Baltimore Center Stage recently had it’s grand re-opening and it looks like their back with GUSTO! Check out the 2017/18 Season for the Mainstage! Hope to see you out at some of the shows!
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Baltimore—April 19, 2017. Baltimore Center Stage is pleased to announce its 2017/18 Mainstage Season, which includes productions that focus on faith, love, family, the state of the nation, revolution, and a to-be-announced world premiere play with music. This marks the theater’s first full season back in its newly renovated home on Calvert Street.
“Art at its best, for me, is a metaphor on the human condition, and that is what we think about as we choose our plays,” said Artistic Director Kwame Kwei-Armah. “I’m thrilled to present our spectacular next season line up for our Mainstage series. And I’m excited to say we’ll announce our full list of programming soon, including Third Space and Mobile Unit productions. From our renovated building, which is intended to make everyone who enters feel welcome, to our diverse season of plays, we’re continuing our mission of access for all.”
 
2017/18 Season
 
The Christians
By Lucas Hnath
Directed by Hana S. Sharif
Sept. 7–Oct. 8, 2017
Does absolute tolerance require tolerance of the intolerant? Can a divided head find a way to lead? When the stakes are eternity, what happens if your pastor is wrong? These are the questions that arise in a present-day American megachurch in The Christians, a new play about the seemingly insurmountable distance that exists when people of the same religion hold different beliefs. Stunning in its theatricality, this production will feature multiple choirs from area churches. Prescient in its investigation of the commercialization of religion, this play spotlights the sensitive and challenging obstacles of all successful organizations.
 
Shakespeare in Love
Based on the screenplay by Marc Norman & Tom Stoppard
Adapted for the stage by Lee Hall
Directed by Blake Robison
Oct. 19–Nov. 26, 2017
“Shall I compare thee to a something something… mummers play?” And so begins one of Shakespeare’s most famous sonnets, and this charming story of love, inspiration, muses, and art, based on the Oscar-winning film. This smart and poignant tale offers a smattering of allusions that will delight anyone familiar with the Bard—or simply the English language. This story is as crowd-pleasing as mistaken identities, a shipwreck, and love triumphant, and is set in a time when a Londoner could still utter the words: “Shakespeare? Never heard of him.” A great play for the entire family.
 
Lookingglass Alice
Adapted by David Catlin from the works of Lewis Carroll
Directed by Jeremy B. Cohen
Nov. 30–Dec. 31, 2017
Fall down the rabbit hole with Alice and a cast of characters as wild as whimsy and wicked as royalty. If you’re curiouser about the other side, David Catlin’s adapted tale will send you into a tailspin of queens and pawns, riddles and mind games, madness and tea parties. Our holiday season offering is perfect for the entire family, and children of all ages will delight in this wonderful world. Families can come together to build a theatergoing tradition and enjoy the spectacular realm created from author Lewis Carroll’s legendary imagination. Join us down the rabbit hole.
 
Skeleton Crew
By Dominique Morisseau
Directed by Nicole A. Watson
Feb. 1-Mar. 11, 2018
Part of the Women’s Voices Theater Festival
From the playwright of Detroit ’67, Skeleton Crew (the third play in Dominique Morisseau’s acclaimed Detroit trilogy) tells the story of four workers at the last exporting auto plant in Detroit struggling to survive as their way of life disappears. Set around 2008, this play vividly portrays the modern struggle in a changing America, and reveals the real people on the factory line. This skeleton crew—the bare minimum number of staff needed to function—is made up of people who keep the vital operations of the plant running in the face of obstacles, rumors, and, eventually, the confirmation of their worst fears. Loyalties are tested and boundaries are crossed as this vibrant team of loyal and proud workers navigate an uncertain future.
 
George Orwell’s Animal Farm
Adapted by Ian Woolridge
Directed by May Adrales
Mar. 1–Apr. 1, 2018
One day on Manor Farm, shortly before his death, an old boar named Major told the other animals about his dream. United by the realization that all animals have a common enemy—man—the animals revolted against the tyranny of forced work. They fought and gained their freedom and established a system of thought, Animalism, based on the wise words of the Major. All animals are comrades. All animals are equal. But as months and years pass, the exalted words of the Major become distorted, and the citizens of Animal Farm come to see that some animals are more equal than others.
 
To Be Announced
Written and directed by Kwame Kwei-Armah
May 10–June 17, 2018
Baltimore Center Stage is finalizing details on a major new project that will be an extraordinary finale to the 2017/18 Season. Like Marley, this play by Artistic Director Kwame Kwei-Armah is still being finalized and is not quite ready to be announced with the rest of the season.
For more information, or to purchase a 2017/18 Season Membership, please call the Box Office at 410.332.0033 or visit centerstage.org.
Baltimore Center Stage is supported by a grant from the Maryland State Arts Council (MSAC), an agency dedicated to cultivating a vibrant cultural community where the arts thrive. An agency of the Department of Business and Economic Development, the MSAC provides financial support and technical assistance to nonprofit organizations, units of government, colleges and universities for arts activities. Funding for the MSAC is also provided by the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency, and the Baltimore County Commission on Arts and Sciences. Baltimore Center Stage’s 2017/18 Season is made possible by The Shubert Foundation and the Baltimore County Commission on Arts and Sciences.
 About Baltimore Center Stage
Baltimore Center Stage is a professional, nonprofit institution committed to entertaining, engaging and enriching audiences through bold, innovative and thought-provoking classical and contemporary theater.
Named the State Theater of Maryland in 1978, Baltimore Center Stage has steadily grown as a leader in the national regional theater scene. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Kwame Kwei-Armah OBE and Managing Director Michael Ross, Baltimore Center Stage is committed to creating and presenting a diverse array of world premieres and exhilarating interpretations of established works.
Baltimore Center Stage believes in access for all—creating a welcoming environment for everyone who enters its theater doors and, at the same time, striving to meet audiences where they are. In addition to its Mainstage, Off Center and Family Series productions in the historic Mount Vernon neighborhood, Baltimore Center Stage ignites conversations among a global audience through digital initiatives, which explore how technology and the arts intersect. The theater also nurtures the next generation of artists and theater-goers through the Young Playwrights Festival, Student Matinee Series and many other educational programs for students, families and professionals.