August 12, 13, 19, and 20, 2005 7:30 p.m. 

Collinsville Webster School Auditorium

Directed by Karen Perry
                                

    Synopsis:

      An affectionate paean to Smalltown, U.S.A. of a bygone era, Meredith Willson’s “The Music Man” follows fast-talking traveling salesman Harold Hill as he cons the people of River City, Iowa into buying instruments and uniforms for a boys’ band he vows to organize – this despite the fact he doesn’t know a trombone from a treble clef. His plans to skip town with the cash are foiled when he falls for Marian the librarian, who transforms him into a respectable citizen by curtain’s fall.

Perfect for professional theatres, community groups, summer stock and schools alike, this award-winning, critically acclaimed Broadway classic is an all-American institution, thanks to is quirky characters, charmingly predictable dramatic situations, and one-of-a-kind, nostalgic score of rousing marches, barbershop quartets and sentimental ballads which have become popular standards. The cast features a soaring soprano ingénue, parts for young performers and children, and one of the musical theatre’s treasures, a tour de force leading role for a charismatic actor who doesn’t need to be a trained singer.

By turns wicked, funny, warm, romantic and touching, “The Music Man” is family entertainment at its best.

The Music Man is sponsored in part by a grant from the Madison County Arts Council, the Illinois Arts Council, and the Fox Associates Foundation