journal culture
Centre Stage 30th season will bring Tuesday Night Fringe
April 6th
Series offers ‘out of the box’ productions director says ‘need to be seen’ By Cindy Landrum | staff
Kick off the return of spring with Spartanburg County’s legendary festival! Race or float this classic whitewater run. All participants will have a chance to win prizes and enjoy live music, BBQ, boat demos, and more at the finish Spectators welcome. Festival is free! Visit SpartanburgParks.org or call 864-804-5815 for more information.
Registrat ion Fee: $25 per p er early regi son stration (by Marc h 29) $30 per p erson (after Ma rch 29)
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32 THE Journal | MARCH 29, 2013
For Centre Stage’s 30th anniversary season, Glenda ManWaring briefly considered reprising some of the theater’s biggest hit productions over the years. Then she decided, in her fourth season as Centre Stage’s executive and artistic director, she did not want to look back. She wanted to look forward. In 2013, forward means rep theater and a new Tuesday Night Fringe Series, along with a new version of a Christmas classic, a rock ’n’ roll show, a couple of musicals and a play with a famous catchphrase. “I really love the whole season,” ManWaring said. “It has really good balance.” Not too long ago, there were doubts whether Centre Stage would make it to its 30th season. Three weeks into the job, ManWaring started receiving phone calls from creditors. The theater owed a substantial amount of back rent. Expenses and payroll were cut. Auditors had doubt whether the theater would survive. Thanks to donations and a string of sold-out shows, the theater endured – and has now turned its focus to longterm goals and financial health. “People don’t want it to end and they’re turning out to support us,” ManWaring said. Centre Stage is opening its Main Stage season with two shows that will alternate nights from September to November. “Lend Me a Tenor,” a Ken Ludwig farce with a protagonist who has to appear for the greatest tenor of his generation; and “Unnecessary Farce” by Paul Slade Smith, which features a cheap hotel room, two cops, three crooks and eight doors, will use the same set, ManWaring said. “A lot of people say farce is all about the doors,” she said. “And a lot of times it really is.” A new version of “A Christmas Carol” is planned for November and December. Next up in January and February 2014 is “Rock and Roll Through the Ages,” an original concert featuring songs from throughout the genre’s decades. The show is not a part of the theater’s Main Stage offerings. “The Producers,” a big musical based
on the 1968 film, is coming to Centre Stage in March and April 2014. In May 2014, the season continues with “A Few Good Men,” the Aaron Sorkin play about military lawyers who uncover a high-level conspiracy while defending their clients at a court martial. The Main Stage season ends with “Shout! The Mod Musical” in July and August 2014. The Tuesday Evening Fringe Series includes plays ManWaring thinks are important for Greenville audiences to see but that she doubts would be able to sell 300 seats a night during the four-weekend run typical of the theater’s Main Stage productions. “These are meaty stories, but not the norm,” she said. “These are minimal shows with smaller casts geared toward out-of-the-box thinking.” As the name suggests, the five Fringe plays will be staged on Tuesday nights during the theater’s Main Stage productions. They’ll use the same sets or be staged in front of the Main Stage sets. “These are pieces that stand on their own,” ManWaring said. “They are plays about contemporary situations that affect all of us.” The first three of the Fringe Series shows have been announced. ManWaring has picked the plays for the two other series’ shows, but the theater hasn’t secured rights yet. “Freud’s Last Session” is a play by Mark St. Germain that centers on the legendary psychoanalyst Dr. Sigmund Freud, who invites the rising young C.S. Lewis to his home in London. On the day England enters World War II, the pair clash about love, sex, the existence of God and the meaning of life. “Irena’s Vow” by Dan Gordon tells the story of 19-year-old Irena Gut, who is promoted to housekeeper in the house of a highly respected Nazi officer. Gut is determined to help 12 Jewish workers and decides to shelter them in the safest place she can think of. “Love, Loss and What I Wore” is a play by Nora and Delia Ephron that uses clothing, accessories and the memories they trigger to tell funny and often poignant stories to which all women can relate. “We’re building up audience trust,” she said. “People are buying tickets even if they don’t know the title of a show.” ManWaring’s goal for the 2013-14 season is to surpass 900 season members. Contact Cindy Landrum at clandrum@communityjournals.com.