HOUSTON: A.D. Players has announced its 2018-19 season, the first full season at the company’s new home. The season also marks new leadership, with the addition of Jake Speck as executive director and Kevin Dean as interim artistic director , who took the reins after founding artistic director Jeannette Clift George died in December.
“It is with great pride that we offer a season with so much variety, that reflects not only our evolution as a multi-faceted arts organization, but our growing and diverse audience base,” said Speck in a statement. “We are incredibly grateful for our patrons and donors supporting us with such fervor, and know this will be an exciting and challenging season for our company, and for the city of Houston.”
The season will start with Around the World in 80 Days (Sept. 14-30), adapted by Mark Brown from the novel by Jules Verne, about an adventurer who sets out on an adventure around the globe. The show will feature 5 actors playing 39 characters.
Just in time for the holidays will be It’s A Wonderful Life: A Radio Play (Nov. 30-Dec. 23), adapted by Joe Landry, a radio broadcast of the classic 1940s Christmas film.
Following will be Tuesdays with Morrie (Jan. 25-Feb. 10, 2019), by Jeffrey Hatcher and Mitch Albom, based on the book by Hatcher about a man sharing lunch with a college professor dying from ALS.
Next up will be Mark St. Germain’s The God Committee (May 17-June 2, 2019), about the heart transplant selection committee at St. Patrick’s Hospital tasked with deciding which of three patients will receive a transplant.
The season will conclude with West Side Story (June 28-July 21, 2019), with book by Arthur Laurents, music by Leonard Bernstein, and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, with a concept by Jerome Robbins. The classic musical follows a romance between two members of warring street gangs in New York City.
In addition to the main stage season, A.D. Players will present the inaugural “Jeanette Clift George Black Box Legacy Series,” which will celebrate George’s career as a playwright. Selected works will be presented in the theatre’s black box space, including a Spanish translation of George’s John, His Story to commemorate the Easter season in the spring of 2019.
Founded in 1967, A.D. Players is Houston’s only professional Christian theatre company.
