Celebrate the Lyric Rep's 50th Anniversary this Weekend!
Fifty years of summer repertory theater culminates in a huge celebration this weekend in downtown Logan. Utah State University’s Lyric Rep’s 50th Anniversary Celebration takes place this Friday, July 21 and Saturday, July 22, beginning at 7:30 p.m.
“The Lyric Repertory Company has been an integral part of the community for more than 50 years,” Dennis Hassan, co-artistic director of the Lyric Rep, said. “We have a cast of amazing actors from all over the country who bring their incredible talents to Cache Valley.”
The Lyric Rep was founded in 1967 by W. Vosco Call and has produced musicals, dramas, mysteries, farces, comedies and classics to the delight of audience members from Cache Valley and visitors from around the country. The theater company brings in members of Actors’ Equity Association and other professional actors and guest artists to work side by side with advanced theater students from USU’s Caine College of the Arts.
The Lyric Rep 50th Anniversary Celebration represents the kick-off for USU’s 2017-18 Year of the Arts which will be a year-long celebration of events and promotions spotlighting the unique power of the arts to illuminate, transform and inspire the human spirit. University and community partners, including the Lyric Rep, will work together to present a schedule of events focused on the broad spectrum of artistic disciplines offered at Utah State. The Year of the Arts will showcase the breadth, depth, power and purpose of artistic exploration and expression at USU across colleges, departments and regional campuses.
“To me, 50 years of the Lyric Rep means a lot of work for a lot of actors, designers, stage managers and technicians, all because of the foresight of Vosco Call,” Richie Call, co-artistic director of the Lyric Rep, said. “More than 200 productions have been seen by countless audience members throughout the years.”
We’ll begin the celebration of the Lyric Rep with a catered reception in the lobby of the Caine Lyric Theatre where guests can mingle with past and present company members and fellow patrons. Next, go inside the theater where Lyric Rep alumni from all over the country will perform musical numbers from the company’s greatest hits. Featured guest artists include Lyric Rep favorites Lee Daily, Vanessa Ballam, Stefan Espinosa, Tamari Dunbar and Eric Van Tielen.
To cap this magical evening, step outside to a family friendly street party starting at 9:30 p.m. featuring Disney DJ Wendy Walker, food trucks, dancing and a one-of-a-kind light show. All are welcome, even if you didn’t attend the previous portion of the evening.
This opportunity only happens once every 50 years and we’re putting on a Golden Anniversary bash that you won’t want to miss.
Shows this season include The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) [Revised], Big River: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Wait Until Dark and The Foreigner.
The Lyric Rep will also be offering a reading of The Flick, a Pulitzer Prize-Winning play by Annie Baker, Monday, July 24, at 7:30 p.m. The reading is free and open to the public.
Tickets for the 2017 season are on sale now. For more information or to purchase tickets, go online to lyricrep.org or visit the Caine Lyric Theatre Box Office from June 1-August 4 on Mon.-Fri. from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
Writer and contact: Whitney Schulte, whitney.schulte@usu.edu, 435-797-9203
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