Woodminster Summer Musicals Announces 2018 Summer Season

Producers Associates announces the 52nd season of the Woodminster Summer Musicals in Joaquin Miller Park. 2018's shows are Rodgers & Hammerstein's Oklahoma (July), Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (August), and In The Heights (September).

Oklahoma!, celebrating its 75th birthday in 2018, will be performed July 6-8 and 12-15. Rodgers & Hammerstein's first collaboration, this show is a recognized landmark in the evolution of the American Musical Theater, and established new expectations for musicals that were followed for decades and are still familiar today. Rodgers and Hammerstein's first collaboration is also one of their most memorable scores, with songs like "Oh What A Beautiful Morning," "Surrey With the Fringe On Top," "People Will Say We're In Love," "Kansas City," and the triumphant title song, "Oklahoma!" This show is appropriate for families, and is a must-see for musical theatre lovers.

In the always-popular Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, performed August 3-5 and 9-12, the Biblical saga of Joseph and his coat of many colors comes to life in a delightful musical parable. This first collaboration of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber had a life as a concert piece before it evolved into a full blown show in London's West End 50 years ago, and moved to Broadway in 1982. Told entirely through song, the musical follows Joseph, favorite son of Jacob, who is sold into slavery by his jealous brothers, and overcomes many challenges through his honesty and good character. This famously fast-paced, funny show is full of catchy songs in a variety of musical styles, and will appeal to all ages.

Lin-Manuel Miranda's first Tony-award winning Broadway show, In The Heights, will end the season with performances Aug 31-Sept 2 and 6-9. Like Miranda's even more famous Hamilton, In the Heights' style is ostensibly hip hop, but characters sing and dance to a wide variety of musical styles and moods. In the Heights tells the universal story of a vibrant community in New York's Washington Heights neighborhood - a community on the brink of change, full of hopes, dreams and pressures. Energetic and infectious, with a modern, urban attitude, this is something completely different for the Woodminster stage.

Says Artistic Director, Joel Schlader, "After our record-breaking season in 2017, we worked hard to choose shows that would appeal to just as many people in 2018. We're pretty excited about what we came up with. Oklahoma and Joseph are hugely entertaining shows that we haven't done in awhile, and our audiences keep asking us to do them again. And we're thrilled to be producing a Lin-Manuel Miranda show this year - everybody loves Hamilton, and now they'll get to see what came before it."

Auditions for all three shows are March 24-25 at Woodminster Amphitheater in Joaquin Miller Park in Oakland. Adult singing auditions are both afternoons (choose one). Adult dance auditions are Sunday morning, March 25. Children's auditions (ages 10-14, for the children's chorus in Joseph) are Saturday morning, March 24. Please see http://woodminster.com/auditions-2018.html for exact times and other details, as well as special instructions for actors who are members of Actors Equity Association.

Tickets for the 2018 season range from $32 to $69, with season tickets providing about a 15% discount, and numerous other discounts available, including:

• The K75 program, about a 75% discount for tickets for children and teens 16 and younger who attend with adults (up to 5 kids per 1 adult). Any performance, purchase tickets any time.

• Kids Come Free continues to provide free tickets for kids up to 16 years old who attend with adults (1 kid per 1 adult). Any performance, available night of performance only.

• Millennials' Half Price (ages 17-30). Any performance, night of performance only.

• Oakland Resident Half Price. Opening nights only, purchase tickets any time with code, pick up with ID showing Oakland address.

• Group Rate (25 or more tickets) About half price Thursdays, Fridays, Sundays.

• Mini-group Rate (12 or more tickets) About 15% off, any performance.

(Details of discount programs on www.woodminster.com.)

Woodminster Summer Musicals are performed outdoors, under the stars at Woodminster Amphitheater, an historic city-owned outdoor performance facility in Joaquin Miller Park high in the Oakland Hills. The park's spectacular views and serene woodsy environment made it the perfect setting for the amphitheater, cascades, reflecting pool, and paths that were originally built as a WPA project in 1939-40. With a dedicated board of directors, Producers Associates, Inc. has maintained and improved the facility, which attracts audience from all over the Bay Area and beyond, contributing to the economic health of the neighborhood. The Woodminster Summer Musicals are produced in cooperation with the City of Oakland's Parks and Recreation Department, and the City derives over $45,000 per year in facility fees plus considerable revenues from parking fees. For many East Bay families, it is a long-standing summer tradition to enjoy a picnic in the park and then see a musical at Woodminster. For more information about the 2018 season or the history of the organization, visit www.woodminster.com.

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