St. Louis Post-DispatchFox announces 2009-2010 season
By Judith Newmark
Three very different stars - "American Idol" winner Taylor Hicks, "Little House on the Prairie" icon Melissa Gilbert and the distinguished Oscar-winning dramatic actress Estelle Parsons - will play the Fox Theatre next season. It's an indication of how wide the season ranges.
Hicks plays Teen Angel in the perennial favorite "Grease." Gilbert, who starred as Laura in the long-running TV show "Little House on the Prairie," plays Ma in the new, musical version of the story of the pioneering Ingalls family. Parsons recreates her Broadway role in "August: Osage County," Tracy Letts' acclaimed drama about an Oklahoma family's crisis when the alcoholic patriarch disappears. "August: Osage County" won both the Tony award and the Pulitzer Prize.
The emphasis, however, is on song and dance. "In The Heights," the Tony-winning Best Musical conceived by Lin-Manuel Miranda, paints a vivid portrait of New York's hard-working Dominican immigrants, struggling to create a good life to the rhythms of salsa, merengue and hip-hop. Irving Berlin's "White Christmas" got its start at the Muny before it went on to Broadway. "Young Frankenstein," Mel Brooks' follow-up to "The Producers," endows another classic movie comedy with an offbeat score, including such distinctively Brooksian tunes as "Transylvania Mania" and "He Vas My Boyfriend."
Those shows are new to the Fox. "Grease," now outfitted with songs from the hit movie as well as the original stage show, and the immensely popular "Wicked," which tells the story of the "Wizard of Oz" from the witch's point of view, have played the big Grand Boulevard theater before. "In the Heights," "White Christmas, "Grease," "August: Osage County," "Young Frankenstein" and "Wicked" make up the Fox's Broadway series.
"Little House on the Prairie," "A Christmas Carol," "Chicago" "The Color Purple," "Mamma Mia!," "Legally Blonde" and "Avenue Q" are special shows. Subscribers to the series have the opportunity to buy priority seating for the special shows, or to trade subscription tickets for them.
Current subscribers will receive renewal information soon; new subscriptions go on sale in June. On-sale dates for single shows will be announced later. For more information, call the Fox subscription office at 314-535-1700.
The Fox's season:
"In the Heights" (Nov. 10-22)
"Little House on the Prairie" (Nov. 24-29)
"A Christmas Carol" (Dec. 10-13)
Irving Berlin's "White Christmas" (Dec. 15-27)
"Chicago" (Jan. 1-3, 2010)
"Grease" (Jan. 12-24)
"The Color Purple" (Feb. 2-7)
"Mamma Mia!" (Feb. 16-21)
"August: Osage County" (March 2-14)
"Legally Blonde" (April 8-11)
"Avenue Q" (April 30-May 2)
Mel Brooks' "Young Frankenstein" (May 11-23)
"Wicked" (June 16-July 11)
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