Greensboro College Theatre Presents ’70s Disaster-Movie Parody “Disaster!” Oct. 19-22

GREENSBORO, N.C. – What if you took all those 1970s disaster movies and rolled them into one big parody?

What if you turned that parody into a musical featuring some of the best-known songs of the ’70s?

Then you’d have “Disaster!,” Greensboro College Theatre’s fun-filled, family-friendly musical that sends up the disaster-movie genre, Oct. 19-22 in Gail Brower Huggins Performance Center in Odell Building on campus. Showtimes are 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, Oct. 19-21, and 2 p.m. Saturday-Sunday, Oct. 21-22.

All tickets are $10 and may be reserved by emailing tickets@greensboro.edu.

“Disaster!,” with concept by Seth Rudestsky and Drew Geraci, book by Seth Rudetsky and Jack Plotnick, direction by Perry Morgan, choreography by Ashley Hyers, and musical direction by Marie Denig, is a new musical straight from Broadway. It pays homage to classic disaster films and features some of the most unforgettable songs of the ’70s, like “Knock on Wood,” “Hooked on a Feeling,” “Sky High,” “I Am Woman” and “Hot Stuff.”

It’s 1979, and New York’s hottest A-listers are lining up for the opening of a floating casino and discotheque. Also attending are a faded disco star, a sexy nightclub singer with her 11-year-old twins, a disaster expert, a feminist reporter, an older couple with a secret, a pair of young guys who are looking for ladies, an untrustworthy businessman, and a nun with a gambling addiction.

What begins as a night of boogie fever quickly changes to panic as the ship succumbs to multiple disasters, such as earthquakes, tidal waves and infernos. As the night turns into day, everyone struggles to survive and, quite possibly, repair the love that they’ve lost … or at least escape the killer rats.

With larger-than-life characters, snappy dialogue and some of the most recognizable songs of the ’70s, “Disaster!” will have audience members dancing in their seats and rolling in the aisles. Entertainment Weekly called “Disaster!” “pure maximalism — a big, old-fashioned musical with big numbers and big performances.”

Greensboro College’s Department of Theatre seeks to provide a strong foundation in theatre while allowing the student to emphasize in a particular area such as directing, acting, or arts administration.

The coursework is integrated with the production work to provide a better understanding of the many facets of the theatre. Required participation on stage or backstage on all theatre productions allows the techniques and theories that are examined in the classroom and the laboratory to be tested in a performance setting.

For more information on the program, contact David Schram, Jefferson Pilot Professor of Theatre and department chair, at 336-272-7102, ext. 5243, or email schramd@greensboro.edu

Greensboro College provides a liberal arts education grounded in the traditions of the United Methodist Church and fosters the intellectual, social, and, spiritual development of all students while supporting their individual needs.

Founded in 1838 and located in downtown Greensboro, the college enrolls about 1,000 students from 29 states and territories, the District of Columbia, and seven foreign countries in its undergraduate liberal-arts program and four master’s degree programs. In addition to rigorous academics and a well-supported Honors program, the school features an 18-sport NCAA Division III athletic program and dozens of service and recreational opportunities.

###

Media Contact:
Lex Alexander, Director of Communications
lex.alexander@greensboro.edu

Greensboro College
815 W. Market St.
Greensboro, NC 27401
336-272-7102, ext. 5398
Cell: 336-707-6617
www.greensboro.edu

Facebook: www.facebook.com/GreensboroCollege
Twitter: @GCPride
Instagram: www.instagram.com/greensborocollege
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/gbocollege
Tumblr: greensborocollege.tumblr.com

The Collegian: TheGCCollegian.wordpress.com

Joshua Fitzgerald photo

“I loved the GC Honors program and Greensboro College. I felt safe and a sense of genuine belonging at the college. I worked closely with my thesis advisor and professors who helped inspire me to define my path and passion of interest. That path has led me to my doctoral studies in Engineering Mechanics.”

- Joshua Fitzgerald, Class of ’19, Mathematics Major

Joshua currently studies astrodynamics at Virginia Tech University and is an Engineering Mechanics Ph.D. Candidate.