Chapman University’s Department of Theatre has announced the exciting performance schedule for the 2016-17 Season. Tickets go on sale September 1, 2016. To order, visit chapman.edu/tickets or call the College of Performing Arts box office hotline at (714) 997-6624.

OCTOBER 2016

Good Kids, by Naomi Iizuka
October 11, 13, 15, 16, 19, 21, 22
Directed by James Gardner
Studio Theatre, Moulton Hall, Room 149
Drama, adult language:  Something happened to Chloe after that party last Saturday night. Something she says she can’t remember. Something everybody is talking about. Set at a Mid-western high school, in a world of Facebook and Twitter, smartphones and YouTube, Good Kids explores a casual sexual encounter gone wrong and its very public aftermath. Who’s telling the truth? Whose version of the story do you believe? And what does that say about you?

Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead, by Bert V. Royal
October 12, 14, 15, 16, 18, 20, 22
Directed by Nanci Ruby
Studio Theatre, Moulton Hall, Room 149
Comedy, mature subject matter:  In this poignant, off-beat and often humorous, “unauthorized parody,” Dog Sees God re-imagines characters from the popular comic strip Peanuts as teenagers. Drug use, suicide, eating disorders, teen violence, rebellion, sexual relations and identity collide and careen toward an ending that’s both haunting and hopeful.

DECEMBER 2016

Intimate Apparel, by Lynn Nottage
December 1 – 3 & 8 – 10
Directed by Dr. Jaye Austin Williams
Waltmar Theatre
Drama: In this brilliantly crafted portrait of turn-of-the-last-century New York, Nottage gives us a story about desire and common sense, of pleasure and pain, of resilience and fragility, and above all the unlikely triumph of the human spirit. True to its title, Intimate Apparel presents a story that is both delicate and eloquent. Winner of the 2004 New York Drama Critics Circle, Outer Critics Circle Awards and Sternberg New Play Award.

FEBRUARY 2017

The Who’s Tommy
February 23 – 26
Book by Des McAnuff and Pete Townshend
Music and Lyrics by Pete Townshend
Additional Music and Lyrics by John Entwistle and Keith Moon
Directed by Oanh Nguyen
Musco Center for the Arts
Rock musical; adult language and content:  Based on the iconic 1969 rock concept album, The Who’s Tommy is an exhilarating story of hope, healing, and the human spirit. The story of the pinball-playing, deaf, dumb and blind boy who triumphs over his adversities has inspired, amazed, and puzzled audiences for more than 40 years. This five-time Tony Award-winning musical was translated to the stage by theatrical wizard Des McAnuff into a high-energy, one-of-a-kind theatrical event.

MAY 2017

Picnic, by William Inge
May 4 – 6, 11 – 13
Directed by John Benitz
Waltmar Theatre
Drama: Inge’s exploration of small town life, family and the underlying loneliness, boredom and sexual desire that hides behind white picket fences that surround perfect people leading perfect lives, permeates Inge’s vision of 1950’s America. Winner of the 1953 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and 1953 New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Play, Picnic has been embraced by mass audiences for its simple charms but critics have lauded Picnic for its authentic, beautiful and often painful depiction of love and longing.