Female-centered classics dominate Drury Lane's upcoming season
Female-centered favorites of the musical and comedy variety will dominate Drury Lane Theatre's 2020-2021 season, the Oakbrook Terrace theater announced Thursday.
"From strong women driven to make a difference to talented men dedicated to the art form they love, the characters in our next season strive to bring out the best in those around them," said President Kyle DeSantis in a prepared statement.
The season begins April 10 with previews for Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's "Evita," a rags-to-riches tale of Eva Peron's transformation from impoverished young girl to the First Lady of Argentina.
That's followed by the heartstring-tugging "Steel Magnolias," Robert Harling's southern soap opera about six women who celebrate life's triumphs and help each other overcome life's obstacles. It runs July 2 through Aug. 23, 2020.
"Forever Plaid," a jukebox tuner about a 1950s guy group killed on the eve of a breakout concert, runs Sept. 4 to Oct. 25, 2020.
Drury Lane's seasonal fare includes "Irving Berlin's Holiday Inn," based on the film about a song-and-dance man who retires to run a Connecticut inn open only on holidays and enlists help from a comely schoolteacher to do it. It runs Nov. 6, 2020, through Jan. 3, 2021.
The season concludes with a revival of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II's classic "The King and I," about a British tutor and her royal employer and their struggles over race, gender and class. It runs Jan. 15, 2021, through March 21, 2021.
Performances take place at 100 Drury Lane, Oakbrook Terrace. Season subscriptions start at $170. (630) 530-0111 or drurylanetheatre.com.