Dance Commons^™

The Pavilion, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2005 Summer Theatre

Hailed by critics as an "an Our Town for our time," this play is by turns poetic and comic, romantic and philosophical. Peter returns to his twenty-year high-school reunion with dreams of winning back Kari, the girl he left behind after an unexpected pregnancy ended their relationship. Standing in Peter's way is Kari's bitter-as-ever resentment, her husband and the fact that Peter still hasn't grown up. As the night progresses, both Peter and Kari are led, through their interactions with a host of characters all played by a virtuosic Narrator, to face the consequences of choices made long ago and …

Crimes Of The Heart, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2005 Summer Theatre

The three MaGrath sisters are back together in their hometown of Hazelhurst, Mississippi for the first time in a decade. Lenny, the eldest, never left Hazelhurst -- she is the caretaker of the sisters’ cantankerous Old Granddaddy. Meg, the middle sister, left home to pursue stardom as a singer in Los Angeles, but has, so far, only found happiness at the bottom of a bottle. And Babe, the youngest, has just been arrested for the murder of her abusive husband, Zackery Bottrelle. Under the scorching heat of the Mississippi sun, past resentments bubble to the surface and each sister must …

Rounding Third, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2005 Summer Theatre

Don is a coach who believes that winning is what is most important in baseball, and he is all about the game. Michael is his assistant coach, a businessman who believes that kids should have fun when they play baseball. These conflicting personalities instantly clash. Don's kid is the star pitcher of the team, and Michael's kid can barely remember to keep his shoelaces tied. In addition, there are extramarital affairs going on (though the truth of them is well-hidden), and Michael's job is not all that it seems.

https://stageagent.com/shows/play/1899/rounding-third

Oklahoma!, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2018 Summer Theatre

Rodgers & Hammerstein's first collaboration remains, in many ways, their most innovative, having set the standards and established the rules of musical theatre still being followed today. Set in a Western Indian territory just after the turn of the century, the high-spirited rivalry between the local farmers and cowboys provides the colorful background against which Curly, a handsome cowboy, and Laurey, a winsome farm girl, play out their love story. Although the road to true love never runs smooth, with these two headstrong romantics holding the reins, love's journey is as bumpy as a surrey ride down a country road. …

They're Playing Our Song, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2017 Summer Theatre

They're Playing Our Song is a musical with a book by Neil Simon, lyrics by Carole Bayer Sager, and music by Marvin Hamlisch.

In a story based on the real-life relationship of Hamlisch and Sager, a wisecracking composer finds a new, offbeat lyricist, but initially the match is not one made in heaven. The two undergo a series of trials and overcome a number of hurdles before finding true love by the final curtain.

A Grand Night For Singing, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2016 Summer Theatre

A Grand Night for Singing is a musical revue showcasing the music of Richard Rodgers and the lyrics of Oscar Hammerstein II.

Featuring songs from such lesser-known works as Allegro. Me and Juliet, State Fair and Pipe Dream, modest successes like Flower Drum Song and hits like Carousel, Oklahoma!, The King and I, South Pacific, Cinderella, and The Sound of Music.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Grand_Night_for_Singing

Invention Of Theater, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2016 Summer Theatre

No abstract provided.

The All Night Strut!, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2015 Summer Theatre

The All Night Strut! moves through the Depression, World War II and the post-war boom in a two-act musical celebration of the 1930s and '40s, filled with jazz, blues, bebop and American songbook standards. Weaving together the work of legendary songwriters such as Hoagy Carmichael, Frank Loesser, Duke Ellington, Johnny Mercer, Cab Calloway and the Gershwins, the story moves through time and place to highlight a slick slice of yesteryear and capture a beloved American era.

https://www.mtishows.com/the-all-night-strut

The Nerd, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2015 Summer Theatre

Set in Terre Haute, Indiana in late 1979, The Nerd centers on the hilarious dilemma of a young architect who is visited by Rick Steadman, a fellow ex-GI whom he has never met but who saved has life after he was seriously wounded in Vietnam. Willum is delighted when Rick shows up unexpectedly at his apartment on the night of his thirty-fourth birthday party. However, Rick's awkward manner and inappropriate behavior throw the occasion into shambles. It turns out that Rick is a stupid nerd who overstays his welcome with a vengeance.

https://stageagent.com/shows/play/2064/the-nerd

Clybourne Park, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2015 Summer Theatre

Winner of both the Pulitzer Prize and the Tony Award for Best Play, Clybourne Park is a razor-sharp satire about the politics of race. In response to Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun, playwright Bruce Norris set up Clybourne Park as a pair of scenes that bookend Hansberry’s piece. These two scenes, fifty years apart, are both set in the same modest bungalow on Chicago’s northwest side that features at the center of A Raisin in the Sun. The first scene takes place before and the second scene takes place after the events of A Raisin in …

2015 Otterbein Summer Theatre Season Brochure, Otterbein University Department Of Theatre And Dance

Theatre and Dance Annual Brochures

Annual promotional piece of the upcoming season's shows.

Dames At Sea, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2014 Summer Theatre

When talented young hopeful Ruby arrives in New York City with nothing but a pair of tap shoes in her suitcase, she is determined to break into show business. She stumbles into the cast of troubled show “Dames at Sea”, in which broke and pessimistic producer Hennesey is terrorized by Mona Kent, the aggressive, seductive, and surprisingly shady leading lady. Dames at Sea is a light, bright, and hilariously tuneful homage to the glamorous and hopeful movie musicals of the 1930s. https://stageagent.com/shows/musical/2374/dames-at-sea

The 39 Steps, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2014 Summer Theatre

Mix a Hitchcock masterpiece with a juicy spy novel, add a dash of Monty Python and you have the intriguing, thrilling, riotous and unmissable comedy. The show hurtles a notorious fugitive and a spellbound blonde from a London music hall north by northwest to Scotland’s most remote highlands. Will they save Britain from a den of devious spies? A cast of four actors plays over 150 characters in this fast-paced tale of an ordinary man on an extraordinarily entertaining adventure. The 39 Steps contains every single legendary scene from the award-winning movie — including the chase on the Flying Scotsman, …

The Fantasticks, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2014 Summer Theatre

Whimsical, poignant, and romantic, The Fantasticks is an allegorical story that focuses on two young lovers, their meddling fathers, and the journey we all must take through adolescent thrills, the growing pains of hurt and betrayal, the highs of passion, the challenges of distance, and the agonies of heartbreak to discover how to truly love. The Fantasticks is a gem of the American musical theatre. Featuring timeless classics like “Try to Remember” and “Soon It’s Gonna Rain,” this simple and beautiful ensemble piece is as beloved and as timely as it was when it opened over 50 years ago. https://stageagent.com/shows/musical/1377/the-fantasticks

Little Shop Of Horrors, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2013 Summer Theatre

Little Shop of Horrors is a delectable sci-fi horror musical with an electrifying 1960s pop/rock score by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman.

Seymour Krelborn is a meek and dejected assistant at a floral shop who happens upon a strange plant, which he affectionately names “Audrey II” after his crush at the shop. Little does he know that this strange and unusual plant will develop a soulful R&B voice, a potty mouth, and an unquenchable thirst for HUMAN BLOOD.

As Audrey II grows bigger and meaner, the carnivorous plant promises limitless fame and fortune to Seymour, as long as he continues …

Boeing Boeing, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2013 Summer Theatre

A hit comedy similar in vein to Shakespeare’s comedies of merry misadventures and mistaken identities, Boeing Boeing tells the exploits of French bachelor Bernard and his lovely female flight attendants. Three flight attendants, to be exact, from three different countries: and they all believe they’re engaged to Bernard! In the past, Bernard has been able to juggle these women due to his detailed timetable of his fiancés’ flight schedules. When the situation changes and all of the women end up at his apartment on the same day, Bernard (with help from his bewildered friend Robert) struggles to keep them from …

Almost, Maine, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2013 Summer Theatre

A woman carries her heart, broken into nineteen pieces, in a small paper bag. A man shrinks to half his former size, after losing hope in love. A couple keep the love they have given each other in large red bags, or compress the mass into the size of a diamond. These playful and surreal experiences are commonplace in the world of John Cariani’s Almost, Maine, where on one deeply cold and magical Midwinter Night, the citizens of Almost -- not organized enough for a town, too populated for a wilderness -- experience the life-altering power of the human …

Something's Afoot: A New Murder Mystery Musical, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2012 Summer Theatre

Something's Afoot is a murder mystery musical that spoofs detective stories, mainly the works of Agatha Christie, and especially her detective novel And Then There Were None (a.k.a. Ten Little Indians). The play involves a group of people who are invited to the lake estate of Lord Dudley Rancour, When the wealthy lord is found dead, it's a race against the clock to find out whodunnit.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Something%27s_Afoot

Don't Dress For Dinner, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2010 Summer Theatre

Don’t Dress For Dinner centers around Bernard and Jacqueline, a not-so-happily married couple, both of whom are having extramarital affairs. As Jacqueline prepares to go out of town to visit her mother, Bernard invites his mistress and Robert, his best friend (and also Jacqueline’s lover, unbeknownst to Bernard), over for the weekend. He’s even hired a Cordon Bleu chef to cater the evening. Jacqueline discovers Robert is coming to town and cancels her trip, causing Bernard to panic. When Robert arrives, Bernard asks him to pretend Suzanne is Robert’s mistress. Robert mistakes the chef (Suzette), for Bernard’s mistress (Suzanne), producing …

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2010 Summer Theatre

An eclectic group of sixth-graders arrives at the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, each eager to win for very different reasons. Sweet and shy Olive brings only her best friend (the dictionary) with her to the bee; bold and hyperallergic speller William Barfee uses his “magic foot” to propel him to greatness; former champion Chip is struggling with his burgeoning puberty; easily distracted Leaf is unconvinced that he’s smart enough to be a challenger; overachiever Marcy is disappointed by her consistent success; and politically aware Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre only wants to impress her gay dads. In hilarious, touching, and catchy …

The Last Night Of Ballyhoo, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2009 Summer Theatre

The Last Night of Ballyhoo takes place in Atlanta, Georgia, in December of 1939. Gone with the Wind is having its world premiere, and Hitler is invading Poland, but Atlanta's elitist German Jews are much more concerned with who is going to Ballyhoo, the social event of the season. Events take several unexpected turns as the characters face where they come from and are forced to deal with who they really are.

https://www.dramatists.com/cgi-bin/db/single.asp?key=2480

Altar Boyz, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2009 Summer Theatre

Altar Boyz is the hilarious story of a struggling Christian boy-band trying to make it big in New York City. Five talented heartthrobs from Ohio do their best to spread the word of God through pop music. However, can they resist the temptations of the Big Apple? The show is presented in real time as a concert, the last concert of their national "Raise the Praise" tour.

https://stageagent.com/shows/musical/2422/altar-boyz

Don't Talk To The Actors, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2009 Summer Theatre

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The best laid plans go awry when the cast and crew of a Broadway-bound play resort to manipulation, diva-like behavior, and chaotic abandon to get what they want. Fledgling playwright Jerry Przpezniak and his fiancee are a couple of Buffalo greenhorns suddenly swept up in the whirlwind of New York's theater scene when Jerry's play is optioned for the big money, ego-driven world of Broadway. It's a young playwright's dream, but the crazy characters and dilemmas they encounter are the things theatrical nightmares are made of.

https://www.playscripts.com/play/1869

My Way: A Musical Tribute To Frank Sinatra, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2008 Summer Theatre

No abstract provided.

Proof, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2008 Summer Theatre

The play concerns Catherine, the daughter of Robert, a recently deceased mathematical genius and professor at the University of Chicago, and her struggle with mathematical genius and mental illness. Catherine had cared for her father through a lengthy mental illness. https://www.lewisfamilyplayhouse.com/pdfs/blackbox/Proof_character_descriptions.pdf

The Spitfire Grill, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2007 Summer Theatre

After being released from jail, Percy Talbott travels to a town in Maine looking for a new beginning. When she arrives, she finds work at a restaurant owned by the crabby Hannah. She also befriends a waitress named Shelby and begins a romance with an attractive local named Joe. But when Hannah falls ill and Percy plans to help her sell the restaurant, Shelby's husband becomes suspicious of her intentions. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Spitfire_Grill_(musical)

The Batting Cage, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2007 Summer Theatre

The Batting Cage is set in a Holiday Inn in romantic St. Augustine, Florida, where two estranged sisters travel unlikely journeys as they struggle to regain their bearing after the loss of their much-loved third sister. Their efforts at redefining themselves and their relationship are both poignant and humorous.

2007 Otterbein Summer Theatre Season Brochure, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

Theatre and Dance Annual Brochures

No abstract provided.

Father Joy, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2006 Summer Theatre

No abstract provided.

The 1940'S Radio Hour, Otterbein University Theatre And Dance Department

2006 Summer Theatre

Fabled WOV, a seedy little New York radio station takes to the air at the beginning of World War II, this time to record a broadcast for the troops overseas.

The narrative concerns the harassed producer whose leading singer is often drunk, the delivery boy who wants a chance in front of the mike, the second banana who dreams of singing a ballad, and the trumpet-playing sound effects man who chooses a fighter plane over Glenn Miller. http://www.guidetomusicaltheatre.com/shows_n/1940sRadioHour.html