The Washington University spring theater season opened to stunning applause last week with the Performing Arts Department’s “Trestle at Pope Lick Creek” and the improv group K.A.R.L.’s “Stache Bache.” Preparations also started with All Student Theater’s auditions for their upcoming show, “Urinetown.” Once started, this season is picking up speed, opening one show after the other.
This weekend, the Black Anthology student groups open their annual “Black Anthology” show at the Edison Theater at 7 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 1 and Saturday, Feb. 2. If the “Black Anthology” leaves you thirsting for more theater, check out this weekend’s big comedy show, as Suspicious of Whistlers performs its first show of the semester at 8 p.m. in Brown 100 this Saturday, Feb. 2.
Between last weekend and this coming weekend, theater at Washington University is booming. It’s no surprise, considering all of the student theater opportunities. Behind the basketball, the biology review sessions and the student political activism, the Washington University theater scene has blossomed. The school has the Performing Arts Department (PAD), with shows directed by professors in the performing arts. It also has Thyrsus, All Student Theater and Cast’n’Crew, which are student-run theater groups, all performing on campus. The improv scene is hard to miss; as a student, you might very well get hugged by a giant panda on campus representing KARL, or stumble into an improv show at Ursa’s. There are three improv groups on campus that perform separately and in larger shows together, like the ComedySportz Battle on March 27, which features KARL, Mama’s Pot Roast and Suspicious of Whistlers. The University also boasts two dance teams, the WUStyle step team and Jive.
All of these groups on campus mean one thing: lots of theater, lots of performances and lots of chances to watch fellow students perform. This semester boasts four PAD productions, numerous improv shows, All Student Theater in the Quad and much more.
Professionally, “Avenue Q” is coming to the Fox Theatre. It’s not every day that St. Louis hosts a Tony Award-winning show complete with a parental advisory and a commercial that specifically says, “If you are in college.this show is for you!” The show will be running from Feb. 12 thru Feb. 24. Also, if you have not yet had a chance, this weekend is the last opportunity to see David Hare’s “The Vertical Hour” at the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis.
The arts are all around you. They’re funny, they’re dramatic, they sing, they dance. This is a semester full of Washington University theatrics.