Announcing OpenStage Theatre’s 50th Season

Book by Joe Masteroff, Music by John Kander, Lyrics by Fred Ebb

Directed by Kenny Moten

Vocal Direction by Kate Rothstein

Music Direction by Matthew Rothstein

Choreographed by Angie Simmons

Playing October 29 – November 26, 2022 at the Lincoln Center Magnolia Theatre

This dynamic new adaptation of the much-loved Tony Award-winning musical continues to seduce audiences with the tantalizing Kit Kat Klub, where the iconic Emcee assures us that “life is beautiful…even the orchestra is beautiful.” As 1930s Germany slowly surrenders to the atrocities of the Third Reich, dreams unravel and lives are demolished. Cabaret is a dark, visceral, and tumultuous ride that finds us “at the end of the world… dancing… while being fast asleep.”

“A stunning musical… this marionette’s-eye view of a time and place in our lives that was brassy, wanton, carefree and doomed to crumble is brilliantly conceived.” – Walter Kerr, The New York Times

By Lauren Gunderson

Directed by Brenna Freestone-Gilbert

Playing January 14 – February 11, 2023 at the Lincoln Center Magnolia Theatre

4 Badass Women. 1 Room. Don’t lose your head! A true story. Or total fiction. A play about a play. Or a raucous resurrection … that ends in a song and a scaffold. Playwright Olympe De Gouge, Spy Marianne Angelle, Assassin Charlotte Corday, and ribbon-loving Queen Marie Antoinette hang out, murder Marat, lose their heads, and try to beat back the extremist insanity of 1793 Paris. The Revolutionists is a fiery, dream-tweaked comedy about art, activism, legacy, compatriots, chosen sisters—and how to change the world.

“ a play that is wonderfully wild and raucous … It’s a wild ride… Listen closely, … hang on tight.” —Cincinnati Enquirer

SPECIAL NOTE: The 2022-23 Theatre Season in Fort Collins marks OpenStage Theatre & Company’s 50th Anniversary and Bas Bleu Theatre Company’s 30th year. Fort Collins’ two award-winning local theatres will collaborate in celebrating Women Theatre Artists with complementary presentations of feminist activist Lauren Gunderson’s The Revolutionists. In October Bas Bleu’s Readers’ Theatre rendition will examine the process of interpreting the intricacies of Gunderson’s play and its characters. Then in January, OpenStage will present the fully-staged production of The Revolutionists. Audiences will have the unique opportunity to witness all the pieces of the dramatic puzzle come together!

Donations made during The Revolutionists will benefit Planned Parenthood.

By Robert Louis Stevenson, Adapted by Bryony Lavery

Directed by Kate Austin-Gröen

Playing June 3 – July 1, 2023 in the Park at Columbine Health Systems

Set sail on a thrilling journey with cutthroat pirates, a treasure map, and a courageous young girl named Jim, who becomes entangled in a dangerous swashbuckling expedition. Jim gets more than she bargains for when she embarks on a daring sea voyage to an exotic island where a hoard of gold and gems is buried. Awash with treachery, mutiny, and unforgettable characters, including the infamous Long John Silver, Treasure Island comes alive in an epic theatrical adaptation of one of the world’s greatest adventure stories. Walk in, bike in, or drive in! Featuring nightly food trucks.

“Jim Hawkins becomes a girl rebelling against gender roles in this imaginative adaptation, which keeps alive the wit and excitement of the book… a tribute to the wit, honor, and resourcefulness of children…” —The Guardian (US)

Playing October 7, 8, 14, 15, 2022; Location TBA

Spring 1973. Five theatre artists sit at a picnic table in City Park. And OpenStage Theatre & Company was born. In an informal evening of storytelling, Founders Bruce and Denise Freestone will share the triumphs and challenges, laughter and tears of 50 Seasons with OpenStage. Hosted by the Freestone’s daughters, Jessica and Brenna, each performance will feature different tales about the grassroots theatre that altered the cultural landscape of Fort Collins.

By Lucas Hnath

Directed by David Austin-Gröen

Playing February 24 – March 11, 2023; Location TBA

With a knock at the door, Nora Helmer is launched back into a household she helped burn to the ground 15 years before, and even after all this time, family ties not only bind, they strangle. Confronting the family she devastated takes more courage than she expected, but, for Nora, it is also an opportunity for a new beginning. This bitingly funny sequel to Henrik Ibsen’s 1879 revolutionary masterpiece asks provocative questions about the roles we choose to play, the responsibility of the family, and how much has really changed for women in over 100 years.

“It is perceptive, funny and intelligent, but smarts like a slap in its portrayal of gender roles and the expectations of what it is to be a woman.” — DC Theatre Scene