Grossmont College’s Stagehouse Theatre is in full swing with its Fall 2023/Spring 2024 productions, just finishing “The Hatmaker’s Wife” and heading into its December production of “Disney’s Freaky Friday The Musical.”
Grossmont College Theatre Arts Department Program Chair Katie Banville said “The Hatmaker’s Wife” was the first play of the season, a beautiful show about marriage, aging, and our identities over time in relationships.
“Wildlife Crossings!” is its elementary school tour which is currently going to local elementary schools and performing for local students.
“That is a shorter performance that we send out to different schools a couple of times a week,” she said. “It provides local students the opportunity to, for many of them, to see a theater production for the very first time. The play is based off a couple of children’s books by Meeg Pincus, a local author who has written different stories about wildlife crossings which are created out in the urban areas where they have created safe crossings for animals. She wrote two books, ‘Cougar Crossing,’ and ‘Make Way for Animals’ that became inspiration for the script and show we have been performing at local schools. It is partly educational, educating students about specific topics, but also introducing the idea of theater and performance.”
Banville said “Disney’s Freaky Friday The Musical” is the last performance for the fall semester, based off the familiar story from the multiple film versions.
The book “Freaky Friday” was written by Bridget Carpenter, music by Tom Kitt, and Lyrics by Brian Yorkey. The musical is based on the novel “Freaky Friday” by Mary Rodgers and Disney Films. It is directed by Banville, with musical direction by Patrick Marion. She said the interesting thing about making this into a musical is that Mary Rodgers is the daughter of American composer Richard Rodgers of the theater writing team of Rodgers and Hammerstein, and the musical adaptation brings Mary Rodgers back to her musical theater roots.
“But this musical version had its West Coast premier at the La Jolla Playhouse,” she said. “They actually worked on the production when it was here, and it has gone on to become a regional favorite. The story is familiar, but the take on it, the adaptation, brings something to it in exploring the idea of radical identity and really bridging the gap between parents and their kids. Allowing them to see the world in their perspective and appreciate the challenges they are facing.”
Banville said the musical still has the same “whimsical, farcical” humor of the original film versions had, but believes it brings “extra heart” to the story in a beautiful way.
There are three more shows scheduled for Spring 2024. “Inside the Actor’s Process: IDENTITY,” “Lost Girl,” and “Our Town.”
Banville said the Inside the Actor’s Process is a high school tour, where Grossmont students bring theater to local high schools’ drama and English programs.
“It is one way we do outreach,” she said. “And connected to local high school students who may eventually want to come to Grossmont College. The theme this year is identity, a collection of scenes and pieces that all relate back to the idea of identity. This year, exploring the recognition of identity, social power, social justice, and personal resilience. They do comedic scenes, dramatic scenes, with our students giving them exposure to what we have to offer.”
Banville said “Lost Girl” is the story of what became of Wendy Darling in the years after her adventures with Peter Pan. Stagehouse Theatre is closing the season with Pulitzer Prize winning American classic, Thornton Wilder’s “Our Town.”
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