The Utah Theatre of Logan has announced it will once again host the Utah Festival Opera and Musical Theatre’s summer series with a stellar lineup scheduled for its 2021 season. With four plays ranging from comedy to melodrama, audiences of all ages and interests will find something to watch at the theater this summer.
Here’s a look at what audiences can expect:
‘Souvenir’ by Stephen Temperley
Based on true events, “Souvenir” follows the reflections of mediocre pianist Cosme McMoon who, in a Greenwich Village supper club in 1964, flashes back to the musical career of Florence Foster Jenkins, an operatic socialite affectionately known then and today as the world’s worst opera singer. The play follows bizarre 12-year partnership between the singer and her pianist and the hilarity caused by their off-key recitals. The culmination of the play comes when Jenkins rents Carnegie Hall in 1944 and performs to a sold-out crowd where McMoon has an epiphany that leads him to at last understand the transcendent power of music.
‘33 Variations’ by Moises Kaufman
Beethoven’s 33 Diabelli Variations come to life in this 33-scene play that follows the journey of musicologist Katherine Brandt who struggles to discover the meaning behind Beethoven’s compulsion to write 33 distinct variations on a simple waltz written by a minor music publisher. As the play unfolds, Brandt and Beethoven’s own journeys intertwine with the diagnoses of Brandt’s ALS and Beethoven’s declining hearing, drawing surprising parallels between two people born centuries apart.
‘The Fantasticks’ by Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt
The longest-running musical of all time, “The Fantasticks,” is a romantic comedy that follows the story of two neighboring fathers who pretend to feud in order to trick their children, Matt and Luisa, into falling in love. The course of true love never did run smoothly, however, and in time, the children and their fathers begin to learn what the true nature of love really is.
‘I DO! I DO!’ By Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt
Originally created for Robert Preston and Mary Martin, “I DO! I DO!” is set entirely in the bedroom of a wedded couple with a set dominated by a four-poster bed. By turns comedy and melodrama, the two-character musical follows the 60-year journey of the married lives of Michael and Agnes, revealing poignant truths about life and love and what it takes to find true happiness in marriage.
Free informal pre-performance discussions take place one hour before every performance. The general director, Michael Ballam, and other theater production members will answer questions about the plot and background of each production. Discussions usually last about 30 minutes.
The Utah Theater at 18 West Center St in Logan is a 315-seat state-of-the-art venue showcasing musical and theatrical productions, including concerts, plays, lectures, chamber operas and more. After a nine-year renovation project that included creating a fully expanded stage, fly loft, new lighting and sound systems, an orchestra pit and organ chamber, rehearsal space, dressing rooms and a rooftop garden, the theater re-opened in June 2017 and today sells over 25,000 tickets each season.
Tickets for this year’s lineup are on sale now at utahfestival.org.