Wichita State's School of Performing Arts introduces the 2017-18 performance season.
For more information about tickets, contact the WSU Box Office at 316-978-3233 or www.wichita.edu/fineartsboxoffice. The Box Office is located in Duerksen Fine Arts Center. Ticket prices vary upon event. WSU students can receive one free ticket per event with a current WSU ID.
“States of Happiness” by Josh Whedon
Times: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday; 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
Dates: Sept. 27 – Oct. 1
Location: Welsbacher Theatre, 29th and Oliver Entrance F
This performance is the winner of the WSU Playwriting Competition. Join the central character as she seeks for meaning and falls into an experiment that may have drastic repercussions. Rated PG.
“Little Shop of Horrors” Music by Alan Menken, book and lyrics by Howard Ashman
Times: 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday
Dates: Oct. 26-29
Location: Wilner Auditorium
Enjoy this story based on the 1960s low-budget movie by Roger Corman about a man-eating plant. Will Seymour find true love? Will Audrey dump her mean boyfriend? Do we need to fear the man-eating plant? Join us for this hilarious romp. Rated PG.
“L’elisir d’amore” Donizetti
Times: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday
Dates: Nov. 10-11
Location: Miller Concert Hall
As one of the most loved of all Donzetti’s operas, this performance combines touching romances and hilarious comedy with beautiful music. Rated G.
“A Hedda Gabler” by Nigel O’Hearn
Times: 7:30 p.m. Thursday – Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday
Dates: Nov. 16-19
Location: Wilner Auditorium
Hedda Gabler returns from a lackluster honeymoon to find herself trapped in a life lacking in personal agency. Boredom and oppression lead her to manipulate the lives of others in an effort to become master of her fate; a path that ends in destruction. Rated PG.
Kansas Dance Festival 2017
Times: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday
Dates: Dec. 1-2
Location: Wilner Auditorium
WSU faculty and original guest choreography will bring a variety of contemporary dance in all areas: ballet, modern and jazz. The program will also host choreography from regional university dance programs designed to offer audiences an evening of performance that embraces the diversity and vibrancy of dance from the Midwest. Rated G.
Children’s Dance Festival 2018
Time: 2 p.m.
Date: Jan. 28
Location: Wilner Auditorium
WSU Dance hosts the annual performance of Wichita and regional dance academies choreography highlighting the dance professionals of tomorrow. Rated G.
“I Love You Because” Music by Joshua Salzman, book and lyrics bv Ryan Cunningham
Times: 7:30 p.m. Wednesday – Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday
Date: Feb. 14-18
Location: Welsbacher Theatre, 29th and Oliver Entrance F
This romantic comedy is a modern twist of Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice.” An uptight greeting card writer’s life is changed when he meets a flighty photographer. Join the characters as they learn to love each other not in spite of their faults but because of them. Rated PG.
“Little Women” Music by Jason Howard, lyrics by Mindi Dickson, book by Allan Knee
Times: 7:30 p.m. Thursday – Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday
Date: March 1-4
Location: Wilner Auditorium
This Civil War story of love and family stands the test of time as a true crowd pleaser. Rated G.
WCDT Spring Dance Concert 2018
Times: 7:30 p.m. Friday – Saturday
Dates: March 9-10
Location: Miller Concert Hall
This spring concert presents WSU and guest faculty works that define and celebrate a dance program with a vision of innovative, insightful and dynamic choreography. Rated G.
“Le Nozze di Figaro” W.A. Mozart
Times: 7:30 p.m. Thursday – Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday
Dates: April 19-22
Location: Miller Concert Hall
The opera has delighted audiences for more than 200 years. The enduring tale of class differences and privilege is particularly relevant today. Rated G.
SPECIAL SPRING EVENT “Sidekicks!” an Original Film, written and directed by Bret Jones
Time, date and location TBA
See what happens when the world’s superheroes go underground, leaving their Sidekicks to face evil in their place. This film chronicles the adventures of four hapless and hopeless sidekicks as they deal with life on a budget, mundane house chores and facing down the Gunslinger and Evil incarnate.
The mission of Wichita State University is to be an essential educational, cultural and economic driver for Kansas and the greater public good. Wichita State is a doctoral research university enrolling nearly 15,000 students and offering 59 undergraduate degree programs in more than 150 areas of study in seven undergraduate colleges. The Graduate School offers 45 master’s and 12 doctoral degrees that offer study in more than 100 areas. Wichita State’s Innovation Campus is an interconnected community of partnership buildings, laboratories and mixed-use areas where students, faculty, staff, entrepreneurs and businesses have access to the university’s vast resources and technology. For more information, follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/wichitastate and Facebook at www.facebook.com/wichita.state.