Music Theater Works, currently presenting the regional premiere of Zorro: The Musical through August 21, is proud to announce its 2023 season of productions at the North Shore Center For The Performing Arts In Skokie, 9501 Skokie Blvd. The 2023 season launches with the Tony Award-winning musical comedy Avenue Q, March 9 – April 2, 2023, followed by the classic Pippin, June 1 – June 25, 2023, then the hilarious antics of Mel Brooks’ The Producers, August 11 – August 21, 2023, the beautiful Lerner and Loewe’s Brigadoon, October 19 – November 12, 2023 and concluding with the fan favorite Shrek: The Musical, December 21 – December 31, 2023. Subscriptions for the 2023 season on sale now at MusicTheaterWorks.com.
The Music Theater Works 2023 Season includes:
Avenue Q
Music and Lyrics by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx
Book by Jeff Whitty
Based on an Original Concept by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx
March 9 - April 2, 2023
Join the irreverent denizens of Avenue Q: part flesh, part plushy, people, puppets and all. Hilarious, charming and a little profane, Avenue Q will turn all expectations of acceptable discourse on its head. Follow the hero Princeton, fresh out of college, to his shabby New York apartment all the way out on Avenue Q which, it soon becomes clear, is not an ordinary neighborhood. Laughing out loud funny, toe-tappingly singable and full of warmth and humor, Avenue Q won the Tony for Best Musical, Best Score and Best Book, and now it’s going to win audiences’ hearts.
Pippin
Book by Roger O. Hirson
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz
June 1 - June 25, 2023
The unforgettable score of Pippin has shown multiple generations how to forge your own path in the world. Imaginatively presented through multiple revivals of a young person’s journey to self, join Music Theater Works’ staging among the toys and games that defined our childhoods. Winner of four 2013 Tony Awards including Best Musical Revival with some of the most infectiously memorable music in the business by four-time Grammy winner, three-time Oscar winner and musical theater giant Stephen Schwartz.
The Producers
Book by Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan
Music and Lyrics by Mel Brooks
Original Direction and Choreography by Susan Stroman
August 11 - August 21, 2023
A big Broadway show based on Mel Brooks’ classic film, The Producers sets the standard for giant production numbers and modern, outrageous, in-your-face humor. This hit won a record twelve Tony Awards when it premiered on Broadway.
Lerner and Loewe’s Brigadoon
Book and Lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner
Music by Frederick Loewe
Original Dances Created by Agnes DeMille
October 19 - November 12, 2023
Audiences will get lost in Lerner and Loewe’s Brigadoon with the hero, heroine and the wonderful residents of this mythical place singing such standards as “Almost Like Being In Love,” “Come to Me, Bend to Me” and “Heather on the Hill,” made famous by the classic MGM film and numerous productions, each more beloved than the last.
Shrek: The Musical
Book and Lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire
Music by Jeanine Tesori
December 21 - December 31, 2023
Based on the Oscar-winning DreamWorks Animation film, Shrek: The Musical brings the favorite animated characters to life, from Fiona to Donkey to the Gingerbread Cookie’s ongoing fights with The Muffin Man. Winning Tony Awards for Best Musical, Best Book and Best Original Score, there’s more to this story than meets the ears.
ABOUT MUSIC THEATER WORKS
Music Theater Works is a resident professional not-for-profit music theater founded in
1980. During its 43-year history it has presented more than 150 productions and intimate presentations. Music Theater Works is a professional theater company whose mission is to present works for the musical stage including historic repertoire, revitalizing the Golden Age of Broadway and earlier works, celebrating the Great American Songbook and introducing modern classics. The company uses collaborations among theaters, other artistic disciplines, social service agencies, local business, educational institutions and others to create music theater for the 21st century.
Audiences know that at Music Theater Works they will experience musical theater, which is often unavailable on the stages of commercial theaters and opera houses, in beautiful, colorful modern productions with professional artists and live orchestra.