Bumbershoot’s Regional Theatre Program is curated by Theatre Puget Sound, a consortium of theatres and individual artist in the Puget Sound region dedicated to nurturing a healthy and vibrant theatre and arts community. Since 2003, TPS has worked with Bumbershoot to curate exceptional programs highlighting local theatre performers and productions.
The Theatre Stage will present the following programs:
Physical, funny, punny and a great chance for audience participation of all ages, Owl & Pussycat continues in the Theater Simple tradition of serving up the sharp, snappy humor parents hope for and the goofy fun kids like.
Back for the second year, NERDprov crosses the streams of geek culture and comedic improvisation, causing total protonic reversal—not to mention an amazing show! Audiences shout out their favorite geeky references (shows, movies, comics, music, games, you name it) and watch in wonder as the ensemble’s sharp minds and superpowers bring them to life.
Audrey & Nelson is a puppet sex musical. That pretty much sums it up right there—puppets singing about and having sex. Audrey and Nelson, two twenty-somethings (portrayed by puppets), meet at a bar, get drunk, and fall into bed. Excited by their sexual chemistry, they try to turn this chance encounter into a relationship… and it doesn’t work out. But along the way, they experiment with a lot of sex and confide in their best friends, who have some sexual issues of their own. And much of this is expressed in the form of low-fi indie-pop songs, in a K-Records vein. Book and lyrics by Bret Fetzer, music by Peter Richards (of the band Dude York).
Weird and Awesome with Emmett Montgomery is a love letter to the strangeness and talent that walks amongst us. Each show features brilliant people doing things outside of their comfort zones or the things they are really good at. Prizes are won! Friends are made! Nightmares are shared and joy is experienced!
Unexpected Productions presents veteran comedy improvisers who also play at least one instrument, crafting fully realized musical pieces on the spot and before your eyes.
Performers’ Forge presents a theatrical representation of violence with scenes varying from the historically accurate to the wildly inappropriate. Performers exhibit an array of scenes utilizing a multitude of weapons (both real and imaginary) within a diverse spectrum of styles, including comedic slapstick, period drama, and pop culture realism.
Master monologist Matt Smith turns his 8th grade year in 1966–67 into a wild coming-of-age comedy—a comedy grounded in his Catholic education, racism, and the joys and horrors that are male adolescence.