[119] MTSU Theatre and Dance Season Kicks Off with P-L-E-N-T-Y of F-U-N

FOR RELEASE: Sept. 27, 2010
EDITORIAL CONTACT: Professor Jeff Gibson, 615-898-2640

MTSU THEATRE AND DANCE SEASON KICKS OFF WITH P-L-E-N-T-Y OF F-U-N
‘25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee’ is 1st Offering, Plus Tucker Theatre Grand Reopening

(MURFREESBORO)—MTSU brings the funny beginning Wednesday, Oct. 6, when it launches the 2010-11 Theatre and Dance Season with “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” in Tucker Theatre in the Boutwell Dramatic Arts Auditorium on campus.

The award-winning one-act musical focuses on a middle-school spelling bee, where the perfectionists are on both sides of the microphone and the s-u-s-p-e-n-s-e can sometimes be cut with n-i-v-e … uh, k-n-i-v-e-s.

Performances are set Oct. 6-9 and Oct. 13-15 at 7:30 p.m.

“‘Bee’ rehearsals are well under way, and I think the MTSU and local community will really enjoy this quirky musical,” said Professor Jeff Gibson, interim chair of the Department of Speech and Theatre. “The characters and the situations are hilarious!”

The Oct. 6 “Bee” show will be preceded at 6:30 p.m. by a “grand reopening” ceremony on the front steps of Tucker Theatre, which has just completed a $1.4 million, six-month renovation project.

“Bee” audiences, be warned: You can participate in the show, but using spelling apps on your phone is a no-no. Also, there’s some adult content, so it’s for M-A-T-U-R-E audiences only.

The season continues Nov. 17-20 with a new version of “A Flea in Her Ear,” the classic Georges Feydeau farce updated by David Ives. The Belle Époque tale focuses on a jealous wife’s attempts to nab her husband with a letter from an imaginary admirer suggesting a hotel tryst; chaos and hilarity ensue.

The Fall Dance Concert, showcasing the artistic works of MTSU’s Dance Theatre, is next on the itinerary. Performances are set Dec. 2-4.

The season resumes on a tragic note in February with performances of Euripides’ “Medea,” a seminal drama of love, betrayal and revenge. The powerful tragedy is scheduled for performances Feb. 23-26.

More Broadway comes to Champion Way March 30 through April 2 and April 6-9 with MTSU’s performances of the Pulitzer Prize-winning rock opera “Rent,” based loosely on Puccini’s “La Boheme.”

The show, whose signature song “Seasons of Love” has become a pop standard, follows a year with seven friends living the disappearing Bohemian lifestyle in New York’s East Village as AIDS and its physical and emotional complications begin to pervade their lives.

Concluding the 2010-11 season April 21-23 is the Spring Dance Concert, where MTSU Dance Theatre members will perform.

All performances are set for 7:30 p.m. in Tucker Theatre.

“This is a dynamic season with plenty of music, comedy and drama for everyone,” Gibson noted. “We are confident our audiences will enjoy what they see and will want to return for more.”

Tickets to all MTSU Theatre and Dance season performances are $10 for the general public and $5 for MTSU faculty, staff and students in kindergarten through 12th grades. MTSU students will be admitted free with a valid student ID.

Tickets may be purchased in advance at the Tucker Theatre Box Office in the BDA, by calling 615-494-8810 or going online at www.mtsu.edu/tuckertheatre. Tickets may also be purchased at the door an hour before each show begins.

For more information about MTSU Theatre and Dance, visit www.mtsu.edu/theatre or call 615-494-8810.


Founded in 1911, Middle Tennessee State University is a Tennessee Board of Regents institution located in Murfreesboro and is the state’s largest public undergraduate institution. MTSU now boasts one of the nation’s first master’s degree programs in horse science, and the Council of Graduate Schools in Washington, D.C., acclaims MTSU’s Master of Science in Professional Science degree—the only one in Tennessee—as a model program. This fall, MTSU unveiled three new doctoral degrees in the sciences.
-------

IN BRIEF: MTSU brings the funny beginning Wednesday, Oct. 6, when it launches the 2010-11 Theatre and Dance Season with “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” in Tucker Theatre in the Boutwell Dramatic Arts Auditorium on campus. The award-winning one-act musical focuses on a middle-school spelling bee where the perfectionists are on both sides of the microphone; performances are set Oct. 6-9 and Oct. 13-15 at 7:30 p.m. The Oct. 6 “Bee” show will be preceded at 6:30 p.m. by a “grand reopening” ceremony on the front steps of Tucker Theatre, which has just completed a $1.4 million, six-month renovation project. For ticket information or details on the complete 2010-11 season, call 615-494-8810 or visit www.mtsu.edu/tuckertheatre.

For MTSU news and information, visit www.mtsunews.com.

###