Theatre Wesleyan is excited to announce the 2024/25 Season: “All In The RAMily”. This season will include productions guest-directed by familiar Texas Wesleyan University theatre alumni, a fall musical revolving around a seemingly modern American family, a world premiere from a graduating senior, and the milestone 70th annual spring musical.

More information including student cast and designers, online ticket sales, and group discounts will be available in the coming weeks. Please check the Theatre Wesleyan Facebook for the most up-to-date details.

If you have questions, please contact the Theatre Wesleyan office at theatre@txwes.edu or (817) 531-5867.  

THE IVES ARCHIVES

Opening October 2024, The Ives Archives is an evening of one-act plays by acclaimed playwright David Ives with Texas Wesleyan University theatre alumni Connie Sanchez and Cameron Byerly serving as directors. The lineup of plays for The Ives Archives includes:

• Bolero, directed by Connie Sanchez
• Degas, C'est Moi, directed by Connie Sanchez
• Foreplay, or The Art of the Fugue, directed by Cameron Byerly
• Seven Menus, directed by Cameron Byerly
• Sure Thing, directed by Connie Sanchez
• Time Flies, directed by Cameron Byerly
• Words, Words, Words, directed by Cameron Byerly

David Ives is perhaps best known for All In The Timing (he has been included in the “Best Short Plays” series multiple times), and for his drama Venus In Fur, which was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Play. His plays include New Jerusalem: The Interrogation Of Baruch De Spinoza, The School For Lies (adapted from Molière’s The Misanthrope); The Liar (adapted from Corneille), Time Flies and Is He Dead? (adapted from Mark Twain). He has also translated Feydeau’s A Flea In Her Ear and Yasmina Reza’s A Spanish Play. A former Guggenheim Fellow in playwriting and a graduate of The Yale School of Drama, he lives in New York City. Most recently, Ives wrote the book for Here We Are, the final musical with a score by multi-award-winning composer Stephen Sondheim.

NEXT TO NORMAL

Opening in November, Next to Normal will be the first of two musicals this season. The rock musical will be directed and music directed by guest artist Rebecca Lowrey.

Winner of three 2009 Tony Awards, including Best Musical Score and the 2010 Pulitzer Prize, Next to Normal explores how one suburban household copes with crisis and mental illness. Dad's an architect; Mom rushes to pack lunches and pour cereal; their daughter and son are bright, wise-cracking teens, appearing to be a typical American family. And yet their lives are anything but normal because the mother has been battling bipolar disorder for 16 years. Next to Normal takes audiences into the minds and hearts of each character, presenting their family's story with love, sympathy and heart.

LETTERS FROM THE LIBRARY

Theatre Wesleyan will present the world premiere of Letters From The Library, a new play by senior theatre major Mercedes Kuhn, opening in February 2025. The play will be directed by Texas Wesleyan University theatre alumna Cheryl Penland.

In rural Kentucky, at the height of the Great Depression, Harriet’s husband falls ill and loses his job, leaving them with very few options. In order to keep their spirits up, Harriet takes advantage of the Packhorse Library Project and meets Leslie, a traveling librarian who brightens up Harriet’s darkening world.

Mercedes' Theatre Wesleyan credits include The Death of Seneca (Dramatis Personae), Intimate Apparel (Asst. Projection Design), and most recently Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 (Ensemble). TCC Theatre Northwest: The Cat in the Hat (Sally), Zombie Prom (Candy), Slasher (Christie Garcia/Others). TCC Drama Club Northwest: The Friends We Made Along The Way (Writer/Director/Fight Choreographer). Mercedes is a senior theatre major pursuing a BA in Theatre. The development and production of Letters from the Library will serve as Mercedes' senior project. Follow Mercedes on Instagram @worksofmercedeskuhn

PIPPIN

Celebrating the milestone 70th Annual Spring Musical, Theatre Wesleyan will present the award-winning musical Pippin for one weekend only in April 2025. The production will be directed by theatre alum Jacob Rivera-Sanchez with music direction by Mark Mullino and choreographed by Stephanie Locker-Hall.

With an infectiously unforgettable score from four-time Grammy winner, three-time Oscar winner and musical theatre giant, Stephen Schwartz, Pippin is the story of one young man's journey to be extraordinary. Heir to the Frankish throne, the young prince Pippin is in search of the secret to true happiness and fulfillment. He seeks it in the glories of the battlefield, the temptations of the flesh, and the intrigues of political power (after disposing of his father, King Charlemagne the Great). In the end, though, Pippin finds that happiness lies not in extraordinary endeavors, but rather in the unextraordinary moments that happen every day. Winner of five 1973 Tony Awards and four 2013 Tony Awards, including Best Musical Revival.