Serving Boone, Blowing Rock, Banner Elk, and other towns of the North Carolina High Country | Founded 05-05-05

March 20, 2008 issue


Lees-McRae Announces Summer Theatre Schedule

Story by Anna Oakes

The Division of Performing Arts at Lees-McRae College in Banner Elk has announced the schedule for its 2008 Summer Theatre season.

The three main stage productions are A Chorus Line, Little Shop of Horrors and Oklahoma!. Three more productions will be performed on the second stage: Southern Voices 2008: Stories, Poems and Humor Celebrating the South; You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown; and Don’t Hug Me.

For the first time, the Performing Arts department will travel to New York for Summer Theatre auditions, said Janet Barton Speer, artistic director of Performing Arts at Lees-McRae.

“We are very excited about that,” she said. “Using our own students, alumni and core of actors who have worked with us for years, we will add new talent to the mix.” No local auditions will be held.

The main stage productions begin on June 29 with A Chorus Line, a celebration of the unsung heroes of American musical theatre and of the American musical itself. Little Shop of Horrors, a beloved black comedy about a Skid Row floral assistant who becomes an overnight sensation when he discovers an exotic plant with a craving for fresh blood, opens July 18.

Oklahoma!, a musical about fun, love and romance in the Oklahoma territory at the turn of the century, is the last production of the season, opening August 1.

Southern Voices 2008 begins the second stage season on June 19, followed by You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown, a children’s show, on June 28, and Don’t Hug Me, a musical, on July 6.

This year marks the 24th season of the Lees-McRae Summer Theatre, a program that annually draws thousands of patrons to Banner Elk.

“It is an exciting year with a challenging season, and we are determined to meet the challenges and provide you with the best season yet,” Speer said.

Main stage productions are held in the Lees-McRae College Hayes Auditorium. Second stage performances take place in the Historic Pinnacle Room on the Lees-McRae campus.

Tickets for the 2008 Summer Theatre season are now on sale. To purchase, call the box office at 828-898-8709 or click to www.lmc.edu/sites/SummerTheatre/.

Lees-McRae Summer Theatre Schedule

A detailed schedule of the Lees-McRae Summer Theatre main stage and second stage performances is provided below.

Main Stage

A Chorus Line
Evenings: June 30, July 2, 3 and 5 at 7:30 p.m.
Matinees: June 29, July 5 and 6 at 2:00 p.m.

Little Shop of Horrors
Evenings: July 18, 19, 21, 23 and 24 at 7:30 p.m.
Matinees: July 19 and 20 at 2:00 p.m.

Oklahoma!
Evenings: August 1, 2, 4, 6 and 7 at 7:30 p.m.
Matinees: August 2 and 3 at 2:00 p.m.

Second Stage

Southern Voices 2008: Stories, Poems and Humor Celebrating the South
June 19, 20 and 21 at 7:30 p.m.
June 22 at 2:00 p.m.

You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown
June 28, July 5, 12 and 19 at 10:00 a.m.

Don’t Hug Me
July 6, 13, 20, 27, August 3 at 7:30 p.m.