumes by Pamela Enz.

Peter and the Starcatcher
A play by Rick Elice
Music by Wayne Barker
Based on the novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson
Nov. 25 to Dec. 18, 2016 - Black Box / Bette Condiotti Theatre

This imaginative musical play based on the novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, "Peter and the Starcatcher" provides a back story for the J.M. Barrie character of Peter Pan. With pirates, jungle tyrants, unwilling comrades and unlikely heroes, "Peter and the Starcatcher" playfully explores the depths of greed and despair and the bonds of friendship, duty and love. The Broadway production received five 2012 Tony Awards and was named one of New York Times, New York Magazine and New Yorker's Top 10 Shows of the Year. The show is suitable for younger audiences, but most enjoyable for ages 10 and up.

Directed by David Yen. Music Direction by Lucas Sherman. Costumes by Pamela Enz.

1776
Book by Peter Stone
Music and lyrics by Sherman Edwards
Feb. 10 to Feb. 26, 2017 - Main Stage / Codding Theatre
This Tony award-winning musical takes audiences back to the summer of 1776 when John Adams of Massachusetts, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, Richard Henry Lee and Thomas Jefferson of Virginia attempt to convince the members of the second Continental Congress to vote for independence. The founding fathers cooperatively conceive and eventually pass the resolution which frees America from British tyranny. "1776" won the 1969 Tony Award for Best Musical.

Directed by Jim Coleman. Music Direction by Lucas Sherman.

Choreography by Michella Snider. Costumes by Pamela Enz.

The Sugar Bean Sisters
By Nathan Sanders

March 17 to April 9, 2017 - Black Box / Bette Condiotti Theatre
A Southern gothic comedy of romance, murder and alien abduction, centers on the Nettle sisters who are determined to escape spinsterhood.

Directed by Denise Elia-Yen

Disney's Tarzan
Music and Lyrics by Phil Collins
Book by David Henry Hwang
Adapted from the story "Tarzan of the Apes" by Edgar Rice Burroughs

April 28 to May 21, 2017 - Main Stage / Codding Theatre
Based on Disney's epic animated musical adventure and Edgar Rice Burroughs' "Tarzan of the Apes," this Broadway musical features heart-pumping score by rock legend Phil Collins and a book by Tony Award-winning playwright, David Henry Hwang. High-flying excitement and songs including the Academy Award winning "You'll Be in My Heart" make "Disney's Tarzan" an unforgettable theatrical experience.

Directed by Gene Abravaya. Choreography by Michella Snider. Costumes by Pamela Enz.

For tickets or more information call the Spreckels Box Office at 707-588-3400. Box Office hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 12 to 5 p.m.and one hour before showtime.

Visit website www.ci.rohnert-park.ca.us and follow prompts to Spreckels Theatre Company.