01/05/18 

HAYS, Kan. – A wonderful variety of musicals, plays, dance and instrumental music make up the spring 2018 shows of the Encore Performing Arts Series at Fort Hays State University.

There is a show for all audiences this spring, with the family friendly musical “The Wizard of Oz” starting off the performance lineup. The season continues with a fantastic mixture of dance, variety performers, comedy theatre and an exciting gypsy jazz quintet.

Spring ticket packages for the Encore Performing Arts Series – a 20-percent discount on the value of the tickets – are now on sale. The packages also allow patrons to lock in their seats before tickets for individual shows go on sale. For more information or to place an order, call the Memorial Union Student Service Center at 785-628-5306 or visit www.fhsu.edu/encore.

Packages for the general public are $130 reserved and $115 unreserved; for seniors packages are $120 reserved and $105 unreserved, packages for children ages 5-17 are $80 reserved and $65 unreserved; and for FHSU students with a Tiger Card, packages are $60 reserved and $50 unreserved.

All performances start at 7:30 p.m. in the Beach/Schmidt Performing Arts Center inside Sheridan Hall on the FHSU campus. To preserve the theatre experience, patrons are reminded that children age 4 and under will not be admitted.

The schedule:

“The Wizard of Oz”

Thursday, Feb. 1

There truly is no place like home as the greatest family musical of all time, the wonderful “Wizard of Oz,” twists its way into Hays. The entire family can travel down the Yellow Brick Road and beyond with Dorothy, Toto and their friends the Cowardly Lion, Tin Man and Scarecrow in this lavish production, featuring breathtaking special effects, dazzling choreography and classic songs.

Dance Theatre of Harlem

Tuesday, Feb. 6

Dance Theatre of Harlem is a leading dance institution that has attained global acclaim. The assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. compelled Arthur Mitchell, with his mentor Karel Shook, to start a school that would offer children – especially those in his native Harlem – the opportunity to challenge themselves and grow through the study of a classical art form.

“The All Hands on Deck! Show”

Friday, March 9

Based on Bob Hope’s 1942 USO tour to the troops in the field, “The All Hands on Deck! Show” is a new, two-act revue performed by four charismatic singer-dancer-comics and a nine-piece orchestra featuring the songs, dances and laughs that America has loved since the ’40s. Hollywood’s brightest stars, directors and screenwriters responded to the call of duty during World War II by sending our men and women in uniform live entertainment.

The Reduced Shakespeare Company^® in “William Shakespeare's Long Lost First Play”

Thursday, April 5

Every famous character and Shakespearean plot device come together in a single story so comically outrageous it’s no wonder the Bard of Avon hid it away. Purely imaginary historical literary evidence indicates that this manuscript, Shakespeare’s very first written work, is so romantically rich, historically accurate and theatrically overstuffed that in a stroke of genius The Bard decided to break it up into the plays that we know today as the Shakespearean canon.

The Hot Club of San Francisco presents “Cinema Vivant”

Wednesday, April 25

Imagine yourself in the idyllic French countryside in the 1930s. A gypsy caravan sets up camp in a field outside of town, luring the locals out for an evening’s fun. The wanderers travel with a film projector, pointing it at the side of a barn. As the images flicker to life beneath the stars, gypsy musicians play their guitars and fiddles, matching every movement on the screen with characteristic virtuosity, passion and humor. Reviving this lost entertainment, The Hot Club of San Francisco presents “Cinema Vivant,” an evening of vintage silent films accompanied by live gypsy swing.

About the Special Events Committee:

Through the presentation of varied forms of performing arts, the Special Events Committee strives to educate, inspire, evoke thought and entertain. The goal is to promote artistic expression, cultural understanding and social awareness at Fort Hays State University and throughout western Kansas through the presentation of diverse, high-caliber performing arts programs. Many special events, such as Encore Series, are large in scale and have associated costs. Information can be found at www.fhsu.edu/encore.

For more information, contact Jacob Ternes, jaternes@fhsu.edu or 785-628-4664.