Actors Theatre of Indiana (ATI) has announced the season will kick off on September 13 with “Ring of Fire.” The show celebrates the iconic Johnny Cash – the Man in Black – whose razor-sharp vocals and stripped-down country sound helped shape the American rock-and-roll landscape in the 20th century. The musical follows Cash’s early life in the cotton fields of Arkansas, and moves to Memphis as he launches his music career, hits it big and marries the love of his life, June Carter. Five actor-musicians deliver crowd-pleasing renditions of Cash’s musical catalog, from country rock and roll to searing ballads of love and faith, including “I Walk the Line,” “Folsom Prison Blues,” “I’ve Been Everywhere” and, of course, “Ring of Fire.” A toe-tapping, soul-stirring musical biography like never before, “Ring of Fire” celebrates the music that has become a part of our collective experience.
To get us into the holiday spirit, ATI will present “She Loves Me: A Holiday Love Story” starting November 1. “She Loves Me” is a euphoric, holiday-themed romantic comedy with a soaring score that shares its source material with the classic movies “The Shop Around the Corner,” “In the Good Old Summertime” and “You’ve Got Mail.” Amalia and Georg work together at a modest Hungarian perfumery and have disliked each other from the very beginning. He thinks she’s stuck up, and she thinks he’s arrogant and mean. Each rapturously writes to a lonely-hearts pen pal when the workday is done, and it doesn’t take long for the audience to see that they’re in love without realizing it. Inevitably, through some of the most iconic songs in the musical theater canon, (“Vanilla Ice Cream”, “She Loves Me”, “Will He Like Me?”), Georg and Amalia discover the truth, and rejoice in their love for each other at the story’s sweet and musically delightful conclusion.
Whodunit? Find out in 2025 as the season continues with, yes, “Whodunit: the Musical.” Beginning January 31, the musical by longtime Broadway actor and playwright Ed Dixon is a farcical musical mystery based on “The Circular Staircase” and “The Bat” by Mary Roberts Rinehart, often considered America’s Agatha Christie. A wealthy spinster and her cockney maid take a beautiful Connecticut summer home in 1931. When they arrive, all of the help has quit, except for a very odd butler who warns that something strange is going on. They are soon joined by the spinster’s niece, who’s brought a friend – a “friend” who turns out to be a young man! After a night of attempted break-ins, the sound of gunshots and the discovery of a dead body – or two – the detective arrives and things get really strange. “Whodunit” is a tuneful, riotous romp that’s part mystery, part drawing-room farce and all musical comedy.
The season will wrap up beginning on April 25, 2025, with “9 to 5.” Based on the 1980 movie of the same name, the musical features music and lyrics by Dolly Parton. Set in the late 1970s, this hilarious story of friendship and revenge in the Rolodex era is outrageous, thought provoking and even a little romantic. Pushed to the boiling point, three female coworkers concoct a plan to get even with the sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot they call their boss. In a hilarious turn of events, Violet, Judy and Doralee live out their wildest fantasy – giving their boss the boot! This musical is a celebration of friendship, empowerment and the pursuit of a fair and equal working environment.
To learn more about Actors Theatre of Indiana, these shows and other programs offered, and for ticket information, visit atistage.org or call The Center for the Performing Arts box office at 317-843-3800.
