Season offerings for 2023-24

Nov. 9, 10, 11, 16, 17 and 18 — The musical “Jimmy Buffett’s Escape to Margaritaville”

Dec. 8 — “A Christmas Carol” reading

March 1, 2, 3, 8, 9 and 10 — “Who’ Afraid of Virginia Woolf?”

April 26, 27, 28 and May 3, 4 and 5 — “I and You”

July 18, 19, 20, 21, 25, 26, 27 and 28 — The musical “American Idiot”

Kent State University at Trumbull Theatre is planning a pair of local musical premieres for its 2023-24 season

Eric Kildow, associate professor of theater and dance, said there won’t be a summer stock musical this year because the theater is getting “much-needed” improvements to its heating and air conditioning system. Kildow also will be teaching overseas for part of the summer and won’t be available to oversee the program.

Kent-Trumbull will bring back for the first time since 2019 its children’s touring production that goes to area libraries.

The 2023-24 season will open Nov. 9 with “Jimmy Buffett’s Escape to Margaritaville.” The jukebox musical built around Buffett’s songs of warm weather and escapism only lasted four months on Broadway and received some savage reviews, but Buffett has a huge following in landlocked areas like the Mahoning Valley, and he expects it will be a popular show.

“I’m actually a Parrothead,” Kildow said, referring to the nickname for Buffett’s fans. “The critics were like, ‘This is such a stupid show.’ Well, of course, it’s a jukebox musical by Jimmy Buffett. What do you expect? One of the headline songs is ‘Why Don’t We Get Drunk (And Screw).’

“I want to do newer things, and ‘Margaritaville’ is relatively new, but it’s a recognizable property. We have been doing what I feel is some very beautiful work that not many people have come to see. The administration on campus has said, ‘Can you see if you can pull some more audience?’ So we decided to add a second musical to our season aside from the summer stock musical we do every July. We’ll probably keep that in the fall slot depending on how the next season works out.”

The summer stock musical in 2024 will be “American Idiot,” based on the Green Day album of the same name. It was nominated for a Tony Award for best new musical in 2011 and won Tonys for its lighting and scenic design.

“It was pitched to me by Emelia Sherin (who will direct with Rosie Bresson as music director),” Kildow said. “‘Rent’ last summer was proof we could do grown-up musicals for summer stock instead of relying purely on family fare. It was proof of concept.

In between those musicals will be two classics and a lesser-known work by one of the most produced contemporary playwrights.

Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” used to be a holiday perennial at Kent-Trumbull. Kildow didn’t want to commit to a large-scale production, especially since the college hasn’t hired a replacement for retired technical director Tony Kovacic, but assistant professor Peter Byrne did a reading of the tale several years ago, inspired by one Byrne’s father used to do for their family.

“We did it in the (student) union, we had urns of cocoa and some other hot beverages and baked goods and people could just sort of enjoy a nice, cozy, mellow holiday experience,” Kildow. “There’s no reason for us not to do that.”

That event is scheduled Dec. 8.

Opening in March 2024 will be Edward Albee’s drama “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?,” directed by Tom Engstrom. The four-character drama probably won’t be cast with traditional students — the roles are for characters ranging in age from mid-20s to mid-50s and the Albee estate is pickier than most when it comes to adhering to those guidelines — but it still provides valuable experience for theater students.

“It’s a stage classic — the exposure to it, this is how it’s done,” Kildow said. “It ticks all the boxes of our educational mission. Also, a lot of our students identify themselves as technically oriented, and they will be crewing and managing and all of that.”

Because of the older cast needed for the Albee play, Kildow pick Lauren Gunderson’s “I and You” for a two-weekend run starting April 26.

The play focuses on two high school students working on an English project about Walt Whitman’s “Leaves of Grass,” but their poetry studies unlock a deeper mystery that has brought them together. It will be directed by Brian Westerley.

For the first time in decades, Kent-Trumbull is planning to offer a season ticket for the theater. Kildow is in the process of lining up local merchants willing to provide additional incentives to season ticket buyers, and full details will be announced later this year.

agray@tribtoday.com