Urinetown: The Musical
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The Play“Coincidentally, just before rehearsals began for the production, New York City had a big scare one day when a horrible smell was detected throughout Manhattan. It was reported on the national news as ‘the big stink.’ Nobody seemed to be able to determine the cause. If you’ll notice, this show takes place “Sometime after the stink years.” And the Chinese government recently announced a program to sell reconstituted urine as drinking water. Urinetown is a wonderfully funny, clever, insightful show, but it is a SATIRE... let’s hope it stays that way." – Jim Hesselman |
“Urinetown: The Musical” will close the University of Louisville Theatre Program’s spring season April 18-22.
The play, which has won three Tony Awards, three Outer Circle Critics' Awards, two Lucille Lortel Awards and two Obie Awards, will be staged at UofL’s Playhouse Theatre at Cardinal Avenue between Second and Third streets.
Performan ces will begin at 8 p.m. April 18, 19, 20 and 22. There will be 3 p.m. performances April 21 and 22.
Set in a city of the future, “Urinetown” is the satirical story of a hero who rises to defend the poor and liberate the pay, corporate-owned potties after the government bans private facilities during a severe water shortage.
Hesselman, an actor, director and writer, earned his master of fine arts degree from UofL in 1992. He runs Theatre Island Productions and has acted in, written or directed more than 100 Derby Dinner Playhouse productions.
He also performed with the national tour of “Anything Goes” and the 20 th anniversary tour of the original “Nunsense.”
Ticket prices are $10 for the general public, $9 for UofL employees and senior citizens and $7 for students. Call the box office at 502-852-6814 for reservations or group ticket prices.
For more information, call Hesselman at 502-641-7684.
The Players
Christina M. Browder (Soupy Sou, Cladwell’s Assistant), Clanton, AL, is a first-year MFA student in Performance. She most recently performed as Lady Capulet in Romeo and Juliet. Past productions elsewhere include Phaedra, For Colored Girls . . . , The Trial, and The First Breeze of Summer.
Kristy Calman (Penny Pennywise), Sturgis, KY, earned a minor in theatre from Murray State University. This is her debut performance at UofL. Past credits elsewhere include Ado Annie in Oklahoma, Mrs. Pearce in My Fair Lady, Mama Rose in Gypsy, and Annie Oakley in Annie Get Your Gun.
Drew Cash (Tiny Tom, Dr. Billeaux), Hardinsburg, KY, is a freshman Theatre Arts major. He most recently performed as Paris in Romeo and Juliet. Past productions elsewhere include Bye, Bye Birdie and You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown. He also co-wrote and performed in various roles in four original musicals at Breckinridge County High School.
Erik Anthony DeCicco (Bobby Strong), Jacksonville, FL, is a second-year MFA student in Performance. He earned his BA in English and a BFA in Performance at Jacksonville University. Past credits at UofL include Daniel in Night Sky, Kaden in As Bees in Honey Drown, and Dr. Bradman in Blithe Spirit. Past productions elsewhere include: Assassins, The Goodbye Girl, You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown, Twelfth Night, You Can’t Take It with You, Suessical! The Musical and The Threepenny Opera.
Kate Holland (Prince, Assistant Director), Bowling Green, KY, is a junior Theatre Arts major. Past credits at UofL include Princess in Romeo and Juliet, Interpreter in Arabian Nights, Robin Starveling in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Teacher in Playwriting 101. She performed in School Play with the Rep Company in Russia. Other productions elsewhere include Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Once upon a Mattress, Singin’ in the Rain, and Big River. She has also performed with the Storytelling Drama Troupe in Bowling Green, KY.
Justin Hornback (Old Man Strong, Mr. McQueen), Elizabethtown, KY, is a sophomore History major. This is his debut performance at UofL. Past credits elsewhere include Jimmy Smith in Thoroughly Modern Millie, Charles Thomson in 1776 at Hardin County Schools PAC, Man 1 in I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change, and James Keller in The Miracle Worker at the Hardin County Playhouse.
Doug James (Officer Barrel, Robby the Stockfish), LaFollette, TN, is a second-year MFA student in Performance. He earned his BA in Theatre at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. Past credits at UofL include Friar Lawrence in Romeo and Juliet, Autolycus in The Winter’s Tale, stage manager for A Doll House, Roy Bryant in The Face of Emmett Till, and fight choreographer for As Bees in Honey Drown. Past productions include: Waiting for Godot, Oklahoma!, Sing Down the Moon, ‘Tis a Pity She’s a Whore, King Stag, and Romeo and Juliet. Directing credits include: The Most Massive Woman Wins, Time Flies,How I Learned to Drive, For Whom the Southern Bell Tolls, The Stonewater Rapture, and Phillip Glass Buys a Loaf of Bread.
Brandon Meeks (Officer Lockstock), Louisville, KY, is a junior English and Humanities major. Past credits include Student 2 in Refractions, Romeo in Romeo and Juliet, Clown in The Winter’s Tale, and Evan Wyler in As Bees in Honey Drown. He is a member of The Indicators improv troupe.
Corey Music (Senator Fipp, Male Cop), Painstville, KY, is a freshman Theatre Arts and English major. He most recently performed as Sampson in Romeo and Juliet. Past productions include A Christmas Carol, Peter Pan, Legend of Jenny Wiley, The Music Man, Beauty and the Beast, and Jesus Christ Superstar at Jenny Wiley Theatre.
Jaycee Padilla (Little Becky Two-Shoes, Mrs. Millenium) is a junior majoring in both English and Psychology at UofL. This is her debut performance at UofL. Past productions stage managed include Blithe Spirit, My Secret Language of Wishes, and Laundry and Bourbon. Past productions she stage managed at Hardin County Playhouse include Harvey, Cemetery Club, Crimes of the Heart, and Unexpected Guest. She also performed in several productions at the Hardin County Playhouse and Elizabethtown Community College and is the Drama Club coach at Radcliff Middle School.
Raven J. Railey (Josephine Strong, Female Cop), from Morro Bay, CA, is a third-year MFA student in Performance. Past UofL productions include In the Blood, The Face of Emmett Till, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Boston Marriage, No Exit,A Fallen Angel, Stage Manager for King Hedley II, and Assistant Director for Refractions. Railey also studied acting at San Francisco State University. She performed with the Central Coast Shakespeare Festival for six seasons and performed five seasons with the Centerpoint Theatre Group, both in San Luis Obispo, CA.
Daniel Smith (Hot Blades Harry), Bardstown, KY, is a sophomore Vocal Music major with a minor in Theatre Arts. This is his debut performance at UofL. Past credits elsewhere include Chorus in Carousel, Disciple in Jesus Christ Superstar, Jack in Into the Woods, and Jester in Madrigal Dinner.
Jennifer Thompson (Billy Jo Bill, UGC Executive #1), Louisville, KY, is a freshman majoring in both Vocal Music Education and Theatre Arts. This is her debut performance at UofL. She is a member of the UofL Marching Band and University Chorus.
Cory Vaughn (Caldwell B. Cladwell), Louisville, KY, earned his BA in Musical Theatre from UofL in 2004. Past credits include various characters in Night Sky, Chorus in The Firebugs, and Diomedes and Helen in Troilus and Cressida. Past credits elsewhere include Witherspoon in 1776, Sasha in Fiddler on the Roof, The Royal Herald in Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella, and Chorus in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
Amy Wheatley (Minnie, UGC Executive #2), Elizabethtown, KY, is a sophomore Theatre Arts major. This is her debut performance at UofL. Past credits elsewhere include Pearl Lady and Cora in Thoroughly Modern Millie, dancer in Peter Pan, Dream Laurey in Oklahoma!, and dancer in Dames at Sea. Amy has 14 years of ballet training and 10 years of choral and voice training. She is a 2003 alumna of the Governor’s School for the Arts.
Bridget Witzke (Hope Cladwell), Louisville, KY, is a freelance hair and makeup artist and instructor at Folsom Academy of the Arts. This is her debut performance at UofL. Past credits elsewhere include Meg Brockie in Brigadoon, Reno Sweeney in Anything Goes at the Music Theatre of Louisville, and Marty in Grease at Derby Dinner Playhouse. She earned her degree in Musical Theatre from the University of Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music.
The Director
Jim Hesselman is a 1992 MFA graduate of the Theatre Department and happy to be returning to the UofL stage. Originally from Milwaukee, WI, he has made his home in the Kentuckiana area for over twenty years. He is an actor, director, writer, and in September published his first book with Back Stage Books: How I Lost 10 Pounds in 53 Years, a memoir with actress, singer, comedienne, Kaye Ballard. He has acted, written, and/or directed over 100 productions at Derby Dinner Playhouse in Clarksville. He has also performed all over the country, including almost two years on the road playing Billy Crocker opposite Days of Our Lives diva Gloria Loring on the national tour of Anything Goes and Father Virgil in the Twentieth Anniversary tour of the original Nunsense starring Kaye Ballard, Lee Meriwether, Georgia Engel, Mimi Hines, and Darlene Love. Offstage, he has been Producing Artistic Director of the Shawnee Summer Theatre in Bloomfield, IN and of Music Theatre Louisville. He also runs his own production company, Theatre Island Productions, with his partner, Cary Wiger. As a playwright, he has written over twenty children’s productions, a gospel musical called Celebrate, and co-written the gospel musical comedies, Peace in the Valley and Sing Hallelujah! Both are enjoying new productions this season around the country.
The Stage
The UofL Playhouse
1911 S. 3rd Street
Louisville , KY 40208
Built in 1874, the current Playhouse originally served as a small, interdenominational chapel for a local orphanage. In 1923, the University of Louisville acquired the land on which the chapel stood, converted the structure into a theatre, and designated it a "temporary building" for use until a permanent theatre could be erected.
In 1977, the Playhouse was dismantled to make room for the construction of the William F. Ekstrom Library and Learning Resources Center. The building was systematically taken apart and safely put into storage.
Rebuilt in 1980 on the traffic island between 2nd and 3rd streets at Cardinal Ave., the Playhouse was expanded to include a basement and full-working scene shop. It is also the location of the offices of the Technical Director and Scene Shop Foreman.
The Playhouse is located on the corner of Cardinal Blvd. & 3rd Street. Metered street parking is available along 3rd Street and Cardinal Blvd. Free parking in the university parking lots located on 3rd St. is free after 7:30 p.m. weekdays and all day on weekends.
Click here for Map
The Ticket
Box Office
HPES / Studio Arts Building
Corner of Floyd and Warnock Streets
Office Hours
Monday - Friday
10am - 3pm
(502) 852-6814
Ticket Price
General Public - $10
Students - $7
Senior Citizens - $9
U of L Faculty/Staff - $9
Season Tickets - $30.00-$45.00 (Order Form) [DOC]
Additional Information
To make ticket reservations, please contact the Box Office Manager, Debbie Hudson, at 852-6814. Accepted methods of payment include Visa & Mastercard.