Cascades Theatrical Company will offer a full season of six shows opening in September.
Wrong Window! by Billy Van Zandt & Jane Milmore (September 21 – October 7). This comedy whodunit is a tribute to Master of Horror Alfred Hitchcock. Off-and-on New York couple Marnie and Jeff enters an even more complicated phase of their relationship when they think they spy their cross-courtyard neighbor do away with his wife. After they draw their torn curtain, the lady vanishes, and suspicion places murder beyond a shadow of a doubt. The bumbling witnesses sneak into their neighbor’s apartment – 39 steps away – and the fun begins. Among multiple door-slammings, body-snatchings and a frantic flashlight chase scene, two questions remain: Who killed Lila Larswald? And… if she’s not dead…then who is? The crazy farce plays out on a ridiculously cool set that allows the audience to be present in one apartment, while viewing the action in its mirror-image neighboring unit across the way.
It’s Only Money Story and Music by David Forrest. World Premiere! Book and lyrics by Lee Charles Kelley and David Forrest. (November 2-18). A romantic musical comedy about “love AND money” and a guy who made the mistake of mixing the two. Young go-getter Tom Truman arrives in New York City armed with an MBA and a passion for capitalism seeking to make his fortune in the world of finance. He soon finds out that office romance and office politics can be at odds with each other, resulting in compromising positions of both the heart and ethical mind while simultaneously leading to a life-altering lesson. Along the way, Tom discovers unlikely allies amongst his co-workers and sage guidance from Joe, a “seemingly homeless” coffee cart vendor who used to be the CEO of a multinational corporation. After all is said and done, it’s only money…or is it?
Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare (January 25 – February 10). A shipwreck, a young woman disguised as a boy, a grieving Countess, a love-sick Duke, mistaken identities and a whole panoply of merry rogues make this one of Shakespeare’s most beloved comedies. When young Viola is washed ashore following a catastrophic shipwreck, she seeks to protect her honor by disguising herself as a boy. Taking service with the handsome Duke Orsino, she soon finds herself wooing the proud Olivia on her master’s behalf. Olivia is not at all interested in the Duke’s proposal, but she finds herself completely smitten with the young boy (she thinks) who woos so prettily. More confusion ensues with jealousy, fights, duels, double-crosses and some of Shakespeare’s most beautiful language. After all, “The course of true love never did run smooth” even if, at the finish, “All’s well that ends well.”
The Shadow Box by Michael Cristofer (March 8-24). In this compelling dramatic triptych, the individual lives of three terminally ill patients and their loved ones are deftly explored with energy, warmth and humor. The play spans one 24-hour period in three separate cottages on the grounds of a residential medical center, where patients and their families may stay if they agree to document their thoughts and feelings through interviews with an unseen doctor. It is these interviews which skillfully tie the three plots together. The characters are diverse and colorful. Celebrated by critics for its insight, perceptiveness and humor in dealing with controversial subject matter, it earned Cristofer both a Pulitzer Prize and a Tony award in 1977.
Shooting Star by Steven Dietz (April 26 – May 12). Snowed in overnight at a middle-America airport, college lovers Elena Carson and Reed McAllister have an unexpected and life-altering reunion. Elena has stayed true to her hippie-ish, counter-culture path, while Reed has gone predictably corporate and conservative. As the night gives way to laughter, banter and remembrance, Elena and Reed revisit a past that holds more surprises than they imagined—and a present that neither of them could have predicted. Filled with laughter and ache, this is a bittersweet romantic comedy about the middle days of our lives, and how we got there.
The Fox On The Fairway by Ken Ludwig (June 14–30). A tribute from Ken Ludwig (Lend Me A Tenor, Leading Ladies, Moon Over Buffalo) to the great English farces of the 1930s and 1940s, The Fox On the Fairway takes audiences on a hilarious romp which pulls the rug out from underneath the stuffy denizens of a private country club. Filled with mistaken identities, slamming doors and over-the-top romantic shenanigans, it’s a furiously paced comedy. A charmingly madcap adventure about love, life and man’s eternal love affair with… golf.
John Jakes’ Adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol Special CTC holiday production presented by The Tower Theatre Foundation. December 21-23 at the Tower Theatre. This A Christmas Carol goes beyond other adaptations with a unique dramatic concept: At the opening curtain, Charles Dickens himself is introduced to the audience, ready to present one of the famed platform readings of his stories that packed auditoriums in Europe and America. Of course, the story chosen is one which he often performed, A Christmas Carol (Dickens’ marked-up script still exists!). The story unfolds behind him, and soon Dickens is weaving in and out of the action, observing, performing small roles, interpolating short passages of rich narrative never heard in other versions.
Season Flex Passes are available starting July 1. Stop by the Greenwood Playhouse for a tour and a brochure and ask us about the Sneak Peek Event in August. (six Flexible-Use Tickets for Main Stage Productions) Adult $120, Senior (60+) $90, Student $63. 541-389-0803, noon to 5pm Mon-Friday. 148 NW Greenwood Avenue, Bend.