OCTA is pleased to announce our 40th Season!
COMPANY
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, book by George Furth
Directed by Jason Coats
Synopsis
The clashing sounds and pulsing rhythms of New York City underscore this landmark "concept" show, considered by many to have inaugurated the modern era of musical theatre. COMPANY follows our anti-hero bachelor Robert as he makes his way through a series of encounters with April (the stewardess), Kathy (the girl who's going to marry someone else), Marta (the "peculiar" one), as well as with his married friends.
On the night of his 35th birthday, confirmed bachelor Robert contemplates his unmarried state. In vignette after hilarious vignette, we are introduced to "those good and crazy people," his married friends, as Robert weighs the pros and cons of married life. In the end, he realizes being alone is "alone, not alive."
An honest, witty, sophisticated look at relationships, COMPANY is as contemporary and relevant as ever (witness the recent hit revivals on Broadway and the West End). It features a brilliant energetic score containing many of Stephen Sondheim's best-known songs (including "Another Hundred People," "The Ladies Who Lunch" and "Being Alive"). -- MTI
Production Dates:
Sept 6, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, 20, 21, 22 2013
PIECE OF MY HEART
By Shirley Lauro
Directed by Betsy Sexton
SYNOPSIS
This is a powerful, true drama of six women who went to Vietnam: five nurses and a country western singer booked by an unscrupulous agent to entertain the troops. The play portrays each young woman before, during, and after her tour in the war-torn nation and ends as each leaves a personal token at the memorial wall in Washington.A Piece of My Heart premiered in New York at Manhattan Theatre Club, and now has enjoyed over 1000 productions here and abroad. It has recently been named "The most enduring play on Vietnam in the nation," by The Vietnam Vets Association.
"There have been a number of plays dealing with Viet Nam, but none with the direct, emotional impact of Ms. Lauro's work.-The New York Times - Samuel French
Production Dates:
October 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 27, Nov 1, 2, 3 2013
CHRISTMAS BELLES
By Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope, Jamie Wooten
Directed by Gregory Chafin
It's Christmas-time in the small town of Fayro, Texas, and the Futrelle Sisters—Frankie, Twink and Honey Raye—are not exactly in a festive mood. A cranky Frankie is weeks overdue with her second set of twins. Twink, recently jilted and bitter about it, is in jail for inadvertently burning down half the town. And hot-flash-suffering Honey Raye is desperately trying to keep the Tabernacle of the Lamb's Christmas Program from spiraling into chaos. But things are not looking too promising: Miss Geneva, the ousted director of the previous twenty-seven productions, is ruthless in her attempts to take over the show. The celebrity guest Santa Claus—played by Frankie's long-suffering husband, Dub—is passing a kidney stone. One of the shepherds refuses to watch over his flock by night without pulling his little red wagon behind him. And the entire cast is dropping like flies due to food poisoning from the Band Boosters' Pancake Supper. And when Frankie lets slip a family secret that h!
as been carefully guarded for decades, all hope for a successful Christmas program seems lost, even with an Elvis impersonator at the manger. But in true Futrelle fashion, the feuding sisters find a way to pull together in order to present a Christmas program the citizens of Fayro will never forget. Their hilarious holiday journey through a misadventure-filled Christmas Eve is guaranteed to bring joy to your world! – DPS
Production Dates:
December 6, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, 20, 21, 22 2013
LITTLE WOMEN
Music by Jason Howland
Lyrics by Mindi Dickstein
Book by Allan Knee
Based on the novel by Louisa May Alcott
Directed by Julie Ewing
SYNOPSIS
Based on Louisa May Alcott's own family experiences (and novel), LITTLE WOMEN, follows the adventures of Jo, Meg, Beth and Amy March as they grow up in Civil War America. The beloved story of the March sisters is timeless and deals with issues as relevant today as when they were written. Now, this wonderful narrative has been brought to life as an exhilarating new musical filled with glorious music, dancing and heart. LITTLE WOMEN embodies the complete theatrical experience, guaranteeing a night filled with laughter, tears, and a lifting of the spirit. This powerful score soars with the sounds of personal discovery, heartache and hope -- the sounds of a young America finding its voice. In years to come, we are sure that hundreds of productions by schools and theatres throughout the world will make this stage adaptation of the American classic novel a classic musical theatre treasure in its own right. – MTI
Production Dates:
Feb 21, 22, 23, 28, Mar 1, 2, 7, 8, 9 2014
THE 39 STEPS
By Patrick Barlow, John Buchan
Director - TBD
SYNOPSIS
Mix a Hitchcock masterpiece with a juicy spy novel, add a dash of Monty Python and you have The 39 Steps, a fast-paced whodunit for anyone who loves the magic of theatre! This 2-time Tony® and Drama Desk Award-winning treat is packed with nonstop laughs, over 150 zany characters (played by a ridiculously talented cast of 4), an on-stage plane crash, handcuffs, missing fingers and some good old-fashioned romance!
In The 39 Steps, a man with a boring life meets a woman with a thick accent who says she's a spy. When he takes her home, she is murdered. Soon, a mysterious organization called "The 39 Steps" is hot on the man's trail in a nationwide manhunt that climaxes in a death-defying finale! A riotous blend of virtuoso performances and wildly inventive stagecraft, The 39 Steps amounts to an unforgettable evening of pure pleasure! The 39 Steps, was Broadway's longest running comedy, and played its 500th performance on Broadway, May 19th, 2009! – Samuel French
Production Dates:
April 25, 26, 27, May 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11 2014
