The Venue Theatre exists to provide an accepting and enriching environment for the youth of our community—for discovery, exploration, and celebration of their unique and extraordinary abilities.
High School Company
In roaring twenties Chicago, chorine Roxie Hart murders a faithless lover and convinces her hapless husband, Amos, to take the rap... until he finds out he's been duped and turns on Roxie. Convicted and sent to death row, Roxie and another "Merry Murderess," Velma Kelly, vie for the spotlight and the headlines, ultimately joining forces in search of the "American Dream": fame, fortune, and acquittal.
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Cost: $750
Audition Workshop: Sunday August 13 1-5pm
Auditions: Tuesday August 15th
Rehearsals: Tuesday/Thursday 6:00-8:30pm beginning August 17th
Show Dates: December 1-9, 2023
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Four eccentric Broadway stars are in desperate need of a new stage. So when they hear that trouble is brewing around a small-town prom, they know that it’s time to put a spotlight on the issue…and themselves. The town’s parents want to keep the high school dance on the straight and narrow—but when one student just wants to bring her girlfriend to prom, the entire town has a date with destiny. On a mission to transform lives, Broadway’s brassiest join forces with a courageous girl and the town’s citizens and the result is love that brings them all together. Winner of the Drama Desk Award for Best Musical, THE PROM expertly captures all the humor and heart of a classic musical comedy with a message that resonates with audiences now more than ever.
Cost: $750
Rehearsals: Tuesday/Thursday 5:30-8pm beginning January 2024
Show Dates: April 5-13, 2024
Middle School Company
Tom Mizer, a new teacher, wakes up and prepares for his first day of school by practicing what he is going to say to his students. Tom struggles to find the right way to introduce himself, and the Ensemble enters speaking Tom's anxious inner thoughts. Tom decides he needs to relax and turns on the TV, where he finds that Schoolhouse Rock is on ("Schoolhouse Rocky"). Tom is shocked when the characters in the television show begin talking directly to him. Tom's attempts to scare them away fail, and George explains that the characters are just the ideas in Tom's head. Dina points out to Tom that the audience is also part of Tom's psyche. Shulie and the rest of the group pull him into the world of Schoolhouse Rock by explaining, and acting out, the world of nouns ("A Noun Is A Person, Place, Or Thing").
Cost: $650
Auditions: TBD
Rehearsals: Monday 4:30-6:30pm
Show Dates: November 3-11, 2023
Based on the popular comic strip and adapted from the Tony Award-winning Best Musical, with a beloved book and score by Tony Award winners, Thomas Meehan, Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin, Annie JR. features everyone’s favorite little redhead in her very first adventure.
With equal measures of pluck and positivity, little orphan Annie charms everyone's hearts despite a next-to-nothing start in 1930s New York City. Annie is determined to find the parents who abandoned her years ago on the doorstep of an orphanage run by the cruel Miss Hannigan. Annie eventually foils Miss Hannigan's evil machinations, finding a new home and family in billionaire Oliver Warbucks, his personal secretary, Grace Farrell, and a lovable mutt named Sandy.
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*Members of Elementary Company grades K-4 can audition to be a part of Annie JR
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Cost: $650
Auditions: Wednesday February 5th 5:30-7pm
Rehearsals: Wednesdays starting February 5th 5:30-7pm (Mondays will be added after Nemo)
Show Dates: May 3-18, 2024
Elementary Company
Disney’s Finding Nemo JR. is a 60-minute musical adaptation of the beloved 2003 Pixar movie Finding Nemo, with new music by award-winning songwriting team Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez. Marlin, an anxious and over-protective clownfish, lives in the Great Barrier Reef with his kid Nemo, who longs to explore the world beyond their anemone home. But when Nemo is captured and taken to Sydney, Marlin faces his fears and sets off on an epic adventure across the ocean. With the help of lovable characters such as optimistic Dory, laid-back sea turtle Crush, and the supportive Tank Gang, Marlin and Nemo both overcome challenges on their journey to find each other and themselves.
Cost: $650
First Session (Venue Academy) begins September 11th 4-5:30pm (first session ONLY $325)
Second Session (Nemo rehearsal) begins January 2024 (second session ONLY $325)
*Mondays will be added after SchoolHouse Rock LIVE
Show Dates: March 1-9, 2024
10th Anniversary Show
10th Anniversary Show: Les Misérables (grades 7-12 and alumni)
In nineteenth century France, Jean Valjean is released from years of unjust imprisonment, but finds nothing in store for him but mistrust and mistreatment. He breaks his parole in hopes of starting a new life, initiating a lifelong struggle for redemption as he is relentlessly pursued by police inspector Javert, who refuses to believe Valjean can change his ways. Finally, during the Paris student uprising of 1832, Javert must confront his ideals after Valjean spares his life and saves that of the student revolutionary who has captured the heart of Valjean's adopted daughter.
Cost: $650
Show Dates: TBD (June 2024)
