2013-2014 CTA Season

October 9-12, 2013
Kephart Theatre

Still Life with Iris

By Steven Dietz

Steven Dietz’s piece is the first play for young audiences to receive the Kennedy Center’s Fund for New American Plays Award. “Still Life with Iris” is a fantastical adventure which centers on a little girl’s search for the simplest of things: home. Iris lives with her mom in the land of Nocturno—a magical place in which the workers make, by night, all of the things we see in the world by day. Also, in Nocturno, memories do not reside in people’s minds but instead are kept in their coats (called ‘Past Coats’). Iris is taken from her home and only has a button left of her ‘Past Coat’ to remind her of home. The play follows her and her friends including 11 year-old Mozart, and Annabel Lee as she searches for home.

March 4-8, 2014
Kephart Theatre

The Musical Adventures of Flat Stanley

Book by Timothy Allen McDonald
Music and Lyrics by Timothy Allen McDonald, Jonathan K. Walker, David Weinstein, and Stephen Gabriel

The beloved children’s book written by Jeff Brown in 1964 has become a literary and pop cultural phenomenon — delighting readers and travelers all around the world.

Stanley Lambchop is your ordinary, every day, run-of-the-mill ten-year-old: normal mom and dad, normal little brother, normal life. That’s just the problem…for Stanley, life is too normal. He wants to travel the world, do something amazing, something no one’s ever seen before. Careful what you wish for, Stanley!

One night, the bulletin board on the wall above Stanley’s bed comes loose and falls – right on top of Stanley! The next morning, Stanley Lambchop wakes up flat. Not just a little flat…really, REALLY flat! I n a whirlwind musical travelogue, Stanley – the ultimate exchange student – scours the globe for a solution to his unusual problem. He’s stamped, posted and cancelled from Hollywood to France to Honolulu and beyond. And whether he’s thwarting a robbery at the Louvre Museum in Paris, or ‘hanging ten’ off the coast of Hawaii, Stanley is closing in on his goal of being a three-dimensional boy once more.

July 11-13, 2014
Kephart Theatre

Once Upon a Mattress

Book by Jay Thompson, Dean Fuller, and Marshall Barer
Music and Lyrics by Mary Rodgers and Marshall Barer

If you thought you knew the story of ‘The Princess and The Pea,’ you may be in for a walloping surprise! Did you know, for instance, that Princess Winnifred actually swam the moat to reach Prince Dauntless the Drab? Or that it may not have been the pea at all that caused the princess a sleepless night? Carried on a wave of beguiling songs, by turns hilarious and raucous, romantic and melodic, this rollicking spin on the familiar classic of royal courtship and comeuppance provides for some side-splitting shenanigans. Chances are, you’ll never look at fairy tales quite the same way again.

July 31 – August 2, 2014
Kephart Theatre

13: The Musical

Book by Dan Elish and Robert Horn
Music and Lyrics by Jason Robert Brown

In this CTA production, Evan Goldman is plucked from his New York City life and plopped into a sleepy Indiana town after his parents divorce. Surrounded by simple-minded classmates, he needs to establish his place in the popularity pecking order. Can he situate himself on a comfortable link of the food chain or will he dangle at the end with the outcasts?

NOTE: 13 is a musical that deals with complex and sometimes sensitive issues facing young people.

August 8-10, 2014
Sunflower Financial Theatre

Linked: A Chromatic Journey

A Contemporary Dance Showcase

The Iron Street Dance Company under the direction of Peggy Simms has scheduled their fourth annual contemporary dance event for August 8-10. This year’s show will contemplate the impact that colors have on our lives; how they link us together, ignite emotion, imprint memories, and inspire dreams. This is the general concept,” said Director Peggy Simms, “but we want the choreographers to collaborate on refining the concept to help them create a compelling evening of contemporary dance.” In its first three years the show has presented the work of local choreographers and featured a multi-generational cast of local dancers. Over the next few weeks the company will be selecting choreographers and hosting open auditions for dancers. This year’s selection process for choreographers will begin with an informational meeting for all interested choreographers to be held on Wednesday, May 27 at 5:30 pm at the Salina Community Theatre. Those inspired by the informational and brainstorming session will be asked to complete an application process to participate and show their work. “We wanted to take the program to the next level,” said Simms. “It has filled the black box theatre for three years and we felt it was time to grow up a bit, be selective about the choreographers, and provide more mentoring and support to those selected.” Choreographers who are selected will have access to a team of mentors to help them in their process. Professional choreographers and local talent with experience in contemporary dance will collaborate to mentor each individual choreographer and their dancers. Performances held at the Black Box Theatre at the Salina Community Theatre.