Curtain up! Brevard theaters announce 2023-24 seasons

Christina LaFortune, Florida Today
·9 min read

Here's what's coming up in the 2023-24 season for Brevard theater. These schedules are subject to change. Please check the theaters' websites for the most up-to-date information, including information about auditions.

Brevard theaters are gearing up for a busy 2023-24 season, with something for everyone.
Brevard theaters are gearing up for a busy 2023-24 season, with something for everyone.

Cocoa Village Playhouse

300 Brevard Ave., Cocoa; 321-636-5050; cocoavillageplayhouse.com. Tickets range from $23 to $35.

Broadway on Brevard Series

  • “The Drowsy Chaperone,” Sept. 22 – Oct. 8, 2023. When a die-hard theatre fan plays his favorite cast album, the characters come to life in this hilarious Tony Award-winning musical farce.

  • “Sister Act,” Nov. 17 – Dec. 3, 2023. A woman hiding in a convent helps her fellow sisters find their voices as she rediscovers her own. This feel-good comedy smash is based on the hit film.

  • “Oklahoma!,” Jan. 26 – Feb. 11, 2024. Rodgers and Hammerstein’s exuberant classic is a lively musical full of cowboys, farmers, romance and fearless optimism in the Oklahoma territory in the early 20th Century.

  • “The Play That Goes Wrong,” March 15 – 24, 2024. Welcome to opening night of the Cornley University Drama Society’s newest production, a 1920s whodunit performed by accident-prone actors, where things quickly go from bad to utterly disastrous.

Spotlight Series

  • "Halloween Plays," Oct. 2023. Play titles will be announced at a future date.

  • Silent film screening: “The Phantom of the Opera (1925),” Oct. 21, 2023.

  • "Michael Law: The Holidays are Here," Dec. 6-7, 2023.

  • "The Galmont Ballet: The Nutcracker," Dec. 15-17, 2023.

  • Film screening: “It’s A Wonderful Life,” Dec. 22, 2023.

  • "Hot Pink: Totally Rad ‘80s Show," Jan. 5–7, 2024

  • "Art Martin: Rock & Roll Revue," Feb. 23, 2024.

  • "The Golden Steppers: 5, 6, 7, 8!,” April 7, 2024.

  • “Hot Pink: Throwback to the Future II,” June 28-30, 2024.

Henegar Center

625 E. New Haven Ave., Melbourne; 321-723-8698; henegarcenter.com. Tickets start at $37.

  • "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat," Aug. 11 – Sept. 3, 2023. Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s musical reimagines of the Biblical story of Joseph, his father Jacob, eleven brothers and the coat of many colors.

  • “The Addams Family, the Musical” Sept. 29 – Oct. 22, 2023. Wednesday Addams has grown up and fallen in love with a sweet young man from a respectable family, and they are coming together for dinner. How will the creepy, kooky Addams family react?

  • “A Christmas Carol, the Musical” Nov. 17 – Dec. 10, 2023. Curmudgeon Ebeneezer Scrooge faces his selfish ways when three ghosts visit him on Christmas Eve in this lavish musical.

  • “Henegar Holiday Spectacular: Glad Tidings” Dec. 14 – 17, 2023.

  • “The Sound of Music,” Jan. 19 – Feb. 11, 2024. An exuberant young governess brings music and joy back to a broken family as the Nazis gain power in 1938 Austria, in one of the most beloved musicals of all time.

  • “Sincerely Yours: A Valentines Special Event,” Feb. 14 – 18, 2024.

  • “Diana, the Musical,” March 15 – April 7, 2024. After her fairytale wedding, Princess Diana faces a distant husband, an unmovable monarchy and overwhelming media scrutiny in this musical imagining of her story.

  • “8 Tracks: A ‘70s Revue,” April 18 – 28, 2024.

  • “The Bodyguard,” May 3 – 26, 2024. In this musical, a former Secret Service agent turned bodyguard is hired to protect a superstar. Each expects to be in charge, but neither expects to fall in love.

Melbourne Civic Theatre

817 E. Strawbridge Ave., Melbourne; 321-723-6935; mymct.org. Tickets are $35.

  • "Cabaret," Aug. 4 – Sept. 10, 2023. Daring, provocative and exuberantly entertaining, “Cabaret” follows nightclub singer Sally Bowles in the dark and heady life of Bohemian Berlin as Germany slowly yields to the emerging Third Reich.

  • "Dracula," Oct. 6 – Nov. 12, 2023. As Count Dracula begins to exert his will upon the residents of London, they try to piece together the clues of his appearances in a valiant attempt to save themselves from a hideous fate. Rich with both humor and horror, this play paints a wickedly theatrical picture of Stoker’s famous vampire.

  • MCT’s Holiday Show, Dec. 8 – 24, 2023. The theater’s annual fundraiser features a showcase of popular holiday songs.

  • “The Minutes,” Jan. 19 – Feb. 25, 2024. This scathing new comedy about small-town politics and real-world power exposes the ugliness behind some of our most closely held American narratives while asking each of us what we would do to keep from becoming history’s losers.

  • “The Sunshine Boys,” March 22 – April 28, 2024. Steven Wolf and Terrence Girard star in Neil Simon’s comedy about the reunion of a former vaudeville team who are no longer on speaking terms.

  • “Nuts,” May 17 – June 23, 2024. This scorching courtroom drama follows a call girl's court hearing to determine her competency to stand trial for murder.

Surfside Playhouse

301 Ramp Road, Cocoa Beach; 321-783-3127; surfsideplayers.com. Tickets start at $25.

  • "A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” Sept. 1 – 17, 2023. This comedy by William Shakespeare is about four Athenians who run away into the forest, only to have Puck the fairy mismatch the lovers while also playing a trick on Titania, the fairy queen.

  • “Once Upon a Mattress,” Nov. 3 – 19, 2023. In this musical comedy, Winnifred the Woebegone is just a simple swamp princess looking to win the heart of Prince Dauntless. But can she pass the impossible test Queen Aggravain has in store for her?

  • “Agnes of God,” Jan. 5 – 21, 2024. In this taut, compelling three-character drama, a court-appointed psychiatrist must assess the sanity of a novice nun accused of murdering her newborn.

  • “Kiss Me, Kate,” March 1 – 17, 2024. In this musical comedy, an egotistical actor and producer and his ex-wife are playing Petruchio and Kate in a production of "Taming of the Shrew." In both the real world and in the play, they bicker and romance in a battle of the sexes.

  • “The Odd Couple,” April 26 – May 12, 2024. Neil Simon’s classic comedy centers around uptight, neat Felix Ungar and easygoing, disheveled Oscar Madison as new roommates.

  • “The Mummy Fractured,” June 14 – 30, 2024. This original comedy offers a fresh, fun take on the classic horror story of The Mummy.

Titusville Playhouse

301 Julia Street, Titusville; 321-268-1125; titusvilleplayhouse.com. Tickets start at $29 for mainstage shows.

Mainstage Series

  • "9 to 5, the Musical," July 28 – Aug. 20, 2023. This show, based on the popular 1980 movie, features three unlikely friends who are pushed to the brink by their sexist, egotistical boss and take control of their office and their lives.

  • "The Prom" Sept. 8 – Oct. 1, 2023. A troupe of hilarious, self-absorbed and down-on-their-luck Broadway stars shake up a small Indiana town as they rally behind a teen who wants to go to the prom with her girlfriend.

  • “Fearless: The Harry T. Moore Story,” Oct. 13 – 15, 2023. Based on the life and times of Harry T. and Harriett V. Moore, this play is a retelling of the night of Dec. 25, 1951, with history that happened in our own backyard. This show is a mainstage special event.

  • "The Wizard of Oz," Nov. 10 – Dec. 10, 2023. This beloved tale, in which a Kansas farm girl travels over the rainbow to discover the magical power of home, has entertained audiences for generations.

  • "A Tuna Christmas," Dec. 15 – 22, 2023. Patrick Ryan Sullivan and Steven Heron reprise their roles in this outrageously funny comedy about the quaint characters of Tuna, Texas. This show is a mainstage special event.

  • "Beautiful: The Carole King Musical," Jan. 12 – Feb. 18, 2024. Follow the inspiring true story of Carole King’s remarkable rise to stardom, from being part of a hit songwriting team with her husband Gerry Goffin to becoming one of the most successful solo acts in popular music history.

  • "May We All: A New Country Musical," March 8 – April 7, 2024. Welcome to Harmony, the town that's saving a song for you in this brand-new jukebox country musical by Brian Kelley of Florida Georgia Line. The show spotlights the spirit and sense of community that is the core of country music.

  • "Cabaret," April 19 – May 12, 2024. Daring, provocative and exuberantly entertaining, “Cabaret” follows nightclub singer Sally Bowles in the dark and heady life of Bohemian Berlin as Germany slowly yields to the emerging Third Reich.

  • “Menopause, the Musical,” May 17 – 26, 2024. This hilarious musical parody set to tunes from the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s follows four women at a lingerie sale have nothing in common but a black lace bra and memory loss, hot flashes, night sweats and more. This show is a mainstage special event. 

Shuler Stage Series

  • “HalloQween,” Sept. 22 – 30, 2023. Jordyn Linkous stars in a night of over-the-top drag featuring familiar songs and characters.

  • "Evil Dead the Musical," Oct. 6 – 15, 2023. All the elements of the cult classic films "The Evil Dead," "Evil Dead 2" and "Army of Darkness" are combined in an outdoor, site-specific musical production that is more cheesy and funny than scary.

  • "The Rocky Horror Show," Oct. 20 – 29, 2023. This live staging of the musical that inspired the 1975 classic cult film follows Brad and Janet as they seek shelter at a mysterious old castle on a dark and stormy night.

  • “Who’s Holiday,” Dec. 15 – 22, 2023. The show is a raunchy riff on Dr. Seuss’ Christmas tale, following a middle-aged Cindy Lou Who as she recalls that famous Christmas Eve when she first met the Grinch, and the twisted turn of events her life has taken.

  • “The Marvelous Wonderettes,” Jan. 26 – Feb. 4, 2024. This jukebox musical takes us to the 1958 Springfield High School prom where we meet The Wonderettes: four girls with hopes and dreams as big as their crinoline skirts. The show follows their lives and loves from prom night to their 10-year reunion.

  • “The Mountaintop,” Feb. 23 – March 3, 2024. In this fictional depiction of Martin Luther King Jr.'s last night on earth, after delivering one of his most memorable speeches, an exhausted Dr. King retires to his room at the Lorraine Motel while a storm rages outside. When a mysterious stranger arrives with some surprising news, King is forced to confront his destiny and his legacy to his people.

  • “Xanadu,” May 17 – 26, 2024. In this musical based on the 1980 movie, a Greek muse inspires love, laughter and the world's first roller disco in this '80s glitter explosion.

Christina LaFortune is the Entertainment and TGIF Editor at FLORIDA TODAY. Follow her on Facebook at facebook.com/christinalafortune, on Twitter at @lafortunec, or send her an email at clafortune@floridatoday.com.

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This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Brevard theaters announce 2023-24 seasons