Classic Stage Company announces 2017-2018 season

Artistic Director John Doyle has announced details of Classic Stage Company's upcoming 50th Anniversary season. He released the following statement:

"This season marks an extraordinary moment in our history: our 50th year of performances. Since 1967, CSC has engaged the most enthralling and challenging works of the world in an active examination of what makes a classic a classic. It is a pursuit that continues to captivate us. In this year of both looking back and looking ahead, we are delighted to present a season of three distinctive acts, which we hope will both enrich and broaden one's idea of the classic: Shakespeare, Americans, and Musical Theater."

The CSC productions will be presented in the following season order:

ACT I: SHAKESPEARE

The season kicks off in September 2017 with a revival of William Shakespeare's As You Like It, directed by John Doyle and featuring original music by Stephen Schwartz.

This co-production with Bay Street Theater aims to "bring Shakespeare's pastoral romance into the Jazz Age."

The second Shakespeare production of the season - Twelfth Night - is presented by Fiasco Theater and will begin performances in November 2017.

New York's innovative Fiasco Theater brings their hallmark style and expansive imagination to one of Shakespeare's most popular comedies.

ACT II: AMERICANS

The 50th Anniversary season continues in January 2018 with the world premiere of Terrence McNally's Fire and Air, directed by John Doyle.

This new drama explores "the rich history of the Ballets Russes, Sergei Diaghilev's revolutionary ballet company, and the tempestuous relationship between Diaghilev and his lover-star dancer Vaslav Nijinsky."

Following this, CSC will stage a Tennessee Williams play for the very first time in its illustrious history. Summer and Smoke, directed by Jack Cummings III, will begin performances in April 2018.

Tennessee Williams makes his long-overdue debut at CSC with this sultry Southern Gothic masterpiece about a local minister's daughter who falls in love with the neighborhood doctor.

This is a co-production with Transport Group Theatre Company.

ACT III: MUSICAL THEATER

The final production of the 2017-2018 season will be a rare revival of Oscar Hammerstein II's Carmen Jones, directed by John Doyle, which begins performances in June 2018.

Featuring book & lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and music by Georges Bizet, the musical explores a World War II setting of Bizet's opera Carmen and features an all African-American cast. This is the first major revival of the show since its debut on Broadway 75 years ago.

Classic Stage Company has also announced that it will stage two productions for younger audiences. The Stowaway, based on the plays of William Shakespeare and written and directed by Drew Petersen, will play the off-Broadway venue from November 2017, whilst a revival of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar will begin performances in March 2018. The Stowaway is suitable for ages 5+ and Julius Caesar is recommended for those 12+.

The Classic Stage Company's current 2016-2017 season continues with Stephen Sondheim's Pacific Overtures, starring George Takei, which will play its final performance on June 18, 2017.

Casting and creative team information for all of the 50th Anniversary season's productions will be announced at a later date.