Culture
ABC Players Announce 2019-2020 Season
< < Back toThis season get ready to solve a murder, journey through the cold with two sisters, join a convent, stand up against corporate greed and fight to take over a kingdom as ABC Players invites audiences to mark their calendars for their 2019-2020 season which includes, Clue: The Musical, Disney’s Frozen JR., Sister Act, Radium Girls and The Lion in Winter.
The season will officially begin with Clue: The Musical playing from Oct. 10-12 at 7:30 p.m. and Oct. 13 at 2 p.m. Clue: The Musical, with book by Peter DePietro, music by Galen Blum, Wayne Barker and Vinnie Martucci, and lyrics by Tom Chiodo, is all based on the popular board game Clue. The plot concerns a murder at a mansion where all the suspects have been invited. At the start of the show, audience members select cards that determine the murderer, murder weapon and location of the murder. There are 216 possible directions the show could take. This audience-interactive show is directed by Sylvia Abbott and sponsored by Intelliwave Broadband.
ABC Players Kids will then present the Disney phenomenon, Disney’s Frozen JR. on Dec. 6 at 7:30 p.m., Dec. 7 at 2 and 7:30 p.m. and Dec. 8 at 1 and 4 p.m. Disney’s Frozen JR., with music and lyrics by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez and book by Jennifer Lee, tells the story of sisterly love and acceptance between Princesses Anna and Elsa. The show expands upon their emotional relationship and journey when faced with danger, and how they discover their hidden potential and the powerful bond of sisterhood. With a cast of beloved characters and loaded with magic, adventure and plenty of humor, this show is sure to thaw even the coldest heart! “Disney’s Frozen JR.” will be directed by Jodi MacNeal and Jenn Fritchley and is sponsored by Ohio University Credit Union.
The next show will take audiences to church with Sister Act from March 20-21 and 27-28 at 7:30 p.m. and March 22 and 29 at 2 p.m. Sister Act is the feel-good musical comedy smash based on the hit 1992 film that has audiences jumping to their feet! Featuring original music by Alan Menken (winner of a Tony and eight Oscar awards) and lyrics by Glenn Slater, with book by Cheri and Bill Steinkellner. This show tells the story of disco diva, Deloris Van Cartier and what happens after she’s witness to a murder. The diva is put in protective custody in the one place the cops are sure she won’t be a found: a convent. Disguised as a nun and using her unique disco moves and singing talent to inspire the choir, Deloris breathes new life into the church and community but, in doing so, blows her cover. Sister Act will be directed by Devin Sudman and assistant directed by Carter Rice and is sponsored by Hocking Valley Bank.
ABC will then present the play Radium Girls from May 14-16 at 7:30 p.m. and May 17 at 2 p.m. Inspired by a true story, Radium Girls by D.W. Gregory traces the efforts of Grace Fryer, a radium watch dial painter, as she fights for her day in court. Her chief adversary is her former employer, Arthur Roeder, an idealistic man who cannot bring himself to believe that the same element that shrinks tumors could have anything to do with the terrifying rash of illnesses among his employees. As the case goes on, however, Grace finds herself battling not just with the U.S. Radium Corporation, but with her own family and friends, who fear that her campaign for justice will backfire. Radium Girls will be directed by Celeste Parsons and is sponsored by Rocky Outdoor Gear.
Finally, the season will conclude with a staged reading for actors 50 years and older of The Lion in Winter on June 21 at 2 p.m. The Lion in Winter by James Goldman tells the story of the Plantagenet family, who are locked in a free-for-all of competing ambitions to inherit a kingdom. The play centers around the inner conflicts of the royal family as they fight over both a kingdom and King Henry’s paramour during the Christmas of 1183. “The Lion in Winter” is directed by Karen M. Chan and sponsored by ABC Players.
All ABC Players shows take place at Stuart’s Opera House in Nelsonville, Ohio. For more information on the company and this season’s shows, visit abcplayers.org.