Theatre Institute at Sage
2022-23 Season
Happy Days
Written by Samuel Beckett
Directed by David Baecker
September 23 – October 2, 2022
James L. Meader Little Theater
“Another heavenly day. Begin Winnie. Begin your day.” In Beckett’s acclaimed tragicomedy, Winnie – buried up to her waist in dirt – goes about her daily routine with only her handbag, accessories, and silent husband to keep her company. As her situation grows increasingly bleak, it will take all of these resources and more for Winnie to have a ‘happy day.’ Resisting easy interpretation, Happy Days contemplates themes of time, resilience, defiance, and existence.
Recommended for ages 12 and up.
Benjamin Franklinstein Lives!
Adapted from the books by Matt McElligott and Larry Tuxbury
Music and lyrics by Michael Musial, Book by Matthew McElligott and Larry Tuxbury
November 30 – December 11, 2022
Schacht Fine Arts Center Theater
Benjamin Franklinstein Lives! is a new musical from the team that created Backbeard the Musical! Tori Godwin’s orderly life is suddenly turned topsy-turvy when she discovers that Benjamin Franklin has been hibernating in suspended animation in her basement for centuries. When a freak accident reawakens Ben, Tori and her friend Scott must help him adjust to life in the 21st century. Complicating the situation is the fact that when Franklin’s energy drops, he transforms into a rampaging monster, desperately (and dangerously!) hungry for electricity. Can two kids and a reanimated electric zombie patriot save the planet? Find out in Benjamin Franklinstein Lives!
Recommended for all ages.
Production Dates/Times:
November 30 & December 1, 2, 7, 8, 9 at 10 am
December 2, 3, 10 at 7:30 pm
December 4, 11 at 2 pm
Sherlock Holmes & The Case of the Jersey Lily
Written by Katie Forgette
Directed by Eileen Schuyler
February 9 – February 19, 2023
Schacht Fine Arts Center Theater
The wit of Oscar Wilde meets the cunning of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle when Wilde brings his dear friend, Lillie Langtry, to Baker Street. Someone has stolen the highly intimate letters Lillie exchanged with the Prince of Wales, and now she is being blackmailed. Only Holmes can solve the case, going so far as to disguise himself as an early version of Lady Bracknell from Wilde’s latest play, The Importance of Being Forthright, while Watson falls head-over-heels for the Jersey Lily and a wicked professor attempts to bring the Crown to its knees.
Recommended for ages 10 and up.
Production Dates/Times:
February 9, 10, 15, 16 at 10 am
February 10, 11, 17, 18 at 7:30 pm
February 12, 19 at 2 pm
Ladies, How Dare You (Suffragette Musical)
Written by Liv Cummins and Rob Hartmann
Directed by Michael Musial
March 31 – April 2, 2023
James L. Meader Little Theater
LADIES, HOW DARE YOU! is a musical comedy/farce about a Polish immigrant hired by a wealthy socialite to travel with her from Boston to the 1913 Women’s Suffrage Parade in Washington, DC, one of the largest suffrage demonstrations of its time. When their carriage breaks down near a small village and they must wait for it to be repaired, they are swept up in the lives of the villagers… and find themselves on a bizarre, life-changing journey they could never have imagined. Featuring a rollicking ragtime Americana-flavored score, Ladies uses old-fashioned vaudevillian hijinks, disguises, and Shakespearean mistaken identities to explore themes of gender roles, anti-immigrant sentiments, urban and rural clashes, and what it means to be an American.
Recommended for ages 12 and up.
Production Dates/Times:
March 31 at 10 am
March 31 and April 1 at 7:30 pm
April 2 at 2 pm
Junie B. Jones, The Musical
Book and Lyrics by Marcy Heisler
Music by Zina Goldrich
Directed by Michael Musial
May 17 – 26, 2023
Schacht Fine Arts Center Theater
It’s Junie B.’s first day of first grade, and a lot of things have changed for her: Junie’s friend, Lucille, doesn’t want to be her best pal anymore and, on the bus, Junie B. makes friends with Herb, the new kid at school. Also, Junie has trouble reading the blackboard and her teacher, Mr. Scary, thinks she may need glasses. Throw in a friendly cafeteria lady, a kickball tournament and a “Top-Secret Personal Beeswax Journal,” and first grade has never been more exciting.
Recommended for all ages.
Production Dates/Times:
May 17, 18, 19, 23, 24, 25, 26 at 10 am
May 19, 20, at 7:30 pm
May 21 at 2 pm