Urinetown: The Musical

Book & Music by Greg Kotis
Lyrics by Mark Hollmann & Greg Kotis

Direction by James Vesce
Choreography by Sybil Huskey
Musical Direction: Randy Haldeman
Scenic Design: Anita Easterling
Lighting Design: Todd Wren
Costume Design: Bob Croghan
Sound Design: Mark Howieson

Belk Theater, UNC Charlotte, 2008

A massive drought has staunched the city’s water supply to a trickle and the goverment has privatized the public restrooms. But Bobby Strong and a motley band of unlikely revolutionaries sound an urgent call to take down the corrupt Caldwell B. Cladwell and his goons who insure that nobody pees for free. Winner of three Tony Awards, Urinetown is a satirical sendup of the conventions of musical theater, social class, and civil and governmental authority that catapults the American musical into the new millennium with its outrageous perspective and wickedly modern wit.

The approach for this production utilized two principles: a very loose assortment of Brechtian tricks and a parody of film noir characters and style. Scene shifts, costume changes, and music are all visible and active components of the production as well as a heightened display ofcharacterization and movement as seen in cinema and television of the “40’s and 50’s. Camp is an apt description for the overall presentation.

Urinetown: The Musical

Book & Music by Greg Kotis
Lyrics by Mark Hollmann & Greg Kotis

Direction by James Vesce
Choreography by Sybil Huskey
Musical Direction: Randy Haldeman
Scenic Design: Anita Easterling
Lighting Design: Todd Wren
Costume Design: Bob Croghan
Sound Design: Mark Howieson

Belk Theater, UNC Charlotte, 2008

A massive drought has staunched the city’s water supply to a trickle and the goverment has privatized the public restrooms. But Bobby Strong and a motley band of unlikely revolutionaries sound an urgent call to take down the corrupt Caldwell B. Cladwell and his goons who insure that nobody pees for free. Winner of three Tony Awards, Urinetown is a satirical sendup of the conventions of musical theater, social class, and civil and governmental authority that catapults the American musical into the new millennium with its outrageous perspective and wickedly modern wit.

The approach for this production utilized two principles: a very loose assortment of Brechtian tricks and a parody of film noir characters and style. Scene shifts, costume changes, and music are all visible and active components of the production as well as a heightened display ofcharacterization and movement as seen in cinema and television of the “40’s and 50’s. Camp is an apt description for the overall presentation.