Photo: David Crosby | Model: Millie Lewis

Bus Stop
By William Inge
Directed by Chip Egan
October 16 – November 1, 2008

In the middle of a howling snowstorm, a bus out of Kansas City pulls up at a roadside diner. All roads are blocked, and the weary travelers are going to have to hole up until morning. Cherie, a nightclub chanteuse has been pursued and finally kidnapped by a twenty-one-year-old cowboy with a ranch of his own and the romantic methods of a headstrong bull. Even as she’s evading his clumsy advances she muses, "Somehow deep inside of me I got a funny feeling I'm gonna end up in Montana. Sponsored by Fluor.

LUKE: DEC. 2008 S M T W T F S   1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

The Gospel
According to Saint Luke
Performed by Bruce Kuhn
December 11 – 21, 2008

Preview Bruce Kuhn's interpretation of The Gospel According to Saint Luke.

In a compelling ninety minutes, the words of St. Luke’s Gospel come to life with the urgency and humor of someone who was there.  The show, starring Bruce Kuhn,  premiered at the acclaimed Actor's Theatre of Louisville (one of America's largest professional theatres) to enthusiastic reviews and an extended run.  Alone on stage, Mr.  Kuhn tells the story without props or sets. The play is memorized in the King James Version, which takes to the spoken word like Shakespeare.  Bruce Kuhn appeared on Broadway in Les Miserables and toured nationally in the play Chess and Cotton Patch Gospel, the Harry Chapin musical. Sponsored by St. Francis Foundation.
NOTE: All evening performances of The Gospel According to Saint Luke will be at 7:30. Matinees will be at 3 p.m.

CLEAR LAKE: FEB. 2009 S M T W T F S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28

Hear Will Ragland sing That'll be the Day, (mp3)

Clear Lake:
The Rock ‘n Roll Reunion
Musical Director, Joe Wehunt
February 2 – 14, 2009



It was one of the fiercest winters the Midwest had experienced in decades, and it was the middle of the tour known as ‘the Winter Dance Party’.  On February 2, 1959, Buddy Holly, the Big Bopper and Ritchie Valens gave their last performance at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa.  This 50th anniversary concert pays tribute to the performers on stage that night, including Dion and the Belmonts and Frankie Sardo.  After two incredibly successful runs of Buddy:  the Buddy Holly Story here at CS, we thought it only appropriate to pay one final tribute to the most influential figure in rock ‘n roll and the musicians who toured with him.Sponsored by Greenville Hospital System and Design Strategies.
Clear Lake prices: The ticket price for all Clear Lake performances except February 2 is $30/person. The February 2 fundraiser ticket price is $50/person. No discounts are available for Clear Lake and no coupons will be accepted.

Souvenir,
A Fantasia on the Life of Florence Foster Jenkins
By Stephen Temperley
Directed by Mark Waldrop
March 5 – 21, 2009



Variety called it “A beguiling comic jewel with a heart”.  “Tone-deaf but utterly pitch-perfect.  Souvenir is downright hilarious…There weren’t many voices as bad as Jenkins’.  There aren’t many theatrical experiences as good as Souvenir.”  The Boston Globe. 
Florence Foster Jenkins was an American soprano, born in 1868, who had a great passion for music and began giving recitals in 1912.  Unfortunately, the sounds she produced failed to resemble the music that resonated in her head.  She had a 32-year career, culminating in a sold-out concert at Carnegie Hall in 1944.  The play is a memory play, the story of the odd partnership between accompanist and ‘singer’, and will feature  Mimi Wyche, as Florence Foster Jenkins, and Jim Walton, as her accompanist, Cosme McMoon.
A professional actor and singer for 26 years, Ms. Wyche’s Broadway credits include CATS and Sweeney Todd.  She has performed at the famed Guthrie Theater, as well as Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Town Hall and City Center,  Jim Walton has performed on and off-Broadway in hits such as The Music Man, 42nd Street, Merrily We Roll Along, Closer than Ever and And the World Goes ‘Round.  Souvenir will be directed by Obie, Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle award-winner, Mark Waldrop. 

The God Committee
By Mark St. Germain
Directed by Dale Savidge
April 16 - May 2, 2009

A life-and-death suspense drama that places the audience in the board room of the St. Patrick's Hospital transplant selection committee. Medicine, money, and morality clash as just one heart becomes suddenly available for one of three candidates.

The Dining Room
By A. R. Gurney
Directed by Benjamin P. Robinson
June 11 – 27, 2009

The playwright who gave us Sylvia gives us a play set in the dining room of a ‘typical’ well-to-do household, the place where the family assembled daily for breakfast, dinner and any and all special occasions.  The play is a mosaic of interrelated scenes that are both hilarious and touching.  The actors change roles, personalities and ages as they portray a wide variety of characters.  The Dining Room is a theatrical experience of exceptional range, compassionate humor and abundant humanity. Sponsored by Bank Greenville.

Country Queens:
Nashville’s Leading Ladies
Directed by Benjamin P. Robinson
Music direction and arrangements by Joe Wehunt
August 6 – 29, 2009

Get out your rhinestones and shine those cowboy boots.  Centre Stage pays homage to the legendary ‘queens’ of country music with a concert of hits featuring our own ‘queens of the stage’ singing those love ‘em, leave ‘em and can’t do without ‘em songs made famous by Loretta Lynn, Tammy Wynette, Dolly Parton, Patsy Cline, Kitty Wells, Reba McEntire, Barbara Mandrell and others.  It’s sure to be the entertainment hit of the summer.

.