The famed Washington, DC, venue will also welcome touring productions of Evita, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Once as well as a return engagement of the Tony-winning musical The Book of Mormon.
The eighth season of Barbara Cook’s Spotlight series, which will showcase five Broadway performers in a cabaret setting, will feature the talents of Faith Prince, Andrea McArdle, Will Chase, LaChanze and Malcolm Gets.
The season at a glance, according to the Kennedy Center, follows:
PAGE-TO-STAGE New Play Festival, Throughout the Center
Dedicated to works to be included in the Women’s Voices Theater Festival Aug. 30-Sept. 1
"The Kennedy Center hosts its 13th annual Page-to-Stage new play festival over Labor Day weekend. This year’s festival is dedicated to works that will be part of the Women’s Voices Theater Festival – an initiative by more than 40 D.C. area theaters to produce a world-premiere play by a female dramatist in the fall of 2015. Page-to-Stage is a three-day, Center-wide event that offers free readings and open rehearsals of plays and musicals being developed by local, regional, and national playwrights, librettists, and composers in locations throughout the Center."
BARBARA COOK’S SPOTLIGHT, Terrace Theater
Faith Prince on Oct. 31, 2014 · Andrea McArdle on Dec. 5, 2014 · Will Chase on Jan. 9, 2015 · LaChanze on Feb. 13, 2015 · Malcolm Gets on March 27, 2015
"Now in its eighth season, Broadway legend Barbara Cook selects preeminent Broadway talent to perform on the Kennedy Center stage in a cabaret-style performance as part of her Spotlight series. Since its inception in 2007, more than 30 artists have participated in this series." EVITA, Opera House
Sept. 30-Oct. 19
"Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Tony Award-winning musical returns to the Kennedy Center. Eva Perón used her beauty and charisma to rise meteorically from the slums of Argentina to the presidential mansion as First Lady. Adored by her people as a champion for the poor, she became one of the most powerful women in the world—while her greed, outsized ambition, and fragile health made her one of the most tragic. Evita tells Eva’s passionate and unforgettable true story…This new production of Evita is directed by Michael Grandage and choreographed by Rob Ashford."
LITTLE DANCER, Eisenhower Theater
Oct. 25-Nov. 30
"The Kennedy Center world premiere musical production of Little Dancer features book and lyrics by Tony Award winner Lynn Ahrens, music by Tony Award winner Stephen Flaherty, and direction and choreography by five-time Tony Award winner Susan Stroman. Part fact, part fiction, and set in the harsh backstage world of the Paris Opera Ballet, Little Dancer is inspired by the young ballerina who posed for Edgar Degas and became, inadvertently, the most famous dancer in the world. Torn by her family’s poverty, her debt to the artist, and the lure of wealthy men, Marie struggles to keep her place in the ballet corps—a girl on the verge of womanhood, caught between the conflicting demands of life and art. The production stars four-time Tony Award winner Boyd Gaines as Edgar Degas, three-time Tony Award nominee Rebecca Luker as Adult Marie von Goethem, and New York City Ballet principal dancer Tiler Peck."
JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT, Opera House
Dec. 16, 2014-Jan. 4, 2015
"One of the most enduring shows of all time, Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is the irresistible family musical about the trials and triumphs of Joseph, Israel’s favorite son. Directed and choreographed by Tony Award-winner Andy Blankenbuehler, this new production features Broadway/television star Diana DeGarmo (Hairspray, Hair) as The Narrator and Broadway star Ace Young (Grease, Hair) as Joseph. Retelling the Biblical story of Joseph, his 11 brothers, and the coat of many colors, this musical is full of unforgettable songs including 'Those Canaan Days,' 'Any Dream Will Do,' and 'Close Every Door.'”
GIGI, Eisenhower Theater
Jan. 17-Feb. 15
"Thank heaven! A Gigi like you’ve never seen! Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe’s celebrated musical will play a pre-Broadway engagement at the Kennedy Center in a new production directed by Eric Schaeffer (Follies, Million Dollar Quartet) with an entirely re-envisioned book by acclaimed British playwright and Emmy-nominated screenwriter Heidi Thomas…Set in turn-of-the-century Paris, Gigi is a romantic musical comedy about a young woman coming of age in the magical world of La Belle Époque where fashion, glamour, and passion prevail. When she finds true love with a wealthy young playboy, both must overcome their circumstances to create a future together." Gigi features such numbers as “Thank Heaven for Little Girls,” “I Remember it Well,” and “The Night They Invented Champagne.”
ZERO HOUR: TOKYO ROSE’S LAST TAPE, Terrace Theater
Feb. 6-7
"Conceived, written, and directed by Japanese artist Miwa Yanagi, Zero Hour: Tokyo Rose’s Last Tape centers on 'Tokyo Rose,' English-speaking female radio announcers who broadcasted Japanese propaganda programs during World War II aimed at Allied forces fighting in the Pacific Theater. Ms. Yanagi’s work in theater has introduced historical fiction plays based on detailed research of the process of Japan’s modernization in the 20th century. Produced in collaboration with Torafu Architects with music by the Formant brothers, Zero Hour premiered at the 2013 Aichi Triennale in Nagoya, Japan and makes its U.S. debut at the Kennedy Center. Part of the etcetera! series."
IBERIAN SUITE: ARTS REMIX ACROSS CONTINENTS
March 2-24
Theater Companies to include:
Mala Voadora
Mundo Perfeito
Teatro Meridional
Additional companies will be announced in the coming months.
KENNEDY CENTER AMERICAN COLLEGE THEATER FESTIVAL (KCACTF), Throughout the Center
April 13 – 18, 2015
"Since its establishment 47 years ago, KCACTF has reached millions of theatergoers and hundreds of thousands of college and university theater students nationwide. The national festival brings together participants from regional festivals around the country to the Kennedy Center from April 13 to 18, 2015. The national festival includes master classes with leading artists from the American theater, an opportunity for the student participants to engage with colleagues from across the nation, attendance at productions at leading Washington D.C. theaters, interviews and auditions for scholarship and residency opportunities, and an awards ceremony."
THE BOOK OF MORMON, Opera House
June 16-Aug. 16
"Back by popular demand! Winner of nine Tony Awards including Best Musical, The Book of Mormon features book, music and lyrics by Trey Parker, Robert Lopez and Matt Stone. Parker and Stone are the four- time Emmy Award-winning creators of the landmark animated series, 'South Park,' and Tony Award-winner Lopez is co-creator of the long-running hit musical comedy, Avenue Q. The musical is choreographed by Tony Award-winner Casey Nicholaw (Monty Python’s Spamalot, The Drowsy Chaperone) and is directed by Nicholaw and Parker. Contains explicit language."
ONCE, Eisenhower Theater
July 7-Aug. 16
"Winner of eight 2012 Tony Awards® including Best Musical, Once is a truly original Broadway experience. Featuring an impressive ensemble of actor/musicians who play their own instruments onstage, Once tells the enchanting tale of a Dublin street musician who’s about to give up on his dream when a beautiful young woman takes a sudden interest in his haunting love songs. As the chemistry between them grows, his music soars to powerful new heights... but their unlikely connection turns out to be deeper and more complex than your everyday romance. Emotionally captivating and theatrically breathtaking, Once draws you in from the very first note and never lets go. It's an unforgettable story about going for your dreams... not living in fear... and the power of music to connect all of us."
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