Tasha Does Tulsa.

Last week I got to eat lunch on the stage at Howard Auditorium at Oral Roberts University here in Tulsa. In full lights. With a tablecloth, a can of Dr. Pepper and a slice of Paradise Pie from Hideaway Pizza on a paper plate.

Sitting at the other end of that table were Courtneay Sanders and Chris Crawford.

Now, if you’re a local theatre fanatic, you just emitted a “Squee!” of recognition that would rival that of a Jonas Brothers fan. Who cares if you’re at the office and everyone totally just heard you? It’s Courtneay Sanders and Chris Crawford we’re talking about here.

If you’re not yet a member of this loop, you should know, first, that Sanders and Crawford are professors in the theatre department at ORU.

Wait. You didn’t know? Yes, Tulsa’s evangelical university has a theatre program. A really good one, actually. While the university itself continues the work of repairing its reputation after the end of an era of closed-door leadership and recent legal and financial upsets, the word about its acting, dancing and singing programs is out: It’s college theatre that’s well worth your time and hard-earned money.

Also, that it’s not Christian theatre. Instead, it’s Christians doing theatre. No Ned Flanders on Ice to be found here.

Sanders and Crawford have day jobs at ORU, but they don’t stop there. They’re also behind a community theatre company here in Tulsa that got its start last February when it brought William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet to the stage. The mission at this company, called The Playhouse Tulsa, is to create challenging, exciting, excellent, innovative and culturally diverse theatre that will satisfy, educate, entertain and ultimately, challenge the audience.

In other words? It’s theatre that doesn’t suck.

We’ve all been there, right? In a seat not anywhere near an aisle or a door that would allow for a discreet exit. You’re stuck, and in front of you continues a production that has failed to grab you and pull you in. It’s worse than that, really. The acting and writing is not only sloppy, but it’s totally irrelevant. Uh-oh – your cringe reflex has begun to set in.

To add insult to injury, you’re now $15 poorer, and there’s still no escape to the safety of the nearest bar.

Your insurance against this type of experience at a Playhouse Tulsa show are the reviews in the local media (and here) of the company’s 2009-2010 season.

I love what Tulsa World’s James D. Watts Jr. said about PT’s House and Garden, at the TPAC back in July:

I have spent close to five hours, more than two evenings, sitting in one of the less-than-ergonomically designed seats in the Tulsa PAC’s Doenges and Norman theatres, watching Playhouse Theatre’s productions of “House” and “Garden.”

And I would willingly, happily do it again. These shows are that good.

If past acclaim and raving review after raving review is any indication, the 2010-2011 season with Playhouse Theatre is going to keep serving up all that good stuff the company waxes poetic about in its mission statement. It all starts this Friday night (Sept. 10), and you probably shouldn’t miss it.

I mean, not unless you prefer being left out of all the best water cooler chatter at the office. And the banter in the lines at lunch. And the buzz on Twitter and Facebook.

If you enjoy being the only one who didn’t see the show everyone who’s anyone is raving about, then you’re clear to miss this killer line-up:

Macbeth

Chris and Courtneay star in Shakespeare’s tragic tale of power, lust, magic and murder, brought into the present day.
When: Sept. 10, 11th, 16th, 17th, 18th, 7:30pm; Sept. 12th, 2pm
Where: John H. Williams Theatre at Tulsa Performing Arts Center, 110 E. Second Street
Tickets: On sale now

A Charlie Brown Christmas
Can Charlie Brown find the true meaning of Christmas?
When: Dec. 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th, 7:30pm; Dec. 11th and 12th, 2pm
Where: Charles E. Norman Theatre at Tulsa Performing Arts Center, 110 E. Second Street
Tickets: On sale Oct. 25

Love Song
Beane’s life is a shrinking, darkening world…until Molly appears. An off-beat romantic comedy.
When: Feb. 10th, 11th, and 12th, 7:30pm; Feb. 13th, 2pm
Where: Liddy Doenges Theatre at Tulsa Performing Arts Center, 110 E. Second Street
Tickets: On sale Jan. 3

Howie the Rookie
A white-knuckle ride through a nightmare Dublin, where enemies and allies are interchangeable, where the most brutal events take on a mythic significance. Part of The Irish Repertory of the 2010-2011 season.
When: March 17th, 7:30pm; March 19th, 2pm
Where: Charles E. Norman Theatre at Tulsa Performing Arts Center, 110 E. Second Street
Tickets: On sale Feb. 7

Shining City
Conor McPherson explores what it means to lose faith in God, in relationships and in one’s self in this contemporary ghost story. Part of the Irish Repertory of the 2010-2011 season.
When: March 16, 18th and 19th, 7:30pm
Where: Charles E. Norman Theatre at Tulsa Performing Arts Center, 110 E. Second Street
Tickets: On sale Feb. 7

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Alexander is having a bad day. A terrible day. A horrible day. An adaptation of the popular book.
When: April 8th, 7pm; April 9th, 10am and 2pm; April 10th, 2pm
Where: Liddy Doenges Theatre at Tulsa Performing Arts Center, 110 E. Second Street
Tickets: On sale March 7

The Great American Trailer Park Musical
With a Greek chorus of trailer park matrons, an agoraphobic troubled housewife and a stripper on the run, this production is Family Guy meets Desperate Housewives. For mature audiences.
When: May 19th, 20th and 21st, 7:30pm; May 22nd, 2pm
Where: Liddy Doenges Theatre at Tulsa Performing Arts Center, 110 E. Second Street
Tickets: On sale April 11

Noises Off
The audience gets to experience what really happens behind the scenes when, the night before opening at the Grand Theatre in Weston-super-Mare, a cast is still fumbling with entrances and exits, missed cues and misspoken lines.
When: Summer 2011

The season centers on the theme, Dare to Connect. From Chris’s letter in the season program:

It’s a scary thing, connection. It seems that one can never truly foresee the outcome. Which is why it takes a choice. It takes guts. It takes risk. It’s through our connections that we find the things that make life rich and unique.

Single tickets to these shows are available online at PlayhouseTheatreTulsa.com as well as MyTicketOffice.com. They can also be purchased by calling the TPAC at (918) 596-7111.

If you’re wondering if it’s legal for a season of a theatre company to be your soulmate like the 2010-2011 season of Playhouse Theatre is your soulmate, then maybe you should opt for season tickets. You save up to 30 percent on the best reserved seats in the house, and you’re also invited to exclusive pre- and post-performance events (read: meet the actors and directors! Squee!). Season passes can be purchased by calling (918) 859-6342.

Just when you thought Chris and Courtneay would take a breather, well, um, no. Let’s talk a sec about Encore Playhouse.

Chris and Courtneay have partnered with Joshua and Mindy Barker at Encore Theatre Arts Acting Studio & Theatre Company to bring to T-Town a season of kid-friendly theatrical productions, which ranges from The Jungle Book (which starts tonight, by the way, and continues into the weekend) to Charlie and the Chocolate Factory to Alice in Wonderland.

The mission is to provide area kids with opportunities to learn and grow in the art of theatre through high-quality productions that appeal to both kids and adults alike.

The group also offers workshops and classes – think Baby Broadway Music, Homeschool Drama, Storytelling and Advanced Acting – for kids age 4 and up. Tuition for the classes is roughly $14 per session.

Classes sign-ups are available at EncoreTulsa.com, and tickets to Encore Playhouse productions are available via MyTicketOffice.com or by calling (918) 596-7111.

As you go forth into the bright, new world that is the 2010-2011 theatre season here in T-Town with your Playhouse Tulsa tickets in hand, remember this: Go back. Get your credit card back out and buy an extra ticket. You never know – with that extra pass you might just earn the world another showtunes or Shakespeare devotee.

Which is way better than yet another grumpy (or, worse, reluctant) theatre-goer walking around any day, if you ask me.

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