Pledge allegiance to the band. Get on your feet. Own the night. Welcome to the Renaissance. That’s what is being asked of Bushnell audiences this fall and next year.
The Bushnell announced its 2017-18 season Monday night, but “Hamilton,” which despite having two national tours, monthslong sit-down productions in several major cities and continued Broadway success, won’t be making it to Hartford until the 2018-19 season, with the exact date to be determined.
The more than a dozen events that will be coming to The Bushnell between August of this year and June of next year are:
“Finding Neverland” (Aug. 1 to 6), the musical about famed fantasist J.M. Barrie, based on the movie of the same name (which in turn was based on the Allan Knee play “The Man Who Was Peter Pan”).
A new national tour of “Les Miserables” (Oct. 3 to 8), spurred by the show’s Broadway revival. The Bushnell will be one of the first stops on the tour, which begins in September in Providence.
“School of Rock — The Musical” (Oct. 24 to 29), Andrew Lloyd Webber’s hit adaptation of the Jack Black movie.
A short seasonal booking of “A Christmas Story — The Musical” (Nov. 24 to 26), based on the 1983 movie cobbled together from nostalgic Jean Shepard stories.
“A Charlie Brown Christmas” (Dec. 1 to 3), with Linus reading from Luke 2:8-14 live.
“The Color Purple” (Dec. 5 to 10), the 2005 musical adapted by Marsha Norman from the Alice Walker novel, with music and lyrics by Stephen Bray, Brenda Russell and Allee Willis. The recent Broadway production won a Tony Award for best revival of a musical.
The latest tour stop of “Stomp” (Jan. 12 to 14, 2018).
The Shakespeare lampoon (and musical theater self-parody) “Something Rotten!” (Jan. 30 through Feb. 4). This is the only musical in The Bushnell’s Broadway series not based on a book or movie.
“The Bodyguard — The Musical” (Feb. 20 to 25, 2018), a 2012 stage version of the Kevin Costner/Whitney Houston movie that hasn’t been on Broadway yet but has been a hit in London’s West End, elsewhere in Europe and has been touring in the U.S. since November.
A new tour of “The Wizard of Oz” (Feb. 20 to 25, 2018), another show that’s got Andrew Lloyd Webber in its credits. (The composer produced, reworked, and even added new songs to the classic movie score.)
The return of “Disenchanted” (April 13 to 15, 2018), the ribald parody of Disney princesses.
The magic ensemble “The Illusionists” (May 4 to 6, 2018).
“Love Never Dies — The Phantom Returns” (May 29 through June 3, 2018). Yet another Andrew Lloyd Webber show, this one a sequel to “The Phantom of the Opera” (which happens to be on tour too, and is coming to the Palace in Waterbury in November). The show gestated for something like two decades, finally premiering in London in 2010. This tour, which begins in October in Maryland, is the show’s U.S. debut.
“On Your Feet — The Story of Emilio and Gloria Estefan” (June 19 to 24, 2018), based on the lives and eminently danceable work of the hit-making Cuban pop couple. The musical has been playing on Broadway since 2015.
The schedule is notable for its newness. “School of Rock,” “Something Rotten!” Finding Neverland” and “On Your Feet” all had their Broadway debuts within the last two years. “Love Never Dies” and “The Bodyguard” are the first American tours of shows that originated in England and have not yet been on Broadway.
There are no revivals of classic American musicals from the first half of the 20th century on The Bushnell schedule this year. Composers such as Rodgers and Hammerstein, George Gershwin and Frank Loesser, all found at The Bushnell in recent years, will not be not heard in the 2017-18 season. Other than “The Wizard of Oz” and “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” the oldest musical on the schedule is “Les Mis,” which premiered in the 1980s.
There are also no non-musical plays on the schedule, unlike this season, when The Bushnell offered “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time,” and last season, when it presented “Love Letters.”
For more information and season subscription information, contact The Bushnell box office at 860-987-5900 or bushnell.org.
