Syracuse Stage reveals 2020-21 productions
Syracuse Stage announced the shows it will be playing for its 48th season today. Kate Hamill was also announced as the playwright in residence at Syracuse Stage’s fourth annual Cold Read Festival of New Plays for March 21-24, 2021.
The theater company will perform “Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein” from Oct. 14 to Nov. 1; Roald Dahl’s “Matilda The Musical” from Nov. 20 to Jan. 3; “Once on This Island” from Jan. 20 to Feb. 7; “Eureka Day” from March 3 to March 21; “Our Town” from April 21 to May 9 and “salt/city/blues” from June 2 to June 20, per a Syracuse Stage press release.
The production of “Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein” will fall on Halloween weekend this year. According to a press release from Syracuse Stage, this version of the show is set around Lake Geneva in 1816.
The premise continues with five friends, including poets Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe, gathering around to tell ghost stories. Mary Shelley is one of them, and she unveils the tale of Frankenstein. The show will also be directed by Risa Brainin, who directed “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time” in 2017, the release said.
Roald Dahl’s famous children’s book “Matilda” became a movie in 1996. Now, Syracuse Stage will take on “Matilda The Musical” during the holiday season this year. The Tony Award-winner features the story of a girl whose magical powers help her through her childhood and school.
Donna Drake, who directed “The Wizard of Oz,” “Elf The Musical” and “Disney’s Beauty and the Beast” at Syracuse Stage, will be returning for this production as well, the release said. The Syracuse University Department of Drama will be co-producing “Matilda” as well, according to the press release.
The story of “Once on This Island” centers around Ti Moune and her love for a wealthy boy from across an island, Daniel. Steve H. Broadnax III, who recently directed “Thoughts of a Colored Man,” will direct the show.
The satirical show “Eureka Day” takes place at a progressive school in Berkeley, California. After directing “Native Gardens” in 2019, Melissa Crespo will return to Syracuse Stage to head “Eureka Day.”
The play “Our Town” will also be coming to the Syracuse Stage in the 2020-2021 season. The company’s artistic director, Robert Hupp, will direct the play.
“It’s a season that speaks to me because it’s full of heartfelt and heartwarming stories that transport us beyond the everyday,” Hupp said in the press release. “These plays and musicals give our artists and our actors a rich canvas to create something special for our audience, the kind of unforgettable theatre experience you can’t get anywhere except at Syracuse Stage.”
Finally, there will be the world premiere of “salt/city/blues” by Syracuse Stage associate artistic director Kyle Bass. The show is about Yolonda Mourning, a consultant, who is about to head a project to dismantle the highway that divides Salt City.
Themes of race, class and urban renewal appear as Yolonda moves downtown to work on the project. Tazewell Thompson, former artistic director for Syracuse Stage, will be directing the show.