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by Rebecca Rudnyk
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Arizona State University’s ASU Gammage recently announced its 2018-2019 Broadway Season, further solidifying its place amongst the most reputable venues for seeing high-caliber theatre in the southwest.
In early 2018, Gammage hosted one of the earliest runs of the Hamilton tour, reportedly bringing in patrons from all over the globe and ultimately having an estimated $50 million in local economic impact.
Hamilton helped Gammage sell out its season tickets for the first time in its 52-year history. For the season immediately following, the venue had to deliver some pretty epic options to retain its subscribers. And if success is based on bringing the touring shows the theatre community is most excited about, they were tremendously successful.
The following touches on just a couple of the most buzzed-about shows coming this season.
The 2018-2019 season kicks off with Waitress, running October 2-7, 2018. The music was written by pop artist Sara Bareilles, known for radio hits including “Love Song” and “Brave”, and as a recently featured actress in Waitress on Broadway along co-(pop)star Jason Mraz. She was also featured as Mary Magdalene in Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert! on NBC this past Easter.
The music of Waitress is infectious, with its standout song, “She Used To Be Mine” appearing in everything from a beautiful performance (by the runner up) on The Voice, to an abundance of powerful renditions trending all over social media. Waitress is garnering tremendous buzz in the musical community and bringing it to Tempe is an ideal way for Gammage to demonstrate its commitment to bringing shows to the Valley that are on the highest levels of the ‘official theatre nerd’ wish list.
Dear Evan Hansen opens on November 27 at Gammage. This one may need no additional context, but if you are not already familiar, this show is considered by many to be the most powerful story being told on Broadway today. The tangible tragedy of youth, combined with thoughtful consideration of how social media can create incredibly strong bonds between us. Dear Evan Hansen swept the 2017 Tony’s and is notoriously known for being the show that converts traditionally-stoic theatre-goers (Tina Fey, Stephen Colbert, etc.) into unabashed crybabies.
Season tickets go on sale May 7 and include the 7 show package plus perks, such as early access to the Special Engagement shows (Rent, Wicked, + The Book of Mormon).
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For more info on all on all the productions of the ASU Gammage 2018-2019 Broadway Season, as well as how to purchase tickets for the remaining shows of this season (Les Misérables, The Humans, + School of Rock), visit their website.
