Pyretown, by John Belluso, plays The Nextstage at Geva Nov. 11-30. The world premiere Geva commission is billed this way: "A young man in a wheelchair meets a single mom in a hospital emergency room and an unlikely romance emerges. In their struggle to navigate a tangled health care system, they encounter a young physician whose wavering conscience could be their saving grace. Pyretown is a contemporary love story that asks, how do we look a stranger in the eyes and learn the art of mercy?"
Five-Course Love, a new musical on The Nextstage June 15-July 4, 2004, has book, music and lyrics by Gregg Coffin, who created the musical, Convenience. "Five-Course Love is a delightful spin through the unpredictable world of dating," according to Geva. "Three versatile actors play 15 roles, depicting five hysterical dates in five different-style restaurants. And the style of each restaurant dictates the music the actors sing! Ranging from a honky-tonk rib joint to a Mafioso Italian establishment, each setting guarantees loads of fun. Five-Course Love charts love attempted, love gone bad, love mismatched, love misguided, love denied and, inevitably, love achieved!"
The third world premiere is part of Geva's Big Theatre for Little People series: All Is Well in the Kingdom of Nice, by Kira Obolensky. The commission of the work is funded by AT&T:FirstStage. It's "a story of an immigrant family, with parents rooted in one culture and children planted in America. Emily wants to be a poet. While struggling with a homework assignment, she imagines a new world – the Kingdom of Nice – where she can feel safe and fit in. But is everything in the Kingdom as nice as it seems? With the help of the sometimes silly, sometimes serious people she meets in the Kingdom of Nice, Emily discovers that the real world – with her mom and dad – may be a better place to live, after all."
Geva Theatre Center's artistic director is Mark Cuddy. 2003-04 marks the 31st season of the resident company.
The Mainstage staging of Charles Randolph-Wright's Blue is a co-production with Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. The perennial fave, A Christmas Carol, Dickens as adapted by Richard Hellesen, returns to the theatre in 2003. Music for the staging is by David DeBerry.
The Big Theatre for Little People series also includes And Then They Came for Me: Remembering the World of Anne Frank by James Still.
Lerner and Loewe's musical, Camelot, plays the Mainstage May 26-July 4, 2004. This is at least the second American regional theatre that is producing the large-cast show in 2003-04: Arena Stage in Washington, DC, will also mount the King Arthur yarn with songs by the creators of My Fair Lady.
Geva Theatre Center calls itself the most attended regional theatre in New York State. Its two stages are the 552-seat Mainstage and the 180-seat Nextstage.
In addition to its Mainstage, Nextstage and Big Theatre for Little People productions, Geva Theatre Center provides a wide variety of educational, outreach and new play development programs.
For reservations and ticket information, (585) 232-GEVA (4382). For more information, visit www.gevatheatre.org.
