2024 North Coast Theatre and Dance Festival
Ghost Soldiers
May 9-11
The Playwriting Award was established in 1977 by the Forest Roberts Theatre at NMU. The award is designed to encourage and stimulate artistic growth among educational and professional playwrights. It provides students and faculty the unique opportunity to mount and produce original work on the university stage. Submissions will be accepted biennially and must adhere to the theme of that competition cycle. They will be blindly read and judged by members of a screening committee. The winning play will be featured in our North Coast Theatre Festival Season.
Ghost Soldiers written by Keli Crawford-Truckey
This year's world-premiere play is titled Ghost Soldiers. The play is written by and will be directed by Keli Crawford-Truckey. Ghost Soldiers tells the story of the soldiers who were a part of the "Polar Bear Expedition" during World War I. The action jumps back and forth between brief vignettes between the 1930s, ’40s, ’50s, ’60s, '70s, and World War I (specifically 1918-1919).
PANOWSKI BLACK BOX THEATRE
MEANT FOR A MATURE AUDIENCE | APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 1HR 30Mins | No Intermission
Drag Cabaret
May 30-31
A Pride Month Kick-Off Event
Join NMU Theatre and Dance for a drag cabaret to start Pride Month! Celebrate the LGBTQ+ community in Marquette and beyond as performers make the Forest Roberts Theatre stage their own.
PANOWSKI BLACK BOX THEATRE
APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 2HRS | 15min Intermission
The Second City
June 27-28
The Second City 65th Anniversary Tour
The Second City is celebrating 65 years of legendary laughs! Showcasing some of our audience’s favorite songs, sketches, and characters written on our stages by some of our illustrious alumni, including Catherine O’Hara, Tina Fey, Keegan-Michael Key, Amber Ruffin, Stephen Colbert, Tim Meadows, Bill Murray, Tim Robinson, Joan Rivers, Eugene Levy, Adam McKay and so many more... With material handpicked from our iconic comedy archive and brought to life by our all-star ensemble, see for yourself why The Second City continues to be the world’s most influential name in comedy for sixty-five years and counting.
FOREST ROBERTS THEATRE
APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 2HRS | 15min Intermission
North Coast Dance Festival
Masterclass July 24, Performances July 25-26
3rd Annual Dance Festival
Join us for the 3rd Annual North Coast Dance Festival, a spectacular celebration of dance! Professional dancers from across the country will gather alongside the NMU CO/LAB Dance Company for engaging educational experiences and mesmerizing performances. Don't miss this unforgettable event filled with grace, talent, and artistry.
Returning this year are professional ballet dancers Julia Feldman, Mate Szentes, and Ava Chatterson. NCDF is thrilled to announce that the Giordano Dance Company from Chicago will perform their new piece, "Gershwin in B" choreographed by Al Blackstone and set to a Gershwin score.
This event is generously supported by the Siril Endowment for the Arts.
FOREST ROBERTS THEATRE
FAMILY-FRIENDLY | APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 1HR 15MIN | 15min Intermission
All shows are part of the Flex Pass Season.
UPCOMING: 2024-2025 NMU Theatre and Dance Season
JOIN US AFTER EACH OPENING NIGHT FOR OUR OPENING NIGHT RECEPTION!
Wildcat Theatre Follies
September 5-6
A Celebration of NMU's Brightest Stars
We’re back, Wildcats! Enjoy a beginning-of-the-year showcase of our freshman and sophomore theatre and dance students featuring a collection of scenes, songs, monologues, and dance pieces.
APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 1HR 30MINS
Cabaret
October 3-5 and 10-12
Book by Joe Masteroff | Music by John Kander | Lyrics by Ed Kebb
Daring, provocative and exuberantly entertaining, Cabaret explores the dark and heady life of Bohemian Berlin as Germany slowly yields to the emerging Third Reich.
In a Berlin nightclub, as the 1920's draw to a close, a garish Master of Ceremonies welcomes the audience and assures them they will forget all their troubles at the Cabaret. With the Emcee's bawdy songs as wry commentary, Cabaret explores the dark, heady, and tumultuous life of Berlin's natives and expatriates as Germany slowly yields to the emerging Third Reich. Cliff, a young American writer newly arrived in Berlin, is immediately taken with English singer Sally Bowles. Meanwhile, Fräulein Schneider, proprietor of Cliff and Sally's boarding house, tentatively begins a romance with Herr Schultz, a mild-mannered fruit seller who happens to be Jewish.
FOREST ROBERTS THEATRE
MEANT FOR A MATURE AUDIENCE | APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 2HRS | 15min Intermission
Frankenstein
October 31 - November 2 and 7-9
Adapted by Alastar Dimitrie. Set in the icy polar regions where scientist Victor Frankenstein has chased the creature he brought to life, this highly theatrical and emotional play traces Frankenstein's path to the final confrontation with his intelligent, articulate, sensitive, and powerfully violent child.
PANOWSKI BLACK BOX THEATRE
APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 2HRS
Home for the Holidays
December 5-7, 12-14
An original theatrical performance unfolds, where NMU students, infused with song and dance, get ready to journey home for the holidays. Prior to their departure for the break, they convene to share tales of their diverse family customs - from spirited sleigh rides with cousins, to uproarious family feasts, to enchanting trips to NYC to witness the dazzling lights.
FOREST ROBERTS THEATRE
FAMILY-FRIENDLY | APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 1HR 20 MIN | 15min Intermission
Alice in Wonderland: An Immersive Experience
January 30-February 1 and February 6-8
A CO/LAB Dance Company Immersive Dance Experience
In a mesmerizing whirlwind of color and movement, this performance transcends the stage, weaving through the audience like a living, breathing dreamscape. With each twist and turn, the audience becomes an integral part of the performance, immersed in a magical journey beyond the confines of traditional theater. More information coming soon!
APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 45 MIN
Two showings per evening: 7:30-8:30* PM and 9:00-10:00* PM
Note: This performance will take place off-campus.
*Venue opens to guests 20 minutes prior to each show time.
Much Ado About Nothing
February 20-22, 27-28, March 1
From the Director: There will be a play. In the round. There will be music. There will be comedy, music, dancing, pies in the face,
blood, and cupcakes.
Written by William Shakespeare, adapted by Jimmy Ludwig (Director)
The primary plot of Much Ado About Nothing turns on the courtship and scandal involving young Hero and her suitor, Claudio, but the witty war of words between Claudio’s friend Benedick and Hero’s cousin Beatrice often takes center stage.
Set in Messina, the play begins as Don Pedro’s army returns after a victory. Benedick, a gentleman soldier, resumes a verbal duel with Beatrice, the niece of Messina’s governor, Leonato. Count Claudio is smitten by Leonato’s daughter, Hero. After Don Pedro woos her in disguise for Claudio, the two young lovers plan to marry in a week. To fill in the time until the wedding, Don Pedro and the others set about tricking Benedick and Beatrice into falling in love with each other. Meanwhile, Don Pedro’s disgruntled brother, Don John, plots to ruin Hero and halt her wedding. Claudio believes Don John’s deception, is convinced Hero has a lover, and, at the wedding, brutally rejects her.
With Hero in hiding and falsely reported dead, Beatrice persuades Benedick to fight Claudio. Tragedy is averted when the bumbling city watch, having discovered Don John’s treachery, arrives and clears Hero’s name. With Claudio forgiven, both couples are ready to get married.
APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 2HRS 15MINS | 15min Intermission
Jesus Christ Superstar
April 10-12, 17-19
Lyrics by Tim Rice | Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber
A thrilling rock opera based on the last week of Jesus’ life, Jesus Christ Superstar has wowed audiences for over 50 years.
What’s the buzz? The first musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice to be produced for the professional stage, Jesus Christ Superstar has wowed audiences for over 50 years. A timeless work, the rock opera is set against the backdrop of an extraordinary and universally known series of events but seen, unusually, through the eyes of Judas Iscariot. Loosely based on the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, Superstar follows the last week of Jesus Christ’s life. The story, told entirely through song, explores the personal relationships and struggles between Jesus, Judas, Mary Magdalene, his disciples, his followers and the Roman Empire.
The iconic 1970s rock score contains such well-known numbers as “Superstar,” “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” and “Gethsemane.” A true global phenomenon and perfect pick for schools, community theaters and professionals alike, Superstar continues to touch new generations of audiences and performers.
FOREST ROBERTS THEATRE
MEANT FOR A MATURE AUDIENCE | APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 2HRS | 15min Intermission
Theatre and Dance Senior Showcase
April 25
One night only! Join us in celebrating the work of our graduating seniors during this culminating showcase-style performance!
FOREST ROBERTS THEATRE
APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: TBD
All shows are part of the Flex Pass Season.
2025 North Coast Theatre and Dance Festival
Panowski Playwriting Production
May 15-17
2025 Panowski Playwriting Award Winner!
The Playwriting Award was established in 1977 by the Forest Roberts Theatre at NMU. The award is designed to encourage and stimulate artistic growth among educational and professional playwrights. It provides students and faculty the unique opportunity to mount and produce original work on the university stage. The winning play will be featured in our North Coast Theatre Festival Season.
PANOWSKI BLACK BOX THEATRE
APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: TBD
Drag Cabaret
May 29-30
A Pride Celebration Event!
Join NMU Theatre and Dance for a drag cabaret to start Pride Month! Celebrate the LGBTQ+ community in Marquette and beyond as performers make the stage their own.
PANOWSKI BLACK BOX THEATRE
APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 2HRS | 15min Intermission
Love Letters
June 26-28
A unique and imaginative theatre piece which, in the words of the author, “needs no theatre, no lengthy rehearsal, no special set, no memorization of lines, and no commitment from its two actors beyond the night of performance.”
The piece is comprised of letters exchanged over a lifetime between two people who grew up together, went their separate ways, but continued to share confidences. As the actors read the letters aloud, what is created is an evocative, touching, frequently funny but always telling pair of character studies in which what is implied is as revealing and meaningful as what is actually written down.
Andrew Makepeace Ladd III and Melissa Gardner, both born to wealth and position, are childhood friends whose lifelong correspondence begins with birthday party thank-you notes and summer camp postcards. Romantically attached, they continue to exchange letters through the boarding school and college years—where Andy goes on to excel at Yale and law school, while Melissa flunks out of a series of “good schools.” While Andy is off at war Melissa marries, but her attachment to Andy remains strong and she continues to keep in touch as he marries, becomes a successful attorney, gets involved in politics and, eventually, is elected to the U.S. Senate. Meanwhile, her marriage in tatters, Melissa dabbles in art and gigolos, drinks more than she should, and becomes estranged from her children. Eventually she and Andy do become involved in a brief affair, but it is really too late for both of them. However Andy’s last letter, written to her mother after Melissa’s untimely death, makes it eloquently clear how much they really meant, and gave to, each other over the years—physically apart, perhaps, but spiritually as close as only true lovers can be.
FOREST ROBERTS THEATRE
APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 1HR 45MIN | 15min Intermission
North Coast Dance Festival
Masterclass July 23, Performances July 24-25
4th Annual Dance Festival
Join us for the 4th Annual North Coast Dance Festival, a spectacular celebration of dance! Professional dancers from across the country will gather alongside the NMU CO/LAB Dance Company for engaging educational experiences and mesmerizing performances. Don't miss this unforgettable event filled with grace, talent, and artistry.
This event is generously supported by the Siril Endowment for the Arts.
FOREST ROBERTS THEATRE
APPROXIMATE RUN TIME: 1HR 15MIN | 15min Intermission
All shows are part of the Flex Pass Season.