Each summer, more than 10,000 theatergoers discover anew that Logan's Old Lyric Repertory Company's reputation for producing fun, provocative and professional summer theater is well-deserved. "But what surprises people most is how affordable it is," said artistic director Sid Perkes. "Patrons can see all four Lyric productions for $30 or less."
The secret to the Old Lyric Repertory Company's (OLRC) low ticket prices is found in its mission statement as part of the theater program at Utah State - to provide cultural enrichment for Utah State University and the surrounding communities at a reasonable price, said Perkes. "Thanks to generous patrons and various grants, we can do this," he said."Our goals include doing more than simply entertaining," he continued. "We don't do melodramas.
"Well-written, meaningful plays like 1994's production of `Lettice and Lovage' and 1993's `The Rainmaker' are more challenging for the audience and just as satisfying," Perkes said. "We aim for plays which enlighten and educate, as well as plays which have a high entertainment quotient to them."
In its 29th season, the professional company will present four such plays in rotation between June 29 and August 26: "Bedroom Farce," "Forever Plaid," "The Diviners" and "Night Watch."
Season subscribers save 25 percent over the already low prices, said Perkes. An average season subscription ticket costs about $7.
Season subscriptions (one ticket to each play) are $30 for adults, $27 for seniors, youth and USU faculty/staff, and $24 for USU students.
Season samplers (eight tickets for any performance of any play) are a 15 percent savings over single ticket prices and range from $54 to $68 ($6.75-8.50 per ticket).
Single tickets are $8, $9 and $10.
A matinee subscription is $20.
Tickets are available at the USU Ticket Office in the Smith Spectrum (801) 797-0305, or at the theatre's box office on performance evenings.
The season opens with "Bedroom Farce" on Thursday, June 29. Directed by company founder W. Vosco Call, it's a wild physical comedy in the tradition of "Noises Off!" and "Lend Me a Tenor." The miserable marriage of Susannah and Trevor becomes a pain in the neck for six of their closest family and friends as they involve their guests in their domestic turmoil, according to Call. It is an enormously funny farce by Alan Acky-bourn, he said.
"Forever Plaid" by James Raitt and Stuart Ross is the second play in the lineup and is directed by Perkes.
"The Plaids are four un-cool guys from the 1950s who form a singing group out of their love for music," Perkes said. "They're just beginning to make inroads (or in their case, backroads) when, on their way to their first major gig, they are hit by a bus."
Now they return to earth 40 years later to fulfill their musical destiny on the Lyric stage, he said.
Such is the premise for what is essentially a nostalgic revue of the dreamy ballads and energetic bee-bop of the late fifties.
" `Forever Plaid' is like our 1993 production `The Taffetas,' only better-written and more character-driven," Perkes said. "The audience is involved and included in the performance."
Logan band Mirage, seen in OLRC productions "Song of Singapore," "The Taffetas," "Cotton Patch Gospel," "Nunsense" and "Little Shop of Horrors" provides backup.
"The Diviners," by James Leonard Jr., the third play to open, is directed by Roger Held.
"It is a powerful and haunting play that is a search for why tragic events happen," Held said.
Set in the Great Depression, the play begins with townspeople recalling a tragic event that rocked their community, Held continued. Buddy is a young man whose mother's death and his own near drowning changed him forever - ironically he becomes the town's diviner, yet he is terrified of water. Buddy forms a friendship with C.C., a visiting ex-preacher. As the townspeople try to persuade the reluctant C.C. to preach, he attempts to persuade stricken Buddy to bathe.
"Night Watch" is by Lucille Fletcher, the author of "Sorry, Wrong Number."
"When a woman is restless in her Manhattan townhouse, she is not sure if she can believe what she thinks she has seen happen in a building across the way," said Kevin Doyle, who directs the psychological thriller and appears in "Forever Plaid." "Everyone doubts her story until bits of evidence begin to surface."
The OLRC is an advanced performance program operated by the theater arts department at Utah State University and is the educational capstone for many of USU's highly talented theater students, Perkes said.
The season at a glance.
Plays and dates:
"Bedroom Farce" opens Thursday, June 29, with additional performances June 30, July 1, 14, 15, 27, Aug. 5, 9 and 18. Matinee, Saturday, Aug. 5.
"Forever Plaid" opens Thursday, July 6, with additional performances July 7, 8, 12, 13, 22, 26, Aug. 10, 19, and 22. Matinee, Saturday, Aug. 19.
"The Diviners" opens Wednesday, July 19, with additional performances July 20, 21, 28, 29, Aug. 12, 15, 23 and 25. Matinee Saturday, Aug. 12.
"Night Watch" opens Wednesday, Aug. 2, with additional performances Aug. 3, 4, 11, 16, 17, 24 and 26. Matinee Saturday, Aug. 26.
Time and place: All evening performances begin at 8, Saturday matinees, 2 p.m., at the Lyric Theatre, 28 W. Center St., Logan.
Tickets: Spectrum Ticket Office, business hours (801) 797-0305. Lyric Theatre Box Office, performance nights, (801) 752-1500.