La Mirada Performing Arts Center releases 2016-17 schedule
LA MIRADA – The La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts has released its 2016-17 season schedule and it includes favorites such as “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” “West Side Story” and “Man of La Mancha.”
Below is the full schedule:
“The Hunchback of Notre Dame”
Sept. 16 to Oct. 9, 2016
A bold, highly-theatrical take on the moving tale of the scorned bell-ringer Quasimodo, the beautiful gypsy Esmeralda, and the dashing Captain Phoebus in 15th-century Paris.
“Lend Me a Tenor”
Oct. 21 to Nov. 13, 2016
Set in the 1930s, Lend Me a Tenor is a madcap, screwball comedy that takes place when Tito Merelli, the fiery-tempered and world famous Italian tenor, arrives to play Othello at a Cleveland opera company. He arrives late and, through a set of crazy circumstances, passes out after mixing wine with tranquilizers. Believing that the divo is dead, the excitable opera manager taps his hapless assistant, an aspiring singer named Max, to suit up as the Moor and replace Merelli. Meanwhile, the tenor’s jealous wife, his ambitious female co-star, Max’s young girlfriend, and the flirtatious head of the opera guild are on the scene fighting—sometimes literally—for the star’s attention. A sensation on Broadway and in London’s West End, Lend Me A Tenor is guaranteed to leave audiences teary-eyed with laughter.
“The Last Five Years”
Jan. 20 to Feb. 12, 2017
In his intimate musical, The Last Five Years, Jason Robert Brown paints a vivid picture of the five-year relationship between young, ambitious author Jamie and Cathy, a struggling actress. The show unfolds in reverse chronological order. Cathy’s experiences are portrayed from the painful end of the relationship, while Jamie’s are portrayed from the passionate beginning. Since its Off-Broadway premiere in 2002, Brown’s funny, poignant, and devastatingly honest two-person musical has enraptured audiences around the world with its spellbinding, emotional score, and libretto.
“West Side Story”
April 21 to May 17, 2017
From the first notes to the final breath, West Side Story is one of the most memorable musicals and greatest love stories of all time. Arthur Laurents’ book remains as powerful, poignant, and timely as ever. The score, by Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim, is widely regarded as one of the best ever written. The world’s greatest love story takes to the streets in this landmark Broadway musical that is one of the theatre’s finest accomplishments. Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is transported to modern-day New York City, as two young idealistic lovers find themselves caught between warring street gangs, the Jets and the Sharks. Their struggle to survive in a world of hate, violence, and prejudice is one of the most innovative, heart-wrenching and relevant musical dramas of our time.
“Man of La Mancha”
June 2 to June 25, 2017
Man of La Mancha is a comic tragedy of mankind’s struggle to better both himself and the world in which he lives. Based on The Adventures of Don Quixote, by Miguel Cervantes, the story is both entertaining and very moving, and will warm the heart of anyone whose spirits were ever raised by the prospect of a victory by the underdog. The score is a musical delight, and contains one of the most inspiring moments in musical theatre as Don Quixote relates his personal credo in “The Impossible Dream.”
“Vicki Lawrence & Mama”
May 20 (2 p.m. and 8 p.m.)
At 24, Vicki Lawrence created her most endearing character to date, Thelma Harper, or “Mama” as she is better known to her fans. After the “Carol Burnett Show,” Vicki went on to star in “Mama’s Family.”
Ms. Lawrence takes the stage first in this two-woman show. “My show is not a retrospective,” she explains. “It is a mixture of stand-up comedy, music and my observations about real life. I think people will get a kick out of the things Mama has an opinion about. Where Mama is concerned, expect the unexpected.”