(CINCINNATI, Oct. 11, 2018) — Xavier University Theatre continues its 2018-19 season with Mark Hollmann and Greg Kotis’ musical satire Urinetown: The Musical. The show runs Oct. 19 through 21 in Xavier’s Gallagher Student Center Theatre.
Urinetown tells the story of a city in turmoil over a water crisis that has left all public amenities in the hands of a private company. There is a sharp division between the haves and the have-nots, those who can pay the fee and those who can’t afford it. When a young custodian, Bobby Strong, decides to take a stand against the capitalists in power, he inspires a revolution. Along the way, he discovers love, purpose and the truth about his own society. Inspired by the plays of Kurt Weill and Bertolt Brecht, this hilarious political satire looks with care and nuance at the extremes of our world and begs the question of what it means to be free.
For its cast members, most of whom are first- and second-year students, Urinetown has proved to be a timely fable. “When you sit back and let the material really soak in … you realize that the world in the show is not very far off from the one we live in today,” says sophomore Kelsey Schwarber. “Everyone wants to be right, but there is danger in the lengths that some people go in order to be correct.”
The cast for Urinetown features Elliot Auch (Officer Lockstock), Kelsey Schwarber (Little Sally), Claire McCreave (Penelope Pennywise), Josh Carandang (Bobby Strong), Julia Olinger (Hope Cladwell), Dylan Van Camp (Cladwell), Ellie Deutsch (Officer Barrell), Danielle Jacobs (Josephine Strong), Dylan O’Leary (Old Man Strong), Matthew Sherman (Hot Blades Harry), Steven Lindner (Tiny Tom), Amara Shroba (Soupy Sue), Gigi Relic (Bobby the Stockfish), Michael Rowlett (Billy Boy Bill), Tina Boffa (Becky Two Shoes), Ryan Whitford (Senator Fipp), Andy Girmann (McQueen), Nick Minion (Dr. Billeaux) and Jo Dearman (Ms. Millennium). Caroline Marino, Peyton Wright, Victoria Forbes, Olivia Hardy, Alyssa Gries, Connie Kavensky, Christine Gallagher and Jackson Frazier make up the ensemble.
The creative team includes Stephen Skiles (director), Scot Buzza (music director), Dee Anne Bryll (choreographer), Joe Leonard (set designer/technical director), Jessica Pitcairn (costume designer), Joe Beumer (lighting designer) and Kevin Semancik (sound designer). The stage manager is Katherine Ivins. The assistant stage managers are Brooke Drinkwater, Ally Knizer, Liz Apollonio and Lauren Davidson.
Performances take place at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 19; 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 20; and 2 p.m. on Oct. 21. Tickets for Urinetown are available now through the Xavier University Theatre Box Office. They are $18 each for adults and $13 each for students, as well as Xavier faculty and staff. To purchase tickets, visit http://www.xavier.edu/theatretickets or call 513-745-3939.
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ANTIGONE (BORN AGAINST.)
DOG SEES GOD
URINETOWN
