Zach Theatre Announces 2022-2023 Season

ZACH Theatre recently announced the 2022–23 Season Mainstage and Family Series productions with a “Director’s Choice” musical to be announced at a later date.

Opening the 2022-23 Season is the regional premiere of The Inheritance Part 2, continuing the story from The Inheritance Part 1 (closing the 2021-2022 season) with the Tony Award®-winning Best Play about the search for connection in contemporary New York City, through an expansive and moving exploration of love across generations, and the ghosts of memory.

In partnership with Deaf Austin Theatre, the Tony-nominated musical fairytale Rogers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella will come to life in The Topfer to start the New Year for 2023. This fresh new musical and family favorite will be performed simultaneously in English and American Sign Language.  

The timely and probing new work Roe by Lisa Loomer will finally make its regional premiere April 2023 at ZACH after a delay in scheduling due to the 2020 shutdown. Loomer’s critically acclaimed play dives into the lives of the women behind Roe v Wade from balanced perspectives.

June 2023 will bring a “Director’s Choice” to the Topfer stage. This soon to be announced selection will be a musical offering for the summer.

Closing the season, the ZACH360 experience returns with the regional premiere of Head Over Heels, the musical comedy written by Jeff Whitty and James Magruder with music and lyrics by 2021 Rock-N-Roll Hall of Fame inductees, The Go-Go’s. This joyful Broadway hit follows the royal family Arcadia on their quest to find love and keep their famous “Beat.”

The ZACH Family Series includes the return of Cenicienta, the award-winning bilingual stage adaptation of the tale of Cinderella, infused with puppetry, Mexican culture and humor written by Caroline Reck and Rupert Reyes; rescheduled from last season Dr. Seuss’s The Cat in the Hat, the newest take on the Dr. Seuss favorite from the National Theatre of Great Britain; and back by popular demand for the 2022 holiday season, ZACH family favorite, Holiday Heroes.

Additionally returning for the holidays as a season add-on is Dave Steakley’s modern hit musical and family-friendly adaptation of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens with new songs for the season.

Also, as part of the season as an add-on is the previously scheduled Austin premiere of The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity by Kristoffer Diaz. The spectacle of pro wrestling ignites the Topfer stage for an unforgettable and riveting ZACH360 experience.

MAINSTAGE SERIES:

THE INHERITANCE: PART 2

September 14 – October 16, 2022  | The Kleberg at ZACH

The story continues with Part 2 of this thrilling winner of 4 Tony Awards® including Best Play. In contemporary Manhattan, Eric and Toby are 30-somethings who seem to be very much in love and thriving. But on the cusp of their engagement, they meet an older man haunted by the past, and a younger man hungry for a future. Chance meetings lead to surprising choices as the lives of three generations interlink and collide—with explosive results.

Brilliantly re-envisioning E.M. Forster’s masterpiece Howards End to 21st-century New York, THE INHERITANCE asks how much we owe those who lived and loved before us, questions the role we must play for future generations, and dares us to fearlessly hold on to the wild ride called life. 

Note: The Inheritance is told in two parts. ZACH’s 2021-22 season concludes with Part 1, leading immediately into Part 2 as ZACH’s 2022-23 season opener.

CINDERELLA

January 25 – March 5, 2023 | The Topfer at ZACH

This enchanting Tony®-nominated musical fairytale will put a spell on audiences of all ages. In partnership with Deaf Austin Theatre and performed simultaneously in English and American Sign Language, Rogers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella showcases some of your favorite tunes including “In My Own Little Corner,” “Impossible” and “Ten Minutes Ago,” in this funny, modern adaptation from the delightful Broadway revival. Add a dash of romance, a splash of stage magic–and POOF!–you’re guaranteed to have a ball!

ROE

April 5–30, 2023 | The Topfer at ZACH

At age 27, Austin attorney Sarah Weddington won the landmark 1973 case Roe v Wade that legalized abortion, making her the youngest person to ever successfully argue a case before the Supreme Court. A national debate ensued, and a divide in America endures over this controversial issue. What most people don't know is that after the case, Ms. Weddington and Norma McCorvey, "Jane Roe" the plaintiff, took divergent life paths that reflect the complicated polarization in our culture. Poignant, surprising, and with unexpected humor, Roe illuminated the difficult choices women make and the passion each side has for its cause.

“DIRECTOR’S CHOICE”

June 7 – July 9, 2023 | The Topfer at ZACH

A contemporary musical to be announced later this summer.

HEAD OVER HEELS

August 9 – September 10, 2023 | ZACH360 on The Topfer at ZACH

This laugh-out-loud love story about the outrageous escapades of a royal family is set to the music of the iconic 1980’s all-female rock band The Go-Go’s in a ZACH360 immersive dance party experience, including the hit songs, “We Got the Beat,” “Our Lips Are Sealed,” “Vacation,” and Belinda Carlisle’s “Heaven is a Place on Earth” and “Mad About You.”

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FAMILY SERIES:

CENICIENTA

November 3 – December 9, 2022 | The Kleberg at ZACH

Ten-year-old Belinda loves to tell stories, but when she’s in the basement preparing for a party upstairs, she’ll have to get creative. Using everyday objects like a teapot and doily, Belinda recreates the classic tale of Cinderella using puppetry, Spanish and English. Belinda learns to embrace her love of poetry and stand up for herself in this captivating Cinderella for all ages tackling culture heritage, family, and the power of language.

HOLIDAY HEROES

November 30 – December 17, 2022 | The Topfer at ZACH

Back by popular demand, the original Holiday Heroes returns with some new songs and surprises! In this hilarious fun holiday sing-along, everyone gets into the holiday spirit with Ernie and Rufus.  Joyous, toe-tapping good time, celebrate the season with singing, laughter and holiday cheer for all.

DR. SEUSS’S THE CAT IN THE HAT

February 21 – April 23, 2023 | The Kleberg at ZACH

Everyone's favorite cat comes to mischievous life in ZACH Theatre’s production of the Dr. Seuss classic. Sally and her brother are stuck home in the rain, when a Cat comes knocking at the windowpane! But the Cat has brought friends, Thing One and Thing Two, who make messes and problems and oh, what to do?! Mischief and mayhem and laughter galore, bring the kids—they’ll clamor for more!

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ADD-ONS:

A CHRISTMAS CAROL

November 16, 2022 – January 1, 2023 | The Topfer at ZACH

Austin’s hottest holiday tradition is BACK, with new music and surprises to ring in the season. ZACH’s singular adaptation of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol is a musical sleigh ride through rhythm and time, infusing the traditional Victorian story with a score that spans all genres and eras. This family-friendly spectacular creates an infectious spirit that has everyone dancing in the aisles. Celebrate the season with the loving Cratchit family and three soulful ghosts as they take Ebenezer Scrooge on a joyride to rediscover his heart and love for human kindness.

THE ELABORATE ENTRANCE OF CHAD DEITY

September 28 – October 23, 2022 | ZACH360 on The Toper at ZACH

The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity is a dramatic comedy following the life of wrestler Macedonio Guerra. As a lifelong fan, he has followed wrestling only to become a "jobber," one who is paid to lose to bigger-name stars in the ring. Macedonio meets Vigneshwar Paduar, a young Indian man from Brooklyn, who he wants to team up with. The wrestling execs go for it but pitch them as "terrorists" in the ring. Macedonio and Vigneshwar find a way to push the personas to the limits and say what needs to be said. Unspoken racism, politics, and courage are all woven into this play that leaves it all on the mat.