It’s a season of change for Boulder County’s theater scene.
As fall kicks into gear, many companies are adapting to the challenges of limited venues and shifting audience expectations. This is most evident in the overall decrease in production numbers. For instance, The Arts HUB in Lafayette, which produced four shows last fall, has scaled back to just one this year.
The closure of companies like Boulder’s BDT Stage and Longmont’s Unitiive Theatre has also contributed to a slightly reduced theater season. Some companies that were active last year, such as Longmont Theatre Company, Empathy Theatre Project and The Catamounts, say their fall programming will be announced shortly.
The Dairy Arts Center remains a key hub, though its limited availability has prompted some Boulder-based troupes to branch out into unconventional spaces. Companies like Boulder Ensemble Theatre Company (BETC) are expanding their reach into Denver, while others experiment with performances at locations like eTown Hall and the Canyon Theater at the Boulder Public Library.
As Boulder County’s theater companies evolve, this fall promises a scaled-back season with a rich array of performances. Browse Boulder Weekly‘s comprehensive list of local theater events to plan your next outing.
SEPTEMBER
Fiddler on the Roof. Sept. 6 through Dec. 6, Jesters Dinner Theatre, 224 Main St. Longmont.
MAD LIBrarians. Sept. 21, BETC – Canyon Theater at the Boulder Public Library, 1000 Canyon Blvd, Boulder.
TRANSformative Stories. Sept. 21, Motus Theater – Arapaho Center, 300 E. Simpson St., Lafayette.
Wicked Wanderings. Sept. 21 through Oct. 27, Arts in the Open – Chautauqua Park, 900 Baseline Road & 9th St.., Boulder.
Stockade. Sept. 26 through Oct. 13, Local Theater Company – Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder. Read more below
BM/MT Freshman Theatre Lab Presentation. Sept. 27-29, CU Boulder College of Music – Ensemble Hall, Imig Music Building, 1020 18th St., Boulder.
Dramatic Performance Workshop: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Sept. 27-29, Centerstage Theatre Company, 901 Front St., Louisville.
Buntport Theater: buntporTED Talks. Sept. 28, Stewart Auditorium, 400 Quail Road, Longmont.
OCTOBER
Voices of Change: First Storytellers – An Evening with Native American Playwrights. Oct. 3, Stewart Auditorium, 400 Quail Road, Longmont.
Carrie the Musical. Oct. 4-20, The Spark, 4847 Pearl Street St., Unit B4, Boulder. Read more below
MAD LIBrarians. Oct. 5, BETC – Canyon Theater at the Boulder Public Library, 1000 Canyon Blvd..
Let the Right One In. Oct. 11-20, CU Boulder College of Arts and Sciences Department of Theatre & Dance – Loft Theatre, University Theatre Building, 261 University of Colorado.
The Prom. Oct. 11-20, The Arts HUB, 420 Courtney Way, Lafayette.
The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Oct. 12, Colorado’s Elusive Ingredient – Canyon Theater at the Boulder Public Library, 1000 Canyon Blvd., Boulder.
TRANSformative Stories. Oct. 17, Motus Theater – Louisville Center for the Arts, 801 Grant Ave., Louisville.
The Ballot of Paola Aguilar. Oct. 17 through Nov. 3, BETC – Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder. Read more below
Civic Love Stories with Undocumented Coloradans. Oct. 19, Motus Theater – Canyon Theater at the Boulder Public Library, 1000 Canyon Blvd.
Rhythms of Brazil: Samba! Oct. 25-27, The Spark, 4847 Pearl Street St., Unit B4, Boulder.
Hänsel und Gretel. Oct. 25-27, CU Boulder College of Music – Macky Auditorium Concert Hall, 1595 Pleasant St., Boulder.
The Man Who Came to Dinner. Oct. 25 through Nov. 10, Viva Theater – Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder.
Twilight Zone Parody: Serling Centennial! Oct. 25 through Nov. 10, Theater Company of Lafayette – Arapaho Center, 300 E. Simpson St.
NOVEMBER
Stop Kiss. Nov. 1-16, Coal Creek Theater of Louisville – Louisville Center for the Arts, 801 Grant Ave.
Operatic Gems. Nov. 2, Boulder Opera – Trinity Lutheran Church, 2200 Broadway.
Enemy of the People. Nov. 8-17, BETC – Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder.
Antigone. Nov. 8-17, CU Boulder College of Arts and Sciences Department of Theatre & Dance – Roe Green Theatre, University Theatre Building, 261.
Into the Woods Jr. Nov. 8-17, Centerstage Theatre Company, 901 Front St., Louisville.
Heathers: The Musical. Nov. 14-17, CU Boulder College of Music – Music Theatre, Imig Music Building, 1020 18th St., Boulder.
Civic Love Stories with Trans & Nonbinary Leaders. Nov. 15, Motus Theater – Canyon Theater at the Boulder Public Library, 1000 Canyon Blvd.
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. Nov. 15-24, The Spark, 4847 Pearl Street St., Unit B4, Boulder.
Beauty and the Beast. Nov. 15-24, Backstory Theatre – Broomfield Auditiourm, 3 Community Park Road
MAD LIBrarians. Nov. 16, BETC – Canyon Theater at the Boulder Public Library, 1000 Canyon Blvd.
DECEMBER
Elf the Musical Jr. Dec. 5-15, Centerstage Theatre Company, 901 Front St., Louisville.
Little Women. Dec. 5-29, BETC – Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder.
A Christmas Carol (a Live Radio Play). Dec. 6-15, Upstart Crow – Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder.
Scrooge. Dec. 6-31, Jesters Dinner Theatre, 224 Main St., Longmont.
Holidazed and Confused. Dec. 13-15, Theater Company of Lafayette – Arapaho Center, 300 E. Simpson St.
The Adventures of Pinocchio. Dec. 14-15, Boulder Opera – eTown Hall, 1535 Spruce St.
MAD LIBrarians. Dec. 21, BETC – Canyon Theater at the Boulder Public Library, 1000 Canyon Blvd.
BETC tackles identity politics in ‘The Ballot of Paola Aguilar’
As the November elections loom, BETC presents The Ballot of Paola Aguilar, a sharp, satirical comedy about race and power.
This timely world premiere by Mexico-born playwright Bernardo Cubría centers on Paola Aguilar, a university professor thrust into the chaotic world of political consulting. Hired by a major party to help stop the exodus of Hispanic voters, Aguilar must navigate ethnic stereotypes while also dealing with her own personal quest to start a family through IVF.
“The Ballot of Paula Aguilar fits this political moment perfectly,” says producing artistic director Jessica Robblee. “We see headlines all the time about the Democratic Party’s efforts to win the Hispanic vote, and this play emphasizes that we are dealing with a very diverse group of people.”
Robblee was drawn to the play’s mix of humor and philosophical insight. She says comedy can be “not only a vehicle to have a great time but also as a lens shifter.”
“This play gets to the conversations we all want to have, and Cubría gets us there with smart, loving lampoonery — of ourselves, of our cherished metrics and boxes,” Robblee says. “You can just feel his play rooting for all of us to see one another.”
ON STAGE: The Ballot of Paola Aguilar. Oct. 17 through Nov. 3, BETC – Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder. $17-$57
Local Theater Company’s ‘Stockade’ explores the Lavender Scare
In an era when state legislatures across the country are passing bills denying rights for LGBTQ+ people, Local Theater Company (LTC) presents Stockade, a powerful historical drama about the struggles of queer soldiers after World War II.
The world-premiere play written by Andrew Rosendorf and Carlyn Aquiline follows a group of gay soldiers who reunite on Fire Island during the Lavender Scare, a time when the United States government actively persecuted gay people under the guise of “security risks.”
“There are waves of legislation washing over our country that are stripping individuals of their rights simply because of aversions to their identities. These are fear-based laws,” says co-artistic director Nick Chase. “Stockade examines a similar period in US history during which existing openly as a homosexual often meant professional collapse and social ostracization, if not worse.”
The work is a thematic prequel to Rosendorf’s 2018 play Paper Cut, about soldiers returning from Afghanistan. Following Local’s successful collaboration with Rosendorf on that production, founding artistic director Pesha Rudnick commissioned him to write a follow-up.
“It started with a conversation between Andrew and me,” Rudnick explains. “I remember folding my laundry during COVID and talking with Andrew for two hours before emerging and saying, ‘Great, we are going to commission this.'”
Stockade was originally intended to be a companion piece to Paper Cut, but it evolved into its own project. The play was workshopped earlier this year at Local Lab 13, LTC’s annual festival for new work. The raw power of the historical narrative was already palpable, but the characters and stakes needed to be refined.
“It has been a joy to watch this play grow from a spark of an idea when LTC commissioned it in 2020 into the beautiful story it is today,” says executive director Misha S. Zimmerman. “Each draft of the script has grown as Andrew and Carlyn have had the time to finesse their story, drawing inspiration from many sources, including deep historical research, audience feedback at Local Lab and astute questions from director Christy Montour-Larson, LTC’s co-artistic directors and the designers. As we step into the rehearsal room, it will continue to grow.”
ON STAGE: Stockade. Sept. 26-Oct. 13, Local Theater Company – Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder. $23-$48
‘Carrie: The Musical’ at The Spark Brings Stephen King back to Boulder
This October, The Spark is set to electrify Boulder’s theater scene with Carrie: The Musical, a thrilling adaptation of onetime Boulder resident Stephen King’s celebrated horror novel. The story follows Carrie White, a teenage outcast bullied at school and oppressed by her fanatically religious mother at home. But when Carrie discovers she has telekinetic powers, she finds herself on a dangerous path of revenge that culminates in one of the most chilling climaxes in horror history.
“We try to listen to what our people want to do, and Carrie: The Musical was what our community really wanted to do,” says Spark founder and executive director Dillon Kenyon. “And what’s not to love? It’s a fun musical based on killer source material.”
Carrie was adapted into a Broadway musical in 1988, more than a decade after the Brian De Palma film starring Sissy Spacek took home two Academy Awards. The stage production was notoriously short-lived, closing after only five performances due to negative reviews and high production costs. Despite its initial failure, the production gained a cult following over time with its blend of horror, tragedy and dark comedy.
In 2012, a reworked version of the musical premiered Off-Broadway, earning more favorable reviews. The Spark’s upcoming production will attempt to build on its success with a fresh take on the spirit of King’s original novel.
“Our production intertwines funky contemporary dance with the story of a young girl bullied to the point of developing deadly telekinetic powers,” Kenyon says. “By capturing the novel’s intense emotions and dark themes, our goal is to bring a new depth to this chilling tale.”
ON STAGE: Carrie the Musical. Oct. 4-20, The Spark, 4847 Pearl Street St., Unit B4, Boulder.