UAFS Season of Entertainment to feature ‘Spamalot’

story info submitted by the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith

The 31st year for Season of Entertainment  at the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith promises to be another good one and one filled with some “firsts” when the annual entertainment extravaganza begins in October.

The four national touring events are “RAIN — A Tribute to the Beatles,” “The Wizard of Oz,” “Monty Python’s Spamalot” and “Come Fly Away.”

Stacey Jones, associate vice chancellor for campus and community events, said two of the touring shows for Season 31 have a “first” attached.

“This will be the first time in the history of Season of Entertainment for us to have two new shows right off of Broadway, ‘RAIN’ and ‘Come Fly Away,’” who added that he saw “RAIN” this past January in New York.

“I saw people from ages 18 to 80 on their feet and having a great time,” he said. “This show is truly one that the entire family will enjoy.”

Jones first saw “The Wizard of Oz” as a national touring show two years ago.

“This is a show for kids of all ages,” he said. “And this is the final year for this tour. It’s a big show, and again, it’s a great family show.”

He said “Monty Python’s Spamalot” will bring humor and great music to the stage, and he expects the audience to be wowed by “Come Fly Away.”

“‘Come Fly Away’ brings to the theater the choreography of Twyla Tharp, who did the musical ‘Movin’ Out,’ and combines it with the voice of Frank Sinatra and 14 of the top dancers in the country for a show that will really entertain,” Jones said.

He is enthusiastic about the touring shows and believes the audience will feel the same way.

“We have a Beatles depiction with ‘RAIN,’ the unforgettable trip to Kansas in ‘The Wizard of Oz,” the inexplicable humor in ‘Monty Python’s Spamalot’ and the magic of Frank Sinatra combined with a live on-stage band and dramatic dancers telling the story of four couples falling in and out of love in ‘Come Fly Away.’ You just can’t beat this year’s group of shows.”

He added that Season 31 will also include two changes in shows featuring UAFS students.

The annual Season’s Greetings Concert is usually followed by a campus lighting. This year the two will be reversed. The lighting of the campus for the holidays will be done at 6:30 p.m. Dec. 6, with the concert in Stubblefield Center to follow.

The second change is an addition to the Season schedule of a January production of South Pacific by students in both the Music and Drama Departments, which Jones said is the first time in more than 30 years for a musical of this magnitude to be presented by students.

Season tickets, priced at $166, are on sale through July 31. Individual ticket sales begin Aug. 1.
 
The complete Season 31 calendar includes:

Oct. 6-8: UAFS theatre production, “Three Sisters.”

Oct. 18: UAFS choral concert.

Oct. 26: National touring event — “RAIN — A Tribute to the Beatles.”

Oct. 31: UAFS Symphonic Band concert.

Nov. 14: National touring event — “The Wizard of Oz.”

Nov. 22: UAFS jazz concert.

Dec. 6: UAFS Season’s Greetings Concert and campus lighting.

Jan. 20-22: UAFS production by music and theatre students, “South Pacific.”

Jan. 30: National touring event — “Monty Python’s Spamalot.”

Feb. 13: National touring event — “Come Fly Away.”

March 12: UAFS Symphonic Band concert.

March 15-17: UAFS theatre production, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”

April 12: UAFS Jazz Concert.

April 24: UAFS choral concert.

Curtain time for national touring shows and for UAFS vocal and instrumental music concerts is 7:30 p.m. at the Arkansas Best Corp. Performing Arts Center at the Fort Smith Convention Center, 55 S. 7th St.

The Season’s Greetings Concert begins at 6:30 p.m. on the Campus Green with a holiday lighting of the campus, followed by the concert in Stubblefield Center.

Drama productions on Oct. 6-8 and on March 15-17 are at 7:30 p.m. in Breedlove Auditorium at UAFS. The January production, to be held at the Fort Smith Convention Center, has a 2:30 p.m. matinee on the final day, Jan. 22.

UAFS packages national touring productions with UAFS concerts and productions into the Season of Entertainment schedule each year. For more information, contact the Box Office at 479-788-7300.