The season will begin Oct. 4 with the opening of “Fly by Night.”
Comedy will take center stage when Texas Tech University's School of Theatre & Dance, housed within the J.T. & Margaret Talkington College of Visual & Performing Arts, kicks off its 2022-2023 season on Tuesday (Oct. 4).
“We chose our 2022-23 season with one thing in mind: to make you laugh,” said Mark Charney, director of the School of Theatre & Dance. “From dark comedy to satire to musical comedy, no matter your sense of humor, you will find a show to fit your taste.”
The season will feature seven productions, including classics and new stories and will culminate in the first performance in the redesigned Charles E. Maedgen, Jr. Theatre.
“We look forward to sharing the updated theater and other new spaces with the community,” Charney said. “Not only does this space increase our ability to train our students, but it also will improve the show-going experience for our audiences.”
In conjunction with the regular season, the school is also introducing “A New Canon Reading Series.” These minimally produced reading presentations will feature new works by underrepresented playwrights.
Performances are at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesdays through Saturdays, and 2 p.m. on Sundays. All performances will be in the Maedgen Theatre & Dance Complex on 18th Street between Boston and Flint Avenues except for “Fall Dance Fest,” which will be performed in the Creative Movement Studio, located at the southwest corner of Akron and Glenna Goodacre Avenues.
Tickets for performances are $15 for individuals and $5 for Texas Tech students with a valid ID, except for “Frontier Fest” for which tickets are $5 per-night or $15 for a week pass. Season subscriptions are also available for $65. Free student rush tickets are available on a limited basis beginning one hour prior to performances. “A New Canon Reading Series” is free and open to the public, but reservations are recommended.
2022-2023 Season:
- “Fly By Night”: conceived by Kim Rosenstock, written by Will Connolly, Michael Mitnick, and Kim
Rosenstock
- Directed by Brad Frenette
- Oct. 4-9, 2022
- The CH Foundation Legacy of Christine DeVitt Black Box Theatre
- Set against the backdrop of the Northeast blackout of 1965, this darkly comic rock
fable searches for hope in a world beset by darkness.
- “As You Like It”: by William Shakespeare
- Directed by Patrick Alan
- Nov. 1-6, 2022
- The CH Foundation Legacy of Christine DeVitt Black Box Theatre
- All the world's a stage in Shakespeare's delightful comedy about love, lust and mistaken
identity.
- “Fall Dance Fest 2022”
- Nov. 16-19, 2022
- Creative Movement Studio
- A capstone project featuring original choreography by fourth-year dance students.
- “The Secretaries”: A Five Lesbian Brothers play written by Maureen Angelos, Babs Davy,
Dominique Dibbell, Peg Healey and Lisa Kron
- Directed by Sarah Mayhew
- The CH Foundation Legacy of Christine DeVitt Black Box Theatre
- Feb. 7-12, 2023
- Student Preview Nov. 18
- With a murderously dark sense of humor, this satirical comedy takes an unflinching
look at the warping cultural expectations of femininity.
- “DanceTech”
- March 2-4, 2023
- The CH Foundation Legacy of Christine DeVitt Black Box Theatre
- An engaging collection of choreography by Texas Tech dance faculty, featuring new
work from soon-to-be-announced guest artists.
- “Frontier Fest”
- March 27 through April 2, 2023
- The CH Foundation Legacy of Christine DeVitt Black Box Theatre
- A week-long festival showcasing adventurous new works by Texas Tech theatre and dance
students.
- “Sweet Charity”: book by Neil Simon; music by Cy Coleman; lyrics by Dorothy Fields;
based on an original screenplay by Federico Fellini, Tullio Pinelli and Ennio Flaiano
- Directed by Kyla Olson
- April 25-30, 2023
- Charles E. Maedgen Jr. Theatre
- A hilarious musical comedy about a gullible dance hall hostess who desperately searches for love while wearing her heart on her sleeve.
2022-2023 A New Canon Reading Series:
- “The Book Club Play” by Karen Zacarías
- Directed by Bill Gelber
- Oct. 21-22, 2023
- Studio Performance Lab
- “Black Top Sky” by Christina Anderson
- Directed by Jesse Jou
- April 14-15, 2023
- Studio Performance Lab
For more information visit the School of Theatre & Dance website or call (806) 742-3603.
