MACON, Ga. — 2022 just started, but the 2021-2022 theater season in Central Georgia is still going strong. Here's a list of all the plays and musicals happening at several Central Georgia theaters this year.
- The 39 Steps: Feb 4-13
This play is based on a spy thriller novel that was later turned into a Hitchcock masterpiece. It is a comedy that will feature only four actors playing at least 150 different characters throughout the production.
“It has a very zany, silly sense of humor to it. Very much like Monty Python sketches or Saturday Night Live style,” said producing director JP Haynie.
Haynie compared this show to “The Complete Works of Shakespeare (Abridged)” because it similarly has a small cast of characters playing many parts.
“Anyone who’s looking for a night of escapism, who’s looking to get away from the 9-5, get away from everything else that’s happening in the world and know that they’re just going to sit back and laugh and have a good time. I think that’s the perfect thing about this show,” said Haynie.
- Little Shop of Horrors: Mar 25 - Apr 3
This production is based on a classic movie musical of the same name. Little Shop of Horrors follows the adventures of Seymour, a nerdy flower shop assistant. When the flower shop is under threat of closing, Seymour displays a mysterious plant that he later finds out has developed a taste for blood.
Haynie says this show is a personal favorite of his.
“It’s got a lot of heart to it. It’s a little creepy, it’s a little sci-fi, but it’s certainly one of those cult classic musicals that I absolutely love,” he said.
- Anne of Green Gables: May 20-29
This production is currently listed as a mystery show by Macon Little Theatre, but they let 13WMAZ in on the surprise first. Anne of Green Gables is based on the classic children’s stories, where orphan Anne Shirley is adopted from Nova Scotia by Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert. The production follows Anne throughout the her life as she adjusts to new circumstances and ways of living.
“It’s going to be an epic, emotional adventure. Great for young audiences and again this powerful young girl who helms this story, so we’re really excited about it,” Haynie said.
- Legally Blonde: The Musical: July 15-24
For the last production of the 2021-2022 season, Macon Little Theatre will be putting on Legally Blonde: The Musical. This tale of empowerment and self worth follows Elle Woods and her attempt to change the face of Harvard Law. Based on the classic movie, Legally Blonde is a fun, light-hearted comedy that will make you want to bend and snap!
- All Shook Up: Feb. 10-20
This jukebox musical features a guitar-playing roustabout named Chad who has just been released from prison. The next community he comes to has the strict enforcement of the Mamie Eisenhower Decency Act, which outlaws public necking, loud music and tight pants. While in town, Chad bring the town back to life through his music and dance moves. Loosely based on Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, this musical is set to the tunes of Elvis Presley and is sure to get you into the swing.
“I think that the cast alone is very excited to put on this show and I think that Perry is going to be amazed at what they actually see,” said show director, Kenny Jones.
- The Play That Goes Wrong: Feb. 11-13, 18-20, 25-26
After benefitting from a large and sudden inheritance, the inept and accident-prone Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society embark on producing an ambitious 1920s murder mystery. They are delighted that neither casting issues nor technical hitches currently stand in their way. However, hilarious disaster ensues and the cast start to crack under the pressure, but can they get the production back on track before the final curtain falls?
1st Vice President of the Board of Governors, Bill Felton, says the board picked this show because the world is in desperate need of comedy these days.
"Everybody was hoping that 2022 would being in a new era of comfort and peace and joy and happiness, but you know what? We've got to make our own happiness," he said.
- Four Old Broads: May 13-15, 20-22, 27-28
This show is a comedy about three women who are each others best friends and eventually take in a fourth woman into their group. The story centers around their friendship as they uncover secrets of the place they call home.
Felton says it is a hysterical play that reminds him of the Golden Girls.
- Ain't Misbehavin': Jan. 20-23
The inimitable Thomas "Fats" Waller rose to international fame during the Golden Age of the Cotton Club and that jumpin' new beat, swing music. Although not quite a biography, Ain't Misbehavin' evokes the delightful humor and infectious energy of this American original as a versatile cast struts, strums and sings the songs that he made famous in a career that ranged from uptown clubs to downtown Tin Pan Alley. The intoxicating music of Fats Waller will delight and energize audiences as well as provide great insight into a vibrant time in American history and music.
- 13 Jr.: Feb. 11-20
Evan Goldman is plucked from his fast-paced, preteen New York City life and plopped into a sleepy Indiana town following his parents divorce. Surrounded by an array of simpleminded middle school students, he needs to establish his place in the popular pecking order. Can he situate himself on a comfortable link of the food chain by throwing an unforgettable bar mitzvah ... or will he dangle at the end with the outcasts?!?
- Enchanted April: March 18-27
From the novel by Elizabeth von Arnim. Feeling lost in the shadows of marriage and forgotten in the rush of 1920s post-war society, two London housewives pool their savings to rent a villa in Italy for a ladies-only holiday away, reluctantly recruiting a pair of difficult upper-class women to share the cost and the experience. Together under the Mediterranean sun, the four women clash—and then begin to bond and bloom—until men once again upset the balance.
- The Roommate: April 7-10
Sharon, in her mid-fifties, is recently divorced and needs a roommate to share her Iowa home. Robyn, also in her mid-fifties, needs a place to hide and a chance to start over. But as Sharon begins to uncover Robyn’s secrets, they encourage her own deep-seated desire to transform her life completely. A dark comedy about what it takes to re-route your life – and what happens when the wheels come off.
- The Color Purple the Musical: May 13-22
The Color Purple is an inspiring family saga that tells the unforgettable story of a woman who, through love, finds the strength to triumph over adversity and discover her unique voice in the world. This musical adaptation of Alice Walker’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel (and the popular 1985 Steven Spielberg film) spotlights Celie, a downtrodden young woman whose personal awakening over the course of 40 years forms the arc of this epic story. With a joyous score featuring jazz, ragtime, gospel, African music and blues, The Color Purple is a story of hope, a testament to the healing power of love and a celebration of life.
- Royal Gambit: June 2-5
This metaphysical portrait of Henry VIII and the six women in his life contrasts this king, the epitome of Renaissance man, with modern liberal thought and concludes that humanism is dead in the twentieth century. Henry remains the same throughout but the women progress in their dress to modern times, showing their knowledge of the lasting effects of Henry's thoughts.
- The SpongeBob Musical: July 8-23
The stakes are higher than ever in this dynamic stage musical, as SpongeBob and all of Bikini Bottom face the total annihilation of their undersea world. Chaos erupts. Lives hang in the balance. And just when all hope seems lost, a most unexpected hero rises up and takes center stage. The power of optimism really can save the world!
RELATED ARTICLES: