OnStage, Georgetown: July and August Shows
By • June 27, 2024 0 119
By Mark Edelman
July and August offer audiences a wonderful smorgasbord of Broadway musicals, along with some top-drawer dramas and a comedy. Enjoy a summer gasp of theater in air-conditioned comfort.
HAIR Signature Theatre Through July 7
Your last chance to see Matthew Gardiner’s spot-on revival of everyone’s favorite hippie musical. Even if you can fry an egg on the sidewalk, “let the sunshine in” still makes for a fun-filled finale. Tickets at www.sigtheatre.org
Robert Morrison, Awa Sal Secka and Robert Cornelius in Signature Theatre’s “Where the Mountain Meets the Sea.” Photo by Christopher Mueller.
WHERE THE MOUNTAIN MEETS THE SEA Signature Theatre Through July 7
While the Age of Aquarius dawns downstairs, Signature’s intimate Ark space plays host to the D.C. premier of this poignant musical about a son coming to grips with his estranged father’s passing. Recreating the same cross-country trip his Haitian immigrant parents took before his birth, the music proves to the thing that bonds them as time blurs and the distance between them diminishes. Lyrical storytelling and an evocative folk score drive father and son to rediscover love, each other and their everlasting bond. Tickets at www.sigtheatre.org
IS GOD IS Constellation Theatre Through July 14
Twin sisters embark on a journey across America to exact righteous revenge on the man who betrayed their family in this Afropunk musical adventure. Tickets at www.constellationtheatre.org
FUNNY GIRL Kennedy Center Through July 14
The musical that made Streisand a star tours the country after an extended run on Broadway. Tickets at www.kennedy-center.org
KNUFFLE BUNNY: A CAUTIONARY MUSICAL Glen Echo Park Through July 14
D.C.’s award-winning Adventure Theatre MTC presents a new musical based on the Caldecott winning book by Mo Willems. When Trixie and her father bustle through the streets of New York City, everything is hunky dory. But, returning home, Trixie discovers that her Knuffle Bunny is gone—and she can’t tell her dad what’s wrong. Tickets at www.adventureintheatre-mtc.org
JERSEY BOYS Toby’s Dinner Theatre Through Sept. 1
The story of four blue-collar juvenile delinquents who became one of the greatest successes in pop music history, this show takes you behind the music of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons. Discover the secret of a 40-year friendship as they work their way from the streets of Jersey to the heights of stardom. All the Four Seasons hits, all the time. Tickets at www.tobysdinnertheatre.com
THE COLORED MUSEUM Studio Theatre July 3 to Aug. 11
Broadway wunderkind George Wolfe got his start writing this provocative tour of eleven “exhibits”— satiric sketches targeting America’s most pernicious stereotypes of Black culture. Directed by Psalmayene 24, who staged an enchanting “Metamorphoses” at the Folger Shakespeare Library Theatre, you can bet this production won’t hold back on Wolfe’s toxic narratives about the Black American experience. Tickets at www.studiotheatre.org
BEAUTIFUL: THE CAROLE KING MUSICAL Olney Theatre Center July 3 to Aug. 25
Before she became the legendary singer-songwriter who helped define an era, Carole King was a 16-year-old Brooklyn kid trying to sell her songs to Tin Pan Alley publishers. Then she met Gerry Goffin; together they churned out hits like “Take Good Care of My Baby,” “Up On The Roof,” and “Will You (Still) Love Me Tomorrow” for pop acts like the Shirelles and the Drifters. Did their partnership and romance survive the ups and downs of the music biz? Tickets at www.olneytheatre.org
MEMPHIS Alexandria Little Theatre July 20 to Aug. 10
This Tony Award winning Best Musical by Bon Jovi sideman David Bryan tales the sobering tale of a 1950s era disc jockey who falls in love with the new-fangled rock and roll songs he hears on the backstreets of this Tennessee town, along with the beautiful girl who sings them. The problem? He’s White and she’s Black. Problems ensue—can love conquer all? Tickets at www.thelittletheatre.com
Casey Likes and the Broadway cast of “Back to the Future.” Photo by Matthew Murphy.
BACK TO THE FUTURE… THE MUSICAL Kennedy Center July 23 to Aug. 11
Adapted for the stage by Bob Gale and Robert Zemeckis, the film’s creators, this happy new stage show won London’s Best Musical Award. Once again, Marty McFly finds himself transported back to 1955 in a time machine built by the eccentric scientist Doc Brown. Now Marty’s in a race against time to fix the present, escape the past, and send himself… back to the future. Will he get that DeLorean up to 88mph when lightning strikes? Head to the Ken Center and find out. Tickets at www.kennedy-center.org
NOISES OFF Keegan Theatre July 27 to Sept. 1
Michael Frayn’s door-slamming farce could be the funniest play ever written. The Keegan brings back their acclaimed 2010 production that played to sold-out houses. Why be a Scrooge and stay away this time? Tickets at www.keegantheatre.com
NINE Kennedy Center Aug. 2 to 11
Jeffrey Finn and his producing team at the Ken Center keep serving up wonderful musical revivals, rivaling City Center Encore for top drawer talent and first class design and direction, Next up is this Tony Award winning Best Musical based on Fellini’s groundbreaking film 8 ½. Famed Italian director Guido Contini, suffering from “director’s block” and a strained marriage, retreats into his mind, where all of the women in his life bombard his senses and throw reality into question. Tickets at www.kennedy-center.org
Roman Banks and the cast of “MJ.” Photo by Matthew Murphy.
MJ National Theatre Aug. 13 to Sept. 8
Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Lynn Nottage takes us beyond the singular moves and signature sounds of the Gloved One in this thrilling look at the creative mind and collaborative spirit of Michael Jackson. A legend is born before our eyes, while the messier parts of this controversial superstar’s story are left for others to tell. Tickets at www.broadwayatthenational.com
MAMMA MIA Kennedy Center Aug. 13 to Sept. 1
A mother. A daughter. Three possible dads. The timeless hits of ABBA. What else do you need for a frothy summer evening or matinee of secrets, swimming and sex? It’s oft-forgotten, but this was the show that brought New York City back to the theater after 9/11. Times may be tough now, but not that tough. Tickets at www.kennedy-center.org
Mark Edelman is a playwright who loves writing about theater. He is a lifetime member of the Broadway League and a Tony voter.
