The year was 1958. Charles de Gaulle was Time magazine’s Man of the Year. Doris Day, Lana Turner and Marilyn Monroe were big stars of the time. Super Glue and the Hula Hoop were invented and the Dayton Playhouse laid the groundwork to begin entertaining audiences in the Dayton community.
To celebrate their 60th anniversary, the Dayton Playhouse announces a stellar season. Fans of musicals, mystery and classic literature will be thrilled. The 2018-19 season kicks off with the musical My Fair Lady directed by Brian Sharp. When Lerner and Loewe’s My Fair Lady opened on Broadway, it collected six Tony Awards including Best Musical. The film version took home eight Oscars including Best Picture. Based on George Bernard Shaw’s play Pygmalion, My Fair Lady is the tale of a cockney flower girl transformed into a lady. The musical features some of the best-known tunes including “The Rain in Spain”, “I Could Have Danced All Night”, and “Get Me to the Church on Time”. Production dates are Sept. 14 – 30, 2018. Auditions are July 23 and 24, 2018.
Mystery and intrigue will be featured in Murder on the Nile by Agatha Christie and directed by Tim Rezash. In classic Agatha Christie-style, Kay Ridgeway has led a charmed life. Blessed with beauty, enormous wealth and a new husband, Kay embarks on a honeymoon voyage down the Nile. Fatal circumstances await when the idyllic surroundings are shattered by a shocking and brutal murder. Under scrutiny is a multitude of memorable passengers, all with a reason to kill. The tension and claustrophobia build as a shocking and audacious conspiracy is laid bare. Murder on the Nile will run Nov. 2 through 11. Auditions are Sept. 17 and 18.
There’s nothing like a sassy, sultry musical to chase off those winter blues. Ain’t Misbehavin’ is a musical celebration of legendary jazz great, Fats Waller with a knockout cast of five triple threat actors. Audiences will tap their toes to such fabulous tunes as “I’m Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter” and “It’s a Sin to Tell a Lie”. Directed by Kip Moore, Ain’t Misbehavin’ will run Jan. 18 through Feb. 3, 2019. Auditions are Nov. 5 and 6.
Harper Lee’s classic novel To Kill a Mockingbird was an instant success when it was published in 1960. Director Matthew Smith will bring this poignant look at racism in Maycomb, Alabama to the Dayton Playhouse stage March 8 through 17, 2019. Auditions are Jan. 21 and 22. Young Scout Finch manages to live a rather carefree life, insulated from racial issues until her father, Atticus Finch, defends an innocent man, Tom Robinson, against a potential death sentence. To Kill a Mockingbird is now considered an American masterpiece about the power of childhood, innocence, morality and love.
The Dayton Playhouse will wrap up its diamond anniversary season with the multiple Tony Award-winning musical, Mamma Mia! Richard Lee Waldeck will direct this show which will run May 3 through 19, 2019. Auditions are set for March 20 and 21.