Most of Overture’s Lost 2020-2021 Season will be Back Next Year

There are a lot of people who would like a do-over for 2020 — an opportunity to go back and experience all the things we had planned for the year that were put on hold by the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing quarantine. For those Madison area theatergoers, Overture Center’s Tim Sauers has some very good news: Most of the lost 2020-2021 season will be back next year. And, provided season ticket holders didn’t already ask for refunds or donate their tickets to Overture, they don’t have to do a thing to enjoy it, except wait.  

“We wanted to announce our plans first to all our Broadway subscribers,” says Sauers, vice president of programming and community engagement, who made a virtual public announcement about next year’s season on Jan. 28. “They’ve stood by us through this whole year. It’s great that we get to bring them basically the same season they were so excited about before COVID-19 happened and we closed the building.” 

With nationwide bans on crowds gathering in enclosed spaces, Broadway tours have been in a holding pattern since March 2020. But the producing organization Overture works with, Broadway Across America, feels that the time is right to put shows back on the road. 

“We’re not reopening until it’s safe,” Sauers emphasizes in an interview. “But based on information from the CDC and the advice of presidential advisor Dr. Fauci, if everything goes well with vaccines, in the fall we can gather again.”

Sauers believes that opening the house in late September, when the first scheduled show is set to open in Madison, is still a bit optimistic, but he is hopeful. And he anticipates that pandemic protocols will still be firmly in place when audiences return to the performing arts center, including patrons wearing masks and using hand sanitizer liberally. But there will be no social distancing in Overture Hall — patrons will be sitting next to each other. “Right now it’s play to full crowds or none at all. It’s the only economic model that makes sense,” Sauers says. “There’s no Plan B for live streaming an event. We just have to plan for a time when county restrictions are lifted, more people have the vaccine, and we have a herd immunity built up.” He quickly adds, “But I can hardly wait to be back in that theater with a live audience. I think we’ve all missed that experience so much.”

So if all goes according to plan, returning subscribers will be treated to touring productions of Hairspray, Fiddler on the Roof, Mean Girls, Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations, Dear Evan Hansen and The Prom. Productions of Come From Away and the super hit Hamilton can be added on as separate events. Unfortunately, the originally scheduled Lion King and Oklahoma! are no longer crisscrossing the country. 

“It’s turned into a very youth-oriented season,” Sauers says. “There’s lots of subject matter that deals with teenagers and social media, wanting to fit in and be accepted for who they are. I think that’s a great message and one that we need. Also, it’s exciting to have such brilliant shows that appeal to a really wide demographic.”

Subscriptions for the six- or seven-show package will go on sale this spring. If patrons who did not subscribe last season would like to be first in line to purchase this year’s series, they can be added to the waiting list by clicking here or visiting overture.org. Those on the list will be among the first notified when subscriptions do go on sale. Single tickets for individual shows — including Hamilton — will be on sale to the public throughout the season, subject to availability.

With the Broadway season set, Sauers is working to reschedule all the other canceled Overture Presents shows as well, including Trinity Irish Dance Company, Carol Burnett: An Evening of Laughter and Reflection, Stomp, Alton Brown Live: Beyond the Eats and Mannheim Steamroller Christmas by Chip Davis. Overture Presents shows will be announced in the spring. 

The 2021-2022 Broadway at Overture Season:

Fiddler on the Roof, Nov. 16-21, 2021

Based on the recent Broadway revival, the humble Jewish milkman Tevye and his five daughters are back with refreshed aesthetics and new choreography. This timeless story of struggle against anti-semitism and a quickly changing world last visited Madison in 2012. It’s a great opportunity for audiences to reacquaint themselves with the classic songs, “Tradition,” “If I Were A Rich Man,” and “Matchmaker.” (Plus, Randy Rainbow’s political satire song “Sedition” will make so much more sense.)

Hairspray, Feb. 22-27, 2022

Underneath the clouds of Ultra Glow hairspray, towering hairdos, and teen idols of 1962, the musical Hairspray is a riot of hot pink, infectious tunes, flashy dance moves, social justice, and true love conquering all. Based on the quirky 1988 John Waters film of the same name, the show follows Tracy Turnblad, the spunky, plus-sized heroine of the show, as she works to desegregate the teen dance TV program The Corny Collins Show. It also celebrates people of all shapes and sizes, all races and orientations, who get out of the house, get into some fabulous clothes and get down.

Hamilton, Aug. 9-21, 2022

The 10-dollar Founding Father is back. Lin Manuel Miranda’s mega-hit is taking a victory lap, coming back to Overture Center roughly two years after it wowed local audiences. “Lots of people didn’t get the chance to see it the first time it came here,” says Sauers. “Now they’ve seen the movie version (released last July on Disney+) and they want to see it again. We’re thrilled.” Come for the powerful trio of Schuyler sisters who are looking for a mind at work, stay for the epic rap battles between Founding Fathers, debating the Constitution. And above all, don’t “throw away your shot” this time around. See the show that really does live up to all the hype. Or see it again.

Madison Premieres:

The Prom, March 22-27, 2022 

As he did last year, Sauers grins as he describes this hot fudge sundae of a show. The Prom is a musical comedy about four fading Broadway stars who try to boost their cred by helping an Indiana teenager who was banned from bringing her girlfriend to her high school prom. “It is charming,” says Sauers. “With a book by Bob Martin (The Drowsy Chaperone), it’s full of offbeat humor. And it’s got a powerful message that’s important and relevant right now. A beautiful show. The music is fun, the choreography is great and the story is important.” He speculates that the recent movie version, featuring Meryl Streep, James Corden, Andrew Rannells, Nicole Kidman and Kerry Washington, will only increase the live musical’s popularity. 

Dear Evan Hansen, May 10-15, 2022
As it was last year, the 2017 Tony- and Grammy Award-winning musical Dear Evan Hansen is at the top of Sauers’ list and mine. It made Ben Platt a star and introduced social media as an important character in a story about searching for social acceptance. With a dynamite score, compelling interpersonal complications, a real look at parent/child relationships, and the consequences of a white lie going viral, it’s an emotional rollercoaster that touches a nerve for audiences of many ages. And its anthem, “You Will be Found,” is a message that we all need to hear. Sauers says the subject matter is still “super relevant” and that this title was at the top of the wish list in Broadway Across America’s audience surveys.

Mean Girls, Jan. 11-16, 2022 

It was just announced that when the lights come back on in Broadway theaters, Mean Girls will not be returning. So if you’d like to see this Tina Fey musical based on the Tina Fey movie, you’ll need to see it here. As the title implies, this is a high school melodrama with high stakes, following the heroine Cady Heron as she tries to fit in at her new high school in suburban Illinois. Desperate to be included, she aims to be accepted by “the plastics” — the meanest, most superficial, and most powerful group at school. With amazing choreography, stunning visuals and projections and a heartwarming story, it’s a musical that lets you revisit the horrors of high school cliques while firmly attaching a message arguing for personal authenticity. 

Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations, June 14-19, 2022 

This 2018 jukebox musical follows the supergroup The Temptations, from their humble beginnings in Detroit, all the way to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. With a book by renowned playwright Dominique Morisseau, this Jersey Boys type musical highlights more than two dozen of the group’s famous songs, recreated with energetic, signature dance moves and the extraordinary harmonies The Temptations were known for. There are plenty of dramatic highs and lows in the story, punctuated by well-known classics like “Papa Was A Rollin’ Stone,” “My Girl,” “The Way You Do the Things You Do” and “In the Still of the Night.” Nominated for 12 Tony Awards, it’s 50 years of Motown history, packed into two hours. 

In addition to the 2021-2022 Broadway at Overture season, Come From Away, rescheduled from the 2019-2020 season, will be presented from Sept. 28-Oct. 3, 2021.

This feel-good musical chronicles the days after 9/11 when a tiny town in Newfoundland was overrun by airplane passengers forced to make emergency landings. It’s a life-affirming tribute to a tumultuous time, jam-packed with jaunty Celtic melodies. And it seems like a perfect way to welcome crowds back to Overture.