Richardson Theatre Centre reveals 2009 season

by Shawn Parikh

Richardson Theatre Centre recently announced the lineup of 6 shows over the next year. Season tickets are available for $100-125 and more info can be found online. Showtimes are Friday and Saturday nights at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday matinees at 3:00 p.m. Here is the new season:

• Steel Magnolias from January 30 - February 22. By Robert Harling. This southern drama follows the stories and relationships of six women who gather regularly at a Southern beauty parlor as they bond together through their ups and downs, marriage and childbirth. Alternately comic and touching, the three years covered in the women's lives are full of witty dialogue, hilarious banter, and wrenching heartache.
• The Foreigner from March 27 - April 12. By Larry Shue. Larry Shue's play is about an Englishman who discovers many secrets while visiting an old Georgia lodge under the guise of a foreigner who knows no English. The production is rooted in the great traditions of British farce comedy, but it exhibits a uniquely American spin -- an errant evangelist, a pregnant heiress, a dim-witted brother, a Brit demolition expert, a sweet old proprietor and klutzy Klan visitors.
• Oliver from June 19 - July 12. With Book, Music and Lyrics by Lionel Bart. Consider yourself enchanted by Oliver! Hailed as on of the best-loved family musicals of all time, Oliver! brings to stage some of Charles Dickens' most unforgettable characters along with one of Broadway's most memorable scores, Hits such as "Consider Yourself", "Food Glorious Food" and "Where Is Love" surround this heart-warming tale of the young orphan Oliver Twist in this all-new production of Lionel Bart's magical musical.
• Spider's Web from August 21 - September 13. By Agatha Christie. An original Agatha Christie mystery! This classic whodunit unravels at the home of Henry and Clarissa Hailsham-Brown. Clarissa, the wife of a diplomat, discovers a body in the drawing room. With her husband scheduled to arrive at any moment with an important politician in tow, Clarissa has to create an intricate web of alibis and invention to save her family. When her lies lead to new surprises, the audience is left to untangle the captivating puzzle of "who did it."
• The Secret Affairs Of Mildred Wild from October 9 - November 1. By Paul Zindel. In the tiny living quarters behind a candy store, which she operates with her husband, crowded with her 40-year collection of movie magazines, Mildred Wild has virtually escaped from reality into the dream world conjured by the 3,000 movies she has eagerly devoured. When the outside world does intrude via her husband, meddling sister, the hard-boiled landlady, the butcher from next door or the foreman of the wrecking crew sent to tear down the building, Mildred meets each crisis with a hilarious fantasy scene drawn from her movies.
• Into the Woods from November 27 - December 20. By Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine. The whimsical musical humorously combines a number of classic fairy tales A baker and his wife are assigned a number of tasks by a nearby witch; only after completing these duties will they be able to give birth. During their quest to fulfill the witches' demands, they encounter Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, Cinderella, and numerous other fairy tale figures. The traditional stories are parodied and altered at will, yet the original fairy tales' sense of wonder and, at times, darkness remains intact. The score, winner of Broadway's Tony Award, includes such songs as "Children Will Listen", "Giants in the Sky", and "No One Is Alone."