SYRACUSE, N.Y.: Syracuse Stage has announced its 2017-18 season, the first under new artistic director Robert Hupp, featuring four plays and two musicals.
“I’ve enjoyed learning about the proud tradition of artistic excellence that defines our theatre company,” Hupp said in a statement. “It is this unswerving commitment to artistic excellence and a passion to tell fantastic stories that demand to live on a stage that drive our creative process.”
Opening the season will be Catherine Bush’s The Three Musketeers (Sept. 20-Oct. 8). Based on Alexander Dumas’s 19th century novel, the epic show follows Athos, Porthos, Aramis, and D’Artagnan as they face Cardinal Richelieu in a battle of blundering sword fights, camaraderie, and a touch of romance. Hupp will direct.
Next up will be the Tony Award-winning play, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (Oct. 25-Nov. 12), adapted by Simon Stephens from the novel by Mark Haddon. Christopher is a young man with incredible intelligence but faces personal and social challenges. When a neighbor’s dog is found dead and the blame falls on Christopher, he sets off on an adventure to find the true killer. Risa Brainin will direct.
Closing out 2017 will be the classic musical The Wizard of Oz (Nov. 29-Dec. 31), adapted by John Kane from the book by L. Frank Baum, with music by Harold Arlen and E.Y. Yarburg. Syracuse Stage will partner with Syracuse University Department of Drama and 2 Ring Circus for the production, and Donna Drake will direct.
Kicking off the New Year will be Next to Normal (Jan. 17-Feb. 4, 2018), book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey and music by Tom Kitt, following a family trying to hold themselves together as the mother struggles with bipolar depression. Hupp will direct.
Following will be Lorraine Hansberry’s A Raisin in the Sun (Feb. 21-March 11, 2018). A story of race and family, this 1959 classic follows the Younger family as they try to make a better life for themselves living on the South Side of Chicago. Timothy Douglas will direct.
Closing the season will be The Magic Play (April 25-May 13, 2018), by Andrew Hinderaker, starring magician and actor Brett Schneider. Part magic show and part drama, this spectacle ends differently each time, telling the story of a heart-broken magician who struggles to keep his personal life and onstage life separate. Halena Kays will direct.
Syracuse Stage, founded in 1974, is dedicated to producing new plays, musicals, and new interpretations of classics.
