‘Elf,’ ‘Bridges’ and more: Circa ’21 Unveils Its 41st Season
Located in downtown Rock Island, the Circa ’21 Dinner Playhouse has been treating audiences to the finest in dining and professional stage entertainment for the past 40 years. And for the venue’s sure-to-be-sensational 41st season, beginning this November, the venue is proud to announce a lineup boasting six marvelous productions that have never before been seen on the Circa ’21 stage – among them three new musicals based on beloved movies, the latest in the popular Church Basement Ladies series, and one of the most popular Broadway titles in the history of American theatre.
Circa ’21 productions are performed on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 7:45 p.m. (with doors opening at 5:45 p.m. and a buffet dinner served from 6 to 7 p.m.), Sundays at 5:45 p.m. (3:45 p.m. doors, 4 to 5 p.m. dinner), and Wednesday matinées at 1:30 p.m. Each performance is also preceded by a 15-minute stage entertainment with the Circa ’21 Bootleggers, one of only two performing wait staffs in the entire country. Tickets for the Wednesday through Sunday evening performances are $48 plus tax, tickets for the Wednesday matinées are $42.50 plus tax, and there are reduced prices available for students, seniors, and groups of 12 or more.
Season subscriptions for the 2017-18 season – available in Bronze, Silver, Gold, and the all-access Diamond Pass variations – are also available for Circa ’21’s six upcoming shows, and can, as with individual tickets, be purchased through the Circa ’21 ticket office. For reservations, contact the theatre at 1828 Third Avenue, Rock Island or by calling (309)786-7733 extension 2, or visiting Circa21.com.
Circa ’21’s 41st-anniversary season begins with the stage version of a holiday-film favorite: ELF: THE MUSICAL (November 8 through December 30). This wonderful family entertainment based on the Will Ferrell comedy finds the baby William “Buddy” Hobbes crawling into Santa’s bag of gifts and being transported to the North Pole. Years later, the enormous adult Buddy learns that he’s not an actual elf and returns to New York in search of his family, determined to win them over and help the clan – and all of Manhattan – remember the true meaning of Christmas. Audiences of all ages will delight in this yuletide treat that has enjoyed enthusiastic praise and two separate runs of Broadway.
Rock Island’s dinner theatre will follow this holiday hit with a brand-new musical based on a timeless Disney comedy: FREAKY FRIDAY (January 17 through March 24). When an overworked mother and her teenage daughter magically swap bodies, they have just 24 hours before Mom’s big wedding to put things right again. It’s a hilarious, contemporary update on the classic story that starred Jodie Foster and Barbara Harris in 1976 and Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis in 2003, and is sure to start Circa ’21’s 2018 with a blast of pure enjoyment never-before seen in the Quad Cities region.
Another area premiere arrives with some familiar faces – and a bunch of new ones – in THE CHURCH BASEMENT LADIES IN “RISE UP, O MEN” (March 28 through May 12). Audiences the world over have fallen in love with this series’ group of hardworking and hysterical Lutheran women. But in this latest musical comedy, we’re introduced to characters who have been much-discussed but never seen, including Karin’s husband Elroy, the aging farmer Carl, and the hard-of-hearing World War I veteran Arlo. Their arrival shakes up the ladies’ routine, just as crowds will no doubt shake with laughter in this funny and touching Church Basement Ladies installment.
Following that musical comedy is a deeply moving musical romance: THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY (May 23 through July 14). Based on Roger James Waller’s phenomenally successful bestseller and its Oscar-nominated film version starring Meryl Streep, this love story between a middle-aged woman in rural Iowa and the photo-journalist who enters her world, is a sweeping tale about the roads we travel, the doors we open, and the bridges we dare to cross. Winner of 2014 Tony Awards for Best Score and Best Orchestrations, it’s an honest and heartfelt testament to true love being staged in the Quad Cities for the very first time.
A mother, a daughter, and three possible dads … it has to be the musical sensation MAMMA MIA! (July 18 through September 15)! Employing for its score the catchy pop tunes of the Swedish band ABBA, this Tony-nominated treat – the ultimate feel-good experience – has been seen by over 54 million people worldwide, and currently ranks as the eighth longest-running show in Broadway history. Circa ’21 crowds will certainly understand why after seeing this zippy and funny stage fantasy, with its roster of beloved ABBA numbers including “Dancing Queen,” “SOS,” “Knowing Me, Knowing You,” “Take a Chance on Me,” “Waterloo,” and the unforgettable title track.
Finally, Circa ’21 will wrap up its spectacular 41st season with another mama, and a riotous comedy by the popular playwriting team of Jamie Wooten, Jessie Jones, and Nicholas Hope: MAMA WON’T FLY (September 19 through November 3). In this latest winner by the authors of The Dixie Swim Club, an outrageously funny race against the clock begins when Savannah Sprunt Fairchild Honeycutt agrees to get her feisty mother all the way from Alabama to California in time for her brother’s wedding – even though, as the title suggests, Mama won’t fly. What results is a hilarious and touching tale of familial love and irritation that everyone with a mother will love.
Every offering on the 2017-18 schedule will showcase exceptional professional talents both on- and off-stage, and each one is sure to be enjoyed by both frequent Circa ’21 patrons and those previously unfamiliar with this beloved Quad Cities institution. For tickets and season subscriptions, call (309)786-7733 extension – with additional information always available at Circa21.com – and reserve the best seats in the house for the theatre’s amazing 41st season!
