WaterTower Theatre Announces Their 25th Season for 2020-2021
Featuring Two Musicals, Two Tony Award Winning Plays, a 25th Anniversary Celebration, a One-woman Studio Show, and A Holiday Co-Production with Lone Star Circus
Addison (TX) – Shane Peterman, Producing Artistic Director, today announced details of the Company’s 2020-2021 Season. This season marks the 25th for WaterTower Theatre, the second season programmed by Producing Artistic Director Shane Peterman, and the first with Associate Producer Elizabeth Kensek. The 5-show subscription season includes Mel Books’ brand new West End adaptation of the hit movie musical Young Frankenstein, Simon Steven’s TONY Award winning play, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, a 25th Anniversary Concert event, the TONY Award winning American Classic A Raisin in the Sun, and the world premiere of a brand new musical, Goin’ Hollywood. WaterTower is also excited to announce two season add-ons: an all new holiday celebration co-produced with Lone Star Circus Cirque Holidays, and for a limited run in the Karol Omlor Studio the U.S. Premiere of AMP: The Electrifying Story of Mary Shelley.
“I am excited to celebrate WaterTower Theatre and its twenty-fifth anniversary with you! This second season continues my fresh approach to programming propelling the theatre into a new era of success and growth. This season has something for everyone and is a tribute to the many artists, patrons, and this wonderful city that, together, helps to shape one of North Texas’ most prominent professional theatres.”
The 2020-2021 Terry Martin Main Stage Season kicks off with the musical adaptation of the hit 1974 film, Young Frankenstein (October 22 – November 8, 2020), directed by Cheryl Denson and music directed by Adam C. Wright. Filled with catchy songs, fabulous dancing, and outrageous laughs that only a Mel Brooks show can deliver, this newly published adaptation from London’s West End was awarded the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical in 2018. During the same week that Young Frankenstein opens on the Main Stage, we will be presenting the regional premiere of AMP: The Electrifying Story of Mary Shelley written and performed by Jody Christopherson and directed by Isaac Byrne in the Karol Omlor Studio. AMP is an electrifying 60 minute solo work based on the life of Mary Shelley, the creation of Frankenstein, and the birth of modern feminism. Come meet the woman behind the monster. The 25th season continues with North Texas’ newest Holiday tradition, an all new Cirque Holidays (December 10-20, 2020), a co-production with Lone Star Circus, featuring new acts by circus performers from all around the world through a unique blend of theatre and circus. The new year will ring in with the regional premiere of Simon Stephens’ play The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time (February 4-21, 2021), directed by Emily Scott Banks. This TONY Award winning groundbreaking contemporary play, based on Mark Haddon’s best-selling book of the same title, offers a richly theatrical experience telling the touching and humorous story of fifteen-year-old Christopher, an extraordinary boy who is determined to solve a mystery in his West London neighborhood. Next we celebrate everything that you love about WaterTower Theatre with a red carpet event celebrating WTT’s Silver Anniversary with our 25th Anniversary Concert event (March 4-21, 2021). Come celebrate the history of WaterTower Theatre’s first 25 years featuring your favorite North Texas performers & musicians who have brought the glamour of Broadway to our stage over the years! Next on the Main Stage is the TONY Award winning drama that changed American theater forever, A Raisin in the Sun (April 22- May 9, 2021) written by Lorraine Hansberry. This American Classic will be directed by Phyllis Cicero, and tells the story of the Younger family living in Chicago in the 1950’s, a story that remains as powerful and relevant today as it was 50 years ago. The season concludes with the world premiere of a brand new musical filled with Hollywood glamour, romance, and intrigue - Goin’ Hollywood (June 10-27, 2021) by Stephen Cole & David Krane. Alice Chandler and her writing partner Garson Stein find themselves hurtling back in time to Hollywood in 1949, the golden age of movie musicals where they meet L. B. Mayer who hires them as writers. Alice & Garson soon discover that everything is not as they imagined; the studio system crumbling around them and the blacklist is targeting their closest allies! Our 25th season wraps up in style with this big splashy musical with a heart as big as MGM and a totally original, catchy, jazz-tinged score.
All productions will be staged at the Addison Theatre Centre at 15650 Addison Road, Addison, Texas 75001.
Five-show season subscriptions are on sale starting January 17th. The renewal deadline for current subscribers to keep their same seats or received priority reseating is June 30th. Subscriptions range in price from $119 (Preview Thursday and Wednesdays) to $156 (Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sundays). Subscription prices increase after August 1st to $145 (Preview Thursday and Wednesdays) and $175 (Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday). New subscriptions are available by calling the Box Office at 972.450.6232, and renewals can be made by phone or in person. Individual tickets go on sale in Summer 2020.
For more information on WaterTower Theatre and the 2019 – 2020 Season, visit us online at www.watertowertheatre.org or call the Box Office at 972.450.6232.
THE 2020-2021 SEASON:
A Comedic Classic
The Mel Brooks Musical Young Frankenstein
Performances: 10/22/20-11/8/20
Music & Lyrics By: Mel Brooks
Book By: Mel Brooks & Thomas Meehan
Directed by Cheryl Denson
Music Directed by Adam C. Wright
Choreographed by Kellie Carroll
Mel Brooks' YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN is the critically acclaimed musical based on the Oscar-nominated smash hit movie of the same title. A wickedly inspired re-imagining of the Mary Shelley classic sees Frederick Frankenstein, an esteemed New York brain surgeon and professor, inherit a castle and laboratory in Transylvania from his deranged genius grandfather, Victor Von Frankenstein. He now faces a dilemma - does he continue to run from his family's tortured past or does he stay in Transylvania to carry on his grandfather's mad experiments reanimating the dead and, in the process, falling in love with his very attractive lab assistant Inga? WaterTower is kicking off its 25th season with the newly updated West End version of this hit musical!
A Groundbreaking Contemporary Play
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
Regional Premiere
Performances: 2/4/21-2/21/21
By Simon Stephens
Directed by Emily Scott Banks
15-year old Christopher is an extraordinary boy with an extraordinary brain who lives with his Dad in a working class town West of London. When Christopher finds himself under suspicion for the murder of a neighbor’s dog, he becomes determined to solve the mystery. WaterTower is proud to present the regional premiere of this groundbreaking contemporary play which won the TONY Award for Best Play in 2015 and is based on Mark Haddon’s best-selling novel of the same title
Tickets will be General Admission as seating will be in the round.
Contains adult language. Recommended for ages 12 and above.
A Silver Anniversary Celebration
25th Anniversary Concert
Performances: 3/4/21-3/21/21
Since 1996, WaterTower Theatre has thrilled North Texas Audiences with 173 groundbreaking plays and musicals. A nostalgic look back at 25 years of WaterTower Theatre shows, featuring North Dallas’ favorite performers & musicians who have brought the glamour of Broadway to our stage over the years. WaterTower Theatre will be rolling out the red carpet for our audiences! Please join us in toasting WaterTower in a non to be missed live immersive concert celebration and see why WaterTower Theatre is THE professional theater of North Texas.
An American Classic
A Raisin in the Sun
Performances: 4/22/21-5/9/21
By Lorraine Hansberry
Directed by Phyllis Cicero
Lorraine Hansberry's TONY Award winning drama debuted just five years after the landmark Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision ended segregation. It tells the story of the Youngers, a black family living in Chicago in the 1950s, whose yearning for a piece of the American Dream includes moving to a modest home in an majority white community. The Youngers discover that the American dream is not the same for everyone in their family. A Raisin in the Sun was the first drama written by an African American woman to be produced on Broadway and was called the play “that changed American theater forever” by presenting a story about identity, justice, and moral responsibility: a story about an American family that remains as powerful and relevant today as it was 50 years ago.
Contains adult language. Recommended for ages 12 and above.
A World Premiere Musical
Goin’ Hollywood
Performances: 6/10/21-6/27/21
By Stephen Cole & David Krane
WaterTower Theatre is extremely proud to present the World Premiere of a brand new musical filled with Hollywood glamour, romance, and intrigue. Have you ever wished you were born in a different time? Alice Chandler did. Alice and the 21st Century do not get along, but she never dreamed that she and her reluctant suitor, Garson Stein, would go to lunch at a restaurant in Grand Central Station called the Super Chief Dining Car and find themselves hurtling back in time to Hollywood in 1949. What do you do when you get your wish? When you and your writing partner get signed by MGM to write a movie musical? Alice and Garson are smack in the golden age of movie musicals where they meet L. B. Mayer, find that the studio system is crumbling around them, that the blacklist is hitting their closest allies, and that Ann Miller is not as big a star as they thought! WaterTower’s 25th season wraps up in style with Goin’ Hollywood, a big splashy musical, with a heart as big as MGM, and a totally original, catchy, jazz-tinged score.
THE 2020-2021 SEASON ADD-ON SHOWS
A Legendary Story-Teller
AMP: The Electrifying Story of Mary Shelley
Regional Premiere
SEASON ADD ON- 4 Show LIMITED RUN
Performances: 10/22/20-10/25/20
Written & Performed by Jody Christopherson
Directed by Isaac Byrne
Before Mary Shelley became one of the greatest gothic horror writers in history, she was the unconventional daughter of anarchist philosophers William Godwin and Mary Wollstonecraft. Outcast and profoundly isolated, rejecting what her Victorian world had to offer, she created a genre that celebrated revolting in both senses of the word. Scientist Luigi Galvani’s discovery of “animal electricity” acts as an electric undercurrent for suppressed creative narratives, accompanied by stylized movement, period costumes and the philosophy that allowed authors to be published as creators of their own stories… however horrifying they might be. AMP is a 60-minute solo work based on the creation of Mary Shelley’s gothic classic Frankenstein and the birth of modern feminism written & performed by Jody Christopherson; "a visionary in the theater world and legendary story-teller" (The Theater Times). This limited run in the intimate Karol Omlor Studio Theatre, accompanies the opening weekend of Young Frankenstein. Come meet the woman behind the monster.
A Season Tradition
CIRQUE HOLIDAYS
SEASON ADD ON
A Co-Production with Lone Star Circus
Performances: 12/10/20-12/20/20
The family holiday favorite, and newest WaterTower Holiday tradition, CIRQUE HOLIDAYS returns to WaterTower Theatre featuring NEW circus acts from around the world and a brand NEW heartwarming story to take audiences of all ages* on a magical journey while spreading holiday cheer on the way.
Tickets will be General Admission as seating will be in the round.
*Children under the age of 5 may find this program difficult to follow or sit through
SEASON OVERVIEW:
Young Frankenstein
October 22 – November 8, 2020
Pay-What-You-Can Preview: Thursday, October 22
Opening Night: Friday, October 23
ASL Interpreted Performance: Thursday, November 5
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
February 4-21, 2021
Pay-What-You-Can Preview: Thursday, February 4
Opening Night: Friday, February 5
ASL Interpreted Performance: Thursday, February 18
25th Anniversary Concert
March 4-21, 2021
Pay-What-You-Can Preview: Thursday, March 4
Opening Night: Friday, March 5
ASL Interpreted Performance: Thursday, March 18
A Raisin in the Sun
April 22 –May 9, 2021
Pay-What-You-Can Preview: Thursday, April 22
Opening Night: Friday, April 23
ASL Interpreted Performance: Thursday, May 6
Goin’ Hollywood
June 10-27, 2021
Pay-What-You-Can Preview: Thursday, June 10
Opening Night: Friday, June 11
ASL Interpreted Performance: Thursday, June 24
SEASON ADD-ON OVERVIEW:
AMP: The Electrifying Story of Mary Shelley
October 22-25, 2020
Cirque Holidays
December 10-20, 2020
Pay-What-You-Can Preview: Thursday, December 10
Opening Night: Friday, December 11
2020-2021 Season Performance Schedule:
Ticket Information
Current subscribers are able to renew their season subscriptions by mail, fax (972.450.6244), by calling the Box Office at 972.450.6232, or in-person at the WTT Box Office (15650 Addison Rd). New subscriptions will be available by phone.
Renewals and new subscriptions are on sale on January 17th, however, seating will not be assigned until July.
About Shane Peterman, Producing Artistic Director
Shane Peterman is a dynamic leader who recently served as Producer for Lyric Stage and was instrumental in the relocation of Lyric Stage from Irving to Dallas’ Historic Majestic Theater. Mr. Peterman’s history with WaterTower Theatre dates back to 1999 as an actor and teacher and has been seen on the WaterTower Theatre stage numerous times. Mr. Peterman has produced over 65 productions and directed over 35 shows in numerous markets around the country including New York City, Denver, Orlando and Minneapolis. Shane, his wife Erica and partner Kellie Carroll opened The Acting Studio in 2009 which has grown into North Texas’ largest independently owned children’s theatre training and performance program with multiple locations. Mr. Peterman is a native Dallas Texan and currently resides in Trophy Club with his wife and two children.
About WaterTower Theatre
Founded in 1996, WaterTower Theatre (WTT) is one of Texas' leading professional theatre companies and one of the flagship arts institutions in North Texas, having played an important role as a leader in developing new talent and encouraging the growth of the DFW artistic community through its commitment to hiring local artists. WaterTower Theatre is consistently recognized for its artistic excellence by the Dallas Theatre League, DFW Theatre Critics Forum, The Dallas Morning News, The Dallas Observer, D Magazine, The Column, and The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, among others. WaterTower Theatre has a subscription base of more than 1,100 subscribers and serves an audience of over 24,000 patrons annually.
WaterTower Theatre is 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, proudly operating under an SPT license with Actors Equity Association, the labor union representing American actors and stage managers. WaterTower Theatre relies on its ticket income and generous donations from individuals, corporations, foundations, and government organizations to produce world-class live professional theatre and to offer community engagement and arts education programs. WaterTower Theatre gratefully acknowledges the support of the Town of Addison, The Civic League, The Shubert Foundation, TACA, Texas Commission on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts. WaterTower Theatre’s current 2019-2020 season is also supported, in part, through the generosity of its many civic, corporate, and foundation donors including AMLI Residential Addison, CIC Partners, FASTSIGNS Carrollton, Guaranty Bank, ONCOR, and individual donors Don and Barbara Daseke, The Bob Downs Family, Stan Graner and Jim McBride, Phillip and Janeva Longacre, Kathy Messina and Gary Goodwin, Janiece and Jimmy Niemann, Karol Omlor, Jack and Libby Swindle, Deborah and Craig Sutton, and Ron and Donna Whitehead.
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