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From a Dublin card game with the devil, to a Division III football controversy that pits a college president and the coach over the sport’s violence, the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh’s 2014-15 Theatre season subjects span an ocean and several decades.

But the thematic Ties that Bind, as billed by the Theatre department, are as classic as they come, subjects that have been dealt with on stage for generations, including “the drama of family, commitment, duty, adversity and, of course, love.”

“We are excited to present a season that engages and challenges the audience,” said UW Oshkosh Theatre Department Chair, Professor and Director Merlaine Angwall. “We think people will be caught up in the uproarious Over the Tavern, swept away by The Seafarer, riveted by The Boy Inside and transported to another time and place with O Pioneers!.”

The UW Oshkosh Theatre season begins Oct. 8 with Over the Tavern, by Tom Dudzick and directed by UW Oshkosh Theatre Professor Jane Purse-Wiedenhoeft. The comedy, set in 1959 and focusing on a boy’s–Rudy’s–curiosity about other religions outside his family’s Catholicism.

“When he tells his teacher, Sister Clarissa, that he would like to shop around for a more fun religion all hell, or rather, ‘heck’ breaks loose,” Purse-Wiedenhoeft said.

Over the Tavern runs from Oct. 8 through Oct. 12 with weeknight and Saturday 7:30 p.m. shows and a Sunday, 2 p.m. matinee. Tickets for this all season performances can be purchased at www.uwosh.edu/theatre.

Here’s a glance at the rest of the 2014-2015 Theatre season, continuing in November and, in 2015, including the theatrical premiere of The Boy Inside, a new play by written and directed by UW Oshkosh Theatre Professor Richard Kalinoski:

The Seafarer
By Conor McPherson
Directed by Merlaine Angwall
Nov. 19-22, 2014, 7:30 p.m.
Nov. 23, 2014, 2:30 p.m.

In the rundown Dublin house where Sharky cares for his blind brother, old acquaintances and an ominous stranger gather for a Christmas Eve card game. As the liquor flows and the game heats up, Sharky realizes he may truly be playing for his soul. In the grand tradition of Irish storytelling, this eerie Christmas fable looks at how people face their demons, past and present. Contains mature language.

The Boy Inside
Theatrical Premiere
By Richard Kalinoski
Directed by Richard Kalinoski
Feb. 18-21, 2015, 7:30 p.m.
Feb. 22, 2015, 2:30 p.m.

Coach Tony Bartolo, the head coach of a college Division III football team, is having his best season ever and vying for the national championship. His college president, Helene Kingston-Barrows, a distinguished academic, suddenly asks Coach Bartolo to suspend his frenzied preparations and contemplate the violent implications of the sport which is America’s obsession. Dr. Kingston-Barrows asks Coach Bartolo to pay attention to another sport—an ancient ritual of rural Afghanistan called Buzkashi. Coach Bartolo is compelled by surprising pressures at his college to re-examine his personal relationship to football and the cultural implications of competitive sports.

O Pioneers!
Adapted from the novel by Willa Cather
Book and lyrics by Darrah Cloud
Music by Kim D Sherman
Directed by Bryan Vandevender
April 29-May 2, 2015, 7:30 p.m.
May 3, 2015, 2 p.m.

Alexandra Bergson inherits the family farm after her father dies. Through harvest, drought and poverty, she struggles to carve a home and a fortune from the windswept prairie all while keeping her three younger brothers together until they are ready to stand on their own. In the process, she makes a place for herself in a male-dominated, early 20th century community through her intellect and strong will.

 

Tickets for UW Oshkosh Theatre performances may be purchased at the campus Box Office or online using the button below. Ticket prices are $14 for general, $11 for senior citizens or alumni and $5 for UW Oshkosh students with ID. All promotions and discounts are valid only at the Box Office and are not available for online ticket sales.

The box office is open the week of the productions from Monday through Friday, Noon to 4 p.m. and evenings of performances from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. On performance Sundays, the box office opens one hour before show time.

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