Asolo Repertory Theatre Announces 2022-2023 Season

Asolo Repertory Theatre announced its 2022-2023 season today in a virtual event broadcast on their website, asolorep.org.

"Framed by two of the 20th century's most inspiring works of musical theatre, we at Asolo Rep present a thrilling new season for the 21st century," said Producing Artistic Director Michael Donald Edwards. "The lineup is a truly engaging mix of the classic and the new, and it's created by some of the most gifted artists working in the American Theatre today. Our world is troubled and divided right now, and we are fired up with a renewed sense of the power theatre has to connect, to unite and to create empathy. These plays will dazzle our patrons and fill their hearts with joy. We will not entirely forget our troubles, but while we are in the theatre and present with these stories and these artists, it will be possible to believe that life is beautiful."

The season kicks off in November with one of the greatest American musicals of the 20th century, Kander and Ebb's iconic CABARET (Nov. 16 - Dec. 31). Featuring some of musical theatre's most recognizable songs, including "Willkommen," "Maybe This Time" and, of course, "Cabaret," this classic will be directed and choreographed by Broadway and Asolo Rep favorite Josh Rhodes.

The winter repertory season includes four dynamic plays that celebrate family, inspire humor and provoke wonder. Rep opens with Ken Ludwig's THE THREE MUSKETEERS (Jan. 11 - March 26), adapted from the classic Alexandre Dumas novel. Directed by Peter Amster, who helmed the wildly popular Murder on the Orient Express at Asolo Rep in 2020, this adventure-filled comedy is guaranteed to be a swashbuckling good time.

The repertory season continues with the inspiring true story of a pioneering woman astronomer who transcended the odds in SILENT SKY (Jan. 19 - March 5). This remarkable play by one of today's leading playwrights, Lauren Gunderson, will be directed by Seema Sueko, who recently brought this riveting work to life at Washington D.C.'s Ford's Theatre.

The third play in the rep season is fresh from its 2021 Broadway debut at Circle in the Square. The side-splitting comedy CHICKEN & BISCUITS (Feb. 15 - April 13) proves that while family may drive us crazy, we're lucky to have each other. The Broadway production's associate director, Bianca LaVerne Jones, will stage the show for Asolo Rep.

Wrapping up the repertory season is the wild and tender comedy INCIDENT AT OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP (March 15 - April 22), directed by Asolo Rep Associate Artistic Director Celine Rosenthal. Audiences will take a trip back to 1973 with the Irish Catholic O'Shea family, as they explore the foolishness of first love, the pains of Catholic guilt, and ultimately, the power of family.

The spring brings one of the most popular musicals of all time to the Asolo Rep stage - MAN OF LA MANCHA (May 10 - June 11). Brilliantly reimagined with a contemporary urgency by director Peter Rothstein and featuring one of theatre's most beloved songs, "The Impossible Dream," this classic musical celebrates the power of theatre, the bravery of holding strong to our dreams, and the resilience of imagination.

Asolo Rep will also present its annual education and engagement tour, an FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training production of LOOKING FOR ITHACA: AN ODYSSEY, an imaginative retelling of Homer's epic poem The Odyssey. The tour presents freshly reimagined 45-minute adaptations of classic stories for schools, parks, libraries and other community venues throughout the state of Florida.

Subscriptions are now on sale for Asolo Rep's six-show package, which includes Cabaret, Ken Ludwig's The Three Musketeers, Silent Sky, Chicken & Biscuits, Incident at Our Lady of Perpetual Help and Man of La Mancha. Subscriptions can be purchased in person at Asolo Rep's Box Office at 5555 N. Tamiami Trail, by phone at 941.351.8000 or 800.361.8388, or online at asolorep.org. Single tickets will go on sale at a future date.

ASOLO REP'S 2022-2023 SEASON

CABARET

Nov. 16 - Dec. 31, 2022
Previews Nov. 16 - 18

Book by Joe Masteroff
Based on the play by John Van Druten and stories by Christopher Isherwood
Music by John Kander and Lyrics by Frank Ebb
Directed and Choreographed by Josh Rhodes

In here, life is beautiful.

Willkommen to Kander and Ebb's iconic CABARET, which transports us to 1939 Berlin and the dynamic and pleasure-filled Kit Kat Klub. As a dark shadow falls over the city and the power of the Third Reich begins to mount, the Klub's performers and patrons must decide if they'll wake up to the evil on their doorsteps or continue to escape to the alluring fantasy world of the cabaret.
Since its debut in 1967, this classic musical has won countless awards, including the Tony Awards® for Best Musical, Best Score and Best Revival of a Musical. Packed with vibrant and beloved songs like "Willkommen," "Maybe This Time," "Money," "Don't Tell Mama" and, of course, "Cabaret," this timely masterwork will burst to life on stage under the direction of Broadway and Asolo Rep favorite Josh Rhodes.

Ken Ludwig's THE THREE MUSKETEERS

Jan. 11 - March 26, 2023
Previews Jan. 11 - 12

Adapted from the novel by Alexandre Dumas
Directed by Peter Amster

Harrowing adventure, bravery and friendship take center stage in Ken Ludwig's THE THREE MUSKETEERS, a thrilling adaptation of the popular novel by Alexandre Dumas. One of the world's most enduring comedies, this classic tells the tale of a daring young man who finds himself in the company of the world's greatest swordsmen, as well as some of the world's most dangerous men and women.

Directed by Peter Amster, who most recently directed Asolo Rep's smash hit Murder on the Orient Express in 2020, this play promises to be a fast-paced, witty, swashbuckling good time.

All for one, and one for all!

SILENT SKY

Jan. 19 - March 5, 2023
Previews Jan. 19 - 20

By Lauren Gunderson
Directed by Seema Sueko

At the turn of the 20th century, years before women had the right to vote, one woman's breakthrough changed our perception of the stars.

Full of wonder, humor and heart, SILENT SKY is the remarkable true story of Henrietta Leavitt, one of the pioneering women astronomers working at Harvard Observatory in the early 1900s. Audiences will be enthralled by the story of this extraordinary woman who took ona??the astronomy establishment in order to discover the mysteries embedded in the sky. Henrietta transcended the odds while navigating love, family and the universe, going on to make a world-altering advancement to the field of astronomy that forever changed our view of the cosmos.

Written by one of today's leading playwrights, Lauren Gunderson, this mesmerizing drama is directed by Seema Sueko, who recently brought this work to life at Washington D.C.'s Ford's Theatre.

CHICKEN & BISCUITS

Feb. 15 - April 13, 2023
Previews Feb. 15 - 16

By Douglas Lyons
Directed by Bianca LaVerne Jones

The hilarious new play CHICKEN & BISCUITS introduces us to the Jenkins family, as they gather to celebrate the life of their beloved and recently deceased father and grandfather, the Revered Bernard Jenkins. When an unexpected guest reveals a secret, they all discover that nothing brings a family together like a big side of drama. This side-splitting new Broadway comedy explores the tenderness of family, the joy of reconciliation, and the nourishing power of love.

Written by Broadway newcomer Douglas Lyons and directed by the talented Bianca LaVerne Jones, who was associate director of the 2021 Broadway production, CHICKEN & BISCUITS proves that while family may drive us crazy, we're lucky to have each other.

INCIDENT AT OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP

March 15 - April 22, 2023
Previews March 15 - 16

By Katie Forgette
Directed by Celine Rosenthal

Take a trip back to 1973 with the Irish Catholic O'Shea family in the uproarious INCIDENT AT OUR LADY OF PERPETUAL HELP. This boisterous and moving new memory play introduces us to young Linda, as she recalls a week she'll never forget. When Linda's mother instructs her to tell her sister about the birds and the bees, things quickly snowball into a potential crisis after the conversation is overheard by the parish priest. Secrets are unintentionally revealed, and a quick-witted group of women realize what really matters as they work to protect their family reputation and each other.

This wild and tender comedy directed by Asolo Rep Associate Artistic Director Celine Rosenthal explores the foolishness of first love, the pains of Catholic guilt, and ultimately, the power of family.

MAN OF LA MANCHA

May 10 - June 11, 2023
Previews May 10 - 12

Written by Dale Wasserman
Music by Mitch Leigh and Lyrics by Joe Darion
Directed by Peter Rothstein

Considered by many to be one of the best musicals of all time, MAN OF LA MANCHA is brilliantly reimagined with a contemporary urgency by celebrated director Peter Rothstein, who immerses us in Miguel de Cervantes's retelling of Don Quixote and his quest. This epic and poignant journey celebrates the perseverance of one man who refuses to relinquish his ideals and who is determined to see life not as it is, but as it ought to be.

The winner of five Tony Awards®, including Best Musical, and featuring a soaring score, including "Man of La Mancha (I, Don Quixote)" and one of theatre's most beloved songs, "The Impossible Dream," this classic musical celebrates the power of theatre, the bravery of holding strong to our dreams, and the resilience of imagination.

Asolo Rep On Tour

LOOKING FOR ITHACA: AN ODYSSEY

Oct. 3 - Nov. 20, 2022; public performances to be announced

Directed by Gaby Rodriguez

An epic Greek poem becomes an adventure of universal proportions in this 45-minute adaptation of Homer's iconic tale, presented by Asolo Rep and produced by the FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training. LOOKING FOR ITHACA: AN ODYSSEY is an imaginative retelling of the classic journey of a family that has been fractured by war and unseen forces. The story is told through the eyes of a family fighting their way back to one another: Odysseus, a father whose yearning for his wife and child drives him to traverse the dangers hidden in the sea; Penelope, a mother protecting what's left of her home and her family; and Telemachus, a son embarking on an Odyssey of his own, looking to fill the shoes of an unknown father. They may return home, but that isn't where their journey ends.

Visit asolorep.org to learn more.