The Lion in Winter opens tonight!

This is a very funny, very dramatic and exciting show that will keep you entranced from beginning to end! The set is beautiful, the costumes are beautiful and the actors….. well, not so much. Don’t miss this great show! It runs March 6,7,8 and 12,13,14,15.

Call 1-888-569-9228 and reserve your seats now! Or, click here, to order your tickets online!

(SHIRLEY: sorry cast members – couldn’t resist. You are beautiful too!)

To see a video preview of The Lion in Winter online, click here.

Tonight the WCCT will be holding auditions for Honk!

Honk! is a musical retelling of the Hans Christian Andersen story The Ugly Duckling, mixed with a theme of pro-tolerance. With a witty book and score provided by British songwriting duo Stiles and Drewe (George Stiles and Anthony Drewe), Honk! opened at the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough in 1997. The story features a squadron of comical geese, a sly tomcat who just wants to play with his food, a tearful mother, a dad always `ducking` out of his responsibilities, a duo comprising of a cat and a hen right out of a Shakespearean comedy, a wisecracking bullfrog, and an ugly duckling who discovers his inner beauty by becoming a swan. With such songs as A Poultry
Tale, Warts and All, and Different, Honk! won an Olivier Award (equivalent to an American Tony Award) for Best Musical, beating The Lion King.

Honk has 27 roles:
This includes both adult and children`s roles to be cast.
Despite the gender of the characters. Musical scoring might determine whether a character is played by a male or female, but WCCT wants to keep open all the possibilities.
In addition to those roles listed below there are a school of fish, a barnyard full of animals, froglets, a flock of geese, and roles that include various weather elements, rain/snow/fog.

? UGLY: lead; starts out as outsider with strong sense of self-image and animation, begins to second guess himself as others see him as outcast; loveable and trustworthy despite his obvious “shortcomings“; must be able to sing very well. Tenor to high baritone.
? IDA: lead female: Ugly`s nurturing, strong-willed and very animated mother. Must have “showy“ voice. Alto to Soprano II
? CAT: supporting role; gender neutral (although this score is written for a low voice (alto/baritone); wise-cracking, self-centered, over the top feline with slick ways and evil thoughts; physically very demanding role; singing can either be quite detailed and Bway style or more character-talkative-to-rhythm.
? DRAKE: featured male; Ida`s husband; narrator-like; opens the show with song and has a few scenes of fatherly effrontery; fun, smaller role.
? HENRIETTA AND MAUREEN: featured females: “old school“ moms who offer support and advice to Ida and carry the “bingo“ crowd of tradition in the farmyard; smaller roles for similar character to Ida, but require far less solo singing.
? GREYLAG: featured male; one great and scene-chewing scene; doddering, stuffy, old British air force war lord bent on service for the good and discipline and protocol as a natural part of life; a wonderful role that requires “singing“ but is limited to one scene; probably will double up in other ensemble moments
? BULLFROG: featured male; scene-stealing role that has one great scene and sings the song that becomes one of the major themes of the play; think revivalist/larger-than-life preacher-type with an over-the-top sense of humor.
? PENNY; featured female; essentially non-singing role; the lovely swan that Ugly finds and saves, only to become the love of his life; this role also exudes kindness, gentleness, and support.
? THE TURKEY: featured male/female; non-singing self-appointed boss of the farmyard who is both stuffy and worried about stuffing; fun, small role who will double in other scenes as other characters.
? GRACE: featured female; queen of the farmyard and holder of the highest “office“ of animaldom in the story; older “Queen Elizabeth“-type who exudes her name; non-singing; will double in smaller roles
? DOT: featured female; Greylag`s side kick, old fuddy-duddy grandmother type who is always there to help support her air force going husband; “singing“ role, one scene; doubles in other parts

As you know this year we are previewing our shows on the website via online video. And, thanks to WCCT newcomer Jay Smith we have a video preview available for Over the Tavern.

To see the video preview, click here.

Tom Dudzick’s family comedy Over The Tavern is just what the doctor ordered. Set in Buffalo the story carries us back to that most idealized period of the 20th Century America, the Eisenhower years of the 1950’s. The Pazinski family consists of Mom, Dad and their four children, Eddie, Annie, Georgie, and the hero of the tale, 12-year-old Rudy, a precocious kid who’s starting to question family values and the Roman Catholic Church. Rudy matches wits at school with Sister Clarissa over his catechism lessons and at home with his parents over blind acceptance of the teachings of the church. Throw in a sister suffering through the confusion of sexual awakenings, a rebellious older brother and a mentally challenged younger brother and you have the makings of a heartwarming drama filled with hilarity. These are not great people with great problems. They’re just real people with real problems.

Over the Tavern opens on February 6th and runs on selected dates through February 15. For tickets, call our toll free reservation line at 1-888-569-9228 or order online by clicking here.