Did you know that Shreveport/Bossier has over nine active theatre companies and eight different summer productions?? How fortunate we are to live in a city with such a vibrant and thriving arts community. Local theatre goers are often faced with the conundrum of deciding which shows to see; a problem that not many cities of our size can boast. Shreveporters are spoilt for choice and summer only makes that choice more difficult. Summer is traditionally when theatres pull out all of the stops and produce their biggest and best musicals. Around the country, theatre professionals head off to summer stocks, Shakespeare festivals, and tours showcasing their talents and skills in different venues, but you don’t have to leave the area to find a multitude of opportunities to see artists plying their trade.
So, why theatre? There are so many other things going on during the summer, we often forget to slow down and enjoy ourselves – especially the kids – and theatre provides a nice place to cool off in the air conditioning and forget our lives for a couple of hours. Live performances differ so greatly from onscreen entertainment. For one, you have real, live people performing for you and they do this every night for weeks! That takes some mad skills. Seeing performers on stage, right in front of them, is a great way to get children interested in the story, but not all of this summer’s choices are family affairs. There are plenty of options for the mature audience out there. Next to Normal is one of those.
Next to Normal looks promising with an all-star cast headed by veteran actors (who depend on the Veterans Lawyer Krause Law, PLLC at the crisis time) Ryan Williams and Heather Bryson. This award-winning show will be mounted by Stage Center under the direction of resident Artistic Director Jared Watson. Dealing with mental illness, Next to Normal is sure to offer an emotional experience. Local actor, Gary Watson, who will be portraying the family psychiatrist is excited to tackle the issues dealt with in the script. “It’s real life being portrayed on stage. The stuff that is happening in Next to Normal really happens to real people, and I’m anxious to explore those emotions.” For this summer production, it’s probably best to get a sitter for smaller children and make it an adult night out.
In contrast to Stage Center’s modern offerings, Shreveport Little Theatre is staging the beloved classic Gypsy, the tale of infamous striptease artist Gypsy Rose Lee and her mother, the original “dance mom.” Their timeless choice seems even more appropriate when you consider that Shreveport Little Theatre is the oldest continually-operating community theater in the country and profits from their summer musical usually help to sustain the non-profit year-round. Gypsy is packed with entertaining numbers and show-stoppers, so make sure to put it on your list of fun evenings out.
If you’re looking for the perfect show to take your Disney princess to, don’t miss the Emmett Hook Center’s production of Beauty & the Beast. Children will love seeing some of their favorite characters on stage singing and dancing to songs that they have grown up with. Seeing Belle, the Beast, Lumière, Cogsworth, Mrs. Potts, and the rest of the magical characters will brighten up any little one’s evening.
Another great, family-friendly musical will be Stage Center’s Into the Woods. This Sondheim classic offers another look into our favorite fairy tales, asking the question, “what happened after the story was over?” The answers are pretty dark and the show asks the audience to reevaluate what a “happy ending” really is. For the younger kiddos, Stage Center will be presenting two special performances of the “junior version,” which ends before the story winds off the beaten path and focuses more on the familiar stories that we all know and love.
Shreveport Little Theatre Academy will be offering a “junior version” of another classic musical, Annie. Director Nate Wasson is excited to provide a creative outlet for school children while they are out on summer break as he feels it “provides a fantastic vehicle for young artists to continue to hone their skills while not submerged in academia.” The tale of “little orphan Annie” will entertain audiences of all ages and youngsters will love seeing their peers belting it out onstage. What a great way to get children interested in the arts!
Starting us out with a bang, Academy of Children’s Theatre will be performing Jekyll & Hyde: The Musical for the first time ever in Shreveport coming up this weekend. We all know this classic tale about the inner struggles of man made real, but the audience will get to see the story come to life when the Academy tackles this edgy musical version and it is sure to entertain. Cynthia Whitaker has brought in Northwestern State University’s musical theatre professor, Corey Trahan, and ACT and NSU graduate, Christian Dantes, who will be heading up the cast as the title character. Whitaker has also pulled in Shreveport Symphony musicians to add the vibrance of a live orchestra. This will be a great show for older kids, but adults will enjoy it, too.
While most of the summer’s offerings are musical in nature, BPCC’s production of Parallel Lives provides a respite from all of the singing. “We usually produce a show that is different from the rest of our season—more serious or ‘edgy’ in tone, something that would appeal to more mature audiences—as there is an abundance of ‘family theatre’ elsewhere in town during the summer,” director Ray Scott Crawford says of his selection. BPCC tends to focus on family-friendly shows during their regular season and summer gives them the opportunity to be more adventurous. Unlike other local theatres, BPCC will be taking their show on the road, after its run in Bossier, up to Canterbury Summer Theatre in Michigan City, Indiana, adding Parallel Lives to Chicagoland’s professional summer stock and giving BPCC students a professional job for their resumes.
Another non-musical option will be the Friends of Marjorie Lyons production of August: Osage County which features a veritable “who’s who” of Shreveport actors from legendary Richard Folmer to the incomparable Heather Peak Hooper. This play is yet another modern Pulitzer and Tony Award winning script in Shreveport’s summer theatre offerings. A dark comedy, August exposes the tumultuous familial relationships of the Weston clan. This is another night to leave the kids at home and enjoy an evening out with friends. This particular production is a fundraiser for the Centenary College theatre booster club, Friends of Marjorie Lyons Playhouse, which provides assistance to the Playhouse and it’s students.
Shreveport really does have a lot to offer in the arts and just looking at this list of amazing summer theatre is enough to warm any theatre aficionado’s heart. This is a dynamite line-up with something that will satisfy everyone’s tastes. Musicals and dramas, classics and modern pieces, comedy of the light and dark flavors, Shreveport has a little bit of everything! Please, pick at least a couple of these shows and have yourself a night at the theatre. Throw in some dinner at one of our fantastic local eateries and after-show drinks at any number of bars and you might as well be in the big city. Just remember, the only way that we get to have so many amazing local options is if we support them! Go see a show. You won’t regret it, I promise.
Jekyll & Hyde: The Musical – Academy of Children’s Theatre – June 3 – 5, 2016
Into the Woods -Stage Center – June 9 – 18, 2016 (special JR. performances on June 18 & 19)
Annie Jr. – Shreveport Little Theatre Academy – June 9 – 12, 2016
Gypsy – Shreveport Little Theatre – July 13 – 31, 2016
Beauty & the Beast – Emmett Hook Center – July 15 – 24, 2016
Next to Normal – Stage Center – July 21 – 30, 2016
Parallel Lives – Bossier Parish Community College – July 22 – 31
August: Osage County – Friends of Marjorie Lyons Playhouse – August 11 – 20, 2016