SDSU Theatre and Dance to open season with ‘Fuddy Meers’

South Dakota State University Theatre and Dance will kick off its 2024-25 season with the wonky comedy “Fuddy Meers.” 

It's one harrowing and hilarious turn after another on this roller coaster ride through the day of an amnesiac trying to decipher her fractured life. Claire is abducted by a man who claims her husband wants to kill her. Audiences will view the ensuing mayhem through the kaleidoscope of Claire's world. 

The production is directed by W. James Wood, artistic director of SDSU Theatre and Dance. Members of the cast include Claire Booth, Jacob Stevens, Morgan Foote, Gerrit VonEye, Alex Strawn, Carl Steinlicht and Kennedy Foster. 

The show contains mature language, live gunfire and themes related to domestic violence. 

Performance dates are Oct. 3-5 at 7:30 p.m. and Oct. 6 at 2 p.m. at the Oscar Larson Theatre in the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center on the SDSU campus. 

Tickets for “Fuddy Meers” are $22 for adults and $20 for senior citizens, military, SDSU employees, non-SDSU students and children. SDSU students are admitted free with their student I.D. Tickets are available for purchase online, at the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center or by phone at 605-688-6045 from noon-4 p.m. Monday-Friday and from 6-7:30 p.m. on performance nights at the theatre. Single and season tickets are available now. 

The new season is titled and centers around the theme of freedom. Other offerings this season include: 

‘Macbeth’ 

Macbeth receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he will become king of Scotland. Consumed by ambition and spurred to action by his wife, Macbeth murders the king and takes the Scottish throne for himself. Shakespeare’s classic tale gives warning to the destruction wrought when ambition goes unchecked by moral constraints. 

The show contains mature language and themes. 

Performance dates are Nov. 21-23 at 7:30 p.m. and Nov. 24 at 2 p.m. at the Oscar Larson Theatre in the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center. 

‘A Christmas Celebration’ 

The Christmas story is one that, no matter who a person is or what they believe, may assist everyone in reflecting on their experiences, their responsibilities and their purpose. Displaying the talents of SDSU dancers, alums and community members, “A Christmas Celebration” asks audiences to reflect on their humanness during this holiday season. As people celebrate a Christmas story, the story of a birth that changed the world, may this performance inspire them to pause and return to their own story? May “A Christmas Celebration – Inspire New Beginnings.” 

Performance dates are Dec. 6-7 at 7:30 p.m. and Dec. 8 at 2 p.m. at the Oscar Larson Theatre in the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center. 

‘The Turn of the Screw’ 

A young woman is hired to care for two recently orphaned children in a lovely secluded English manner in 1872. As time goes by, the woman begins to see the specters or ghosts of the former governess and her lover. Are these ghosts in her mind, or are they appearing to haunt the children? As the governess attempts to stop the fiends from taking the children away, the underlying question is: are the sightings real or only in the woman’s mind? 

This show contains mature language and themes. 

Performance dates are Feb. 20-22 at 7:30 p.m. and Feb. 23 at 2 p.m. at the Fishback Studio Theatre in the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center. 

‘Bright Star’ 

Inspired by a true story about a baby that had been thrown from a train in a suitcase and lived, this is a sweeping tale of love and redemption set against the rich backdrop of the American South in the 1920s and ’40s. With beautiful melodies and powerfully moving characters, the story unfolds as a rich tapestry of deep emotion. An uplifting theatrical journey that holds audiences tightly in its grasp, “Bright Star” is as refreshingly genuine as it is daringly hopeful. 

This show contains mature language and themes. 

Performance dates are April 3-5 at 7:30 p.m. and April 6 at 2 p.m. at the Oscar Larson Theatre in the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center. 

Spring Dance Concert: Be 

Spring Dance Concert: Be allows students the opportunity to develop creative process, choreographic talents, leadership and communication skills, and artistic and technical abilities. Choreographers, through the development of original choreography, work with the dance ensemble director to develop work that communicates with intention and purpose. Choreographers are free to imagine how the theme “Be” inspires dance composition and provides opportunity for creativity and intellectual discourse. Artists will explore how perspective alters observation, perception, understanding and appreciation through a variety of contexts. 

Performance dates are April 11-12 at 7:30 p.m. and April 13 at 2 p.m. at the Oscar Larson Theatre in the Oscar Larson Performing Arts Center. 

Season tickets are available with two different subscription options, both offering 15% off regular ticket price.  Season subscriptions are available now through Oct. 6 and can be found on the Theatre and Dance webpage. Prices range from $69 to $103 for season tickets and from $14 to $24 for single tickets to individual shows. 

Theatre and Dance at SDSU is part of the School of Performing Arts and performs in Brookings. The mission of Theatre and Dance is to provide a wide variety of expertise in the theater arts through hands-on involvement in the program that inspires students with creativity and helps them grow as artists and individuals. For more information, contact Wood at 605-688-4559 or via email.