Cygnet Theatre has announced a joyful and overdue return to in-person performances starting in September. Audiences are set to experience a season of hope, redemption and humor beginning with the long-awaited return of the Tony award-winning musical La Cage Aux Folles with book by Harvey Fierstein and lyrics and music by Jerry Herman. The stellar musical received only one preview performance in 2020 before all stages went dark due to COVID-19. The production is directed by Artistic Director Sean Murray and takes place September 10 – October 24, 2021 at the theatre in Old Town.
After La Cage, Cygnet’s 2021-22 Season continues with the familiar audience favorite A Christmas Carol, directed by Sean Murray and running from Nov. 23 – December 26, 2021. This tried and true classic returns with new cast members, new energy, and new hope.
The new year is kicked off with the big-hearted and bitingly funny Regional Premiere of Life Sucks, a hilarious take on Anton Chekov’s Uncle Vanya, filled with lust, friendship, and unrequited love. Written by playwright Aaron Posner (Stupid F**king Bird) and directed by Associate Artistic Director Rob Lutfy (Cygnet’s The Great Leap), the production runs January 26 – February 27, 2022.
Following is the Pulitzer Prize-winning Water by the Spoonful by Quiara Alegría Hudes (In the Heights, Miss You Like Hell) and directed by Meg DeBoard. This fearless and groundbreaking drama is a healing and heartfelt meditation on lives on the brink of redemption. The production runs March 23 – April 24, 2022.
The penultimate production of the season is Mud Row, a story of two generations of sisters navigating class, race, love and family. Tony Award nominee Dominique Morisseau (Skeleton Crew; Ain’t Too Proud) deftly shifts between past and present to paint a living portrait of family legacy. Cygnet Theatre is thrilled to have this show directed by Delicia Turner Sonnenberg (Cygnet’s The Piano Lesson) from May 18 – June 19, 2022.
The season goes out with a bang, quite literally, with the West Coast Premiere of Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 with book, lyrics and music by Obie Award-winning playwright Dave Malloy and adapted from War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. This electro-pop opera will be directed by Artistic Director Sean Murray and runs March 23 – April 24, 2022.
Tickets for La Cage Aux Folles are on sale now and start at $20 for preview performances. Season subscriptions will be available for sale on July 21. Three show packages start at $60 for preview performances. Single tickets on-sale dates for the rest of the season will be announced at a later date. Subscribers to Cygnet Theatre’s cancelled 2020-21 season will be contacted by the box office to confirm their new selections.
Tickets may be purchased in person at the box office located at 4040 Twiggs Street in San Diego Old Town Historic State Park, by calling 619-337-1525 or visit Cygnet.. Group and child discounts are available.
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Season 2021-22 Productions
Flamboyant Musical Fun
LA CAGE AUX FOLLES
Book by Harvey Fierstein, Lyrics and Music by Jerry Herman
Directed by Sean Murray
Music Direction by Terry O’Donnell
Choreography by Luke Harvey Jacobs
Sep. 10 – Oct. 24, 2021, Opening Night Sep. 17, 2021
After only one pre-pandemic performance, La Cage Aux Folles reclaims the stage for a jubilant in-person return. After twenty years of un-wedded bliss Georges and Albin, two men partnered for better-or-worse get a bit of both when Georges’ son (fathered during a one-night fling) announces his impending marriage to the daughter of a bigoted, right-wing politician. Further complicating the situation is the “family business” – Albin and Georges run a drag nightclub in St. Tropez, where Albin is the star performer Zaza. Georges reluctantly agrees to masquerade as “normal” when he meets the family of the bride-to-be. But Albin has other plans, with hilarious results.
Favorite Holiday Musical
A CHRISTMAS CAROL
Adaptation & Lyrics by Sean Murray
Original Score by Billy Thompson
Directed by Sean Murray
Music Direction by Patrick Marion
Nov. 23 – Dec. 26, 2021, Opening Night Nov. 27, 2021
Cygnet’s holiday smash hit is back for its seventh season! Bring the family back to enjoy the holiday classic, adapted from Charles Dickens’ timeless tale of hope and redemption. This imaginative production features original music, creative stagecraft and puppetry, and live sound effects. Step into a Victorian Christmas card for a unique storytelling experience that is sure to delight the entire family!
Bighearted and Bitingly Funny
REGIONAL PREMIERE
LIFE SUCKS
By Aaron Posner
Directed by Rob Lutfy
Jan. 26 – Feb. 27, 2022, Opening Night Jan. 29, 2022
In this brash and hilarious reworking of Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya, a group of old friends, ex-lovers, estranged in-laws, and lifelong enemies gather to grapple with life’s thorniest questions—and each other. What could possibly go wrong? Incurably lustful and lonely, hapless and hopeful, and full of unrequited love, these seven souls collide and stumble their way towards a new understanding that LIFE SUCKS! Or does it?
Fearless, Groundbreaking Drama
WATER BY THE SPOONFUL
By Quiara Alegría Hudes
Directed by Meg DeBoard
Mar. 23 – Apr 24. 2022, Opening Night Mar. 26, 2022
Somewhere in Philadelphia, Elliot has returned from Iraq and is struggling to find his place in the world. Somewhere in a chat room, recovering addicts keep each other alive, hour by hour, day by day. The boundaries of family and community are stretched across continents and cyberspace as birth families splinter and online families collide. By Tony-winner Quiara Alegría Hudes (In the Heights) and winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, Water by the Spoonful is a healing and heartfelt meditation on lives on the brink of redemption.
Geography, Generations and Gentrification
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PREMIERE
MUD ROW
By Dominique Morisseau
Directed by Delicia Turner Sonnenberg
May 18 – June 19, 2022, Opening Night May 21, 2022
Two generations of sisters navigate class, race, love and family on “Mud Row,” an area in the East End of West Chester, Pennsylvania. Elsie hopes to move up in the world by marrying into “the talented tenth,” while her sister Frances joins the fight for Civil Rights. Decades later, estranged sisters Regine and Toshi are forced to reckon with their shared heritage and each other, when Regine inherits granny Elsie’s house. Tony Award nominee Dominique Morisseau deftly shifts between past and present to paint a living portrait of family legacy.
An Electropop Opera
WEST COAST PREMIERE
NATASHA, PIERRE & THE GREAT COMET OF 1812
Book, Lyrics and Music by Dave Malloy.
Adapted from War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
Directed by Sean Murray
Music Direction by Patrick Marion
Choreography by TBD
Jul. 13 – Aug.21, 2022, Opening Night Jul. 16, 2022
From the celebrated and award-winning composer Dave Malloy comes Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812, an electropop opera based on a scandalous slice of Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace. Young and impulsive, Natasha Rostova arrives in Moscow to await the return of her fiancé from the front lines. When she falls under the spell of the roguish Anatole, it is up to Pierre, a family friend in the middle of an existential crisis, to pick up the pieces of her shattered reputation. This award-winning musical expands the possibilities for the genre with its daring score and bold storytelling.
| Cygnet Theatre Company produces a year-round season of professional Off-Broadway-style theatre as well as thought-provoking and engaging educational programming. Cygnet is committed to maintaining high standards of artistic and fiscal integrity, and serves more than 40,000 patrons annually from San Diego and beyond. Cygnet performs its mainstage productions at the state-of-the-art theatre in Old Town San Diego State Historic Park. An active member of the San Diego community, Cygnet has outreach programs serving tens of thousands of students and community members annually. Cygnet Theatre | 4040 Twiggs St, San Diego, CA 92110 |
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