Poster Courtesy of LALTLALT News:
A show so big it takes two theater companies to put it on is landing in Los Alamos for its New Mexico premiere.
Major Broadway musical Avenue Q, a raucous, raunchy puppet show for grown-ups, opens May 1 at the Los Alamos Little Theater, performed in conjunction with the Dixon Community Players. Winner of the Tony Awards “Triple Crown” for Best Musical, Best Score and Best Book, Avenue Q is part flesh, part felt and packed with heart.
Telling the story of newcomer Princeton, fresh out of college with a seemingly useless BA in English, Avenue Q deals with questions of what real life looks like once you’re out on your own.
Princeton joins a hilarious cast of misfits, from an ambiguously gay puppet couple, to a brilliant Japanese woman with two master’s degrees who still can’t get any clients, to child celebrity Gary Coleman, from TV’s Different Strokes! Together they tackle such real life issues as unemployment, racism, sexual politics, one night stands, and finding your purpose in life.
Despite the show’s warm, fuzzy center, Avenue Q deals candidly and graphically with adult subject matter, and is therefore not recommended for the “easily offended” or children under the age of 16.
Memorable songs from the show include “What do You do With a BA in English?” along with “If You Were Gay” and “When you Help Others You can’t Help Helping Yourself.” James B. Comey, director of the FBI quoted some of the lyrics from “Everyone’s a Little Bit Racist” in a recent speech addressing the widespread existence of unconscious racial bias.
With a score composed of some of the most iconic songs of the modern Broadway era, performed by a powerhouse cast of both veterans and newcomers to the Los Alamos stage, Avenue Q promises to be a can’t miss event for the entire region. Plus, puppets!
Director Holly Haas, of Dixon Community Players and formerly of Los Alamos High School’s drama department, had the vision to bring this fantastic opportunity to Los Alamos. Haas said the wit and humor of the show are top notch, but what is truly amazing is the deep heart the show conceals beneath its “puppety” exterior. “There is nothing false in this musical, and that makes it so unique. I knew I had to put it on the moment I saw it on Broadway in 2003,” Haas said.
The show features 11 actors and a five-piece orchestra.
Opening night for Avenue Q is Friday, May 1. Shows will run at 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays May 1 through May 16. Matinees will be performed at 2 p.m. Sunday May 3 and 10.
Tickets are $14 for adults, $12 for students or seniors, and can be purchased at CB Fox, online at lalt.org, or at the door on each performance evening. Los Alamos Little Theatre is located at the Performing Arts Center at 1670 Nectar Street.
Avenue Q is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International.
