Sept. 27, 2024, is the opening night for “When Pigs Fly,” the first mainstage show at the Bank Theatre-Aronoff Center in Cincinnati. This show has a special meaning to the director, Michael Hatton.
“‘When Pigs Fly’ is the first show that I saw in New York City when I was a teenager and I have been waiting 27 years to direct this, so I am very excited for our incredible students to bring this to life,” Hatton said.
The show is set in New York City recently after the playwright (the person who wrote the play), Howard Crabtree’s high school graduation and a big move from Missouri. Crabtree’s high school guidance counselor advised him not to pursue theater, but he did it anyway.
Things are not going as planned and Crabtree has all of the pressure on himself. He starts to hear the negative voice of his guidance counselor in the back of his head and starts to believe his dreams will only come true when pigs fly. This show features a full male cast.
The next show for the season is “The Wolves” by Sarah Delappe. It is the opposite of “When Pigs Fly,” featuring a full female cast. The stage is set in an indoor soccer facility as nine female soccer players are warming up for their games over consecutive weekends. Life lessons are examined through the voices of nine teenage girls; ultimately their goal is to win the next game.
“We started doing training and conditioning because of how active this show is. We had a personal trainer come in and give us workouts. We also had to go to the NKU girls’ soccer games and practices and get a feel about how it is actually like to play,” said Ella Prather, who will play the role of Player #13. All of the cast members are named their soccer number.
This show will bring a theatrical element as well as talented soccer skills to the stage. The show will also be presented at the Bank Theatre-Aronoff Center.
The final show, “Anything Goes,” is planned to be back on NKU’s campus at the Corbett Theatre. The Corbett Theatre has been under construction since July 17, 2023.
“Getting to be this sophisticated swanky jazz singer, but also getting to tap my face off and sing the whole show and it is going to be so much fun,” said Kristin Kaufman, playing Reno Sweeney.
“Anything Goes” follows Reno Sweeney’s life on board as she sails from New York to England. With Sweeney are two couples that should not be together, but find that fate has a different plan for them. Large company tap numbers and high-energy performances take sail through this exciting drama.
All tickets for “When Pigs Fly” and “The Wolves” can be purchased on https://www.cincinnatiarts.org/events and nku.edu/tickets, and tickets for “Anything Goes” can be purchased only on nku.edu/tickets.
“When Pigs Fly” will run from Sept. 27- Oct. 6, “The Wolves” will run from Oct. 24- Nov. 3 and “Anything Goes” will run from Nov. 15- 23.