Diamond Head Theatre announced the lineup today for its 95th season. Three Hawaii premieres are included in a lineup of traditional musicals and modern favorites.

“We are thrilled to bring to Hawaii for the first time, three sensational shows that offer audiences nonstop, feel-good entertainment and fun,” says DHT Artistic Director John Rampage.
“The Drowsy Chaperone,” touted as the most celebrated musical of the 2006 Broadway season, opens DHT’s season with Sept. 25-Oct. 11 run. Irving Berlin’s “White Christmas,” a timeless holiday musical based on the beloved movie, comes to Hawaii fresh from Broadway Dec. 4-20 and “SHOUT! The Mod Musical,” will open in March.
Also coming up: “The Joy Luck Club,” based on the bestselling book by Amy Tan, an affecting story of mother-daughter relationships across cultures and generations; “Guys and Dolls,” a 1950s classic musical comedy with its score of unforgettable songs; and “The Sound of Music,” the tale of the von Trapp Family that has won the hearts of audiences worldwide.
Season subscriptions go on sale June 1. Season subscription prices, which include tickets to all six shows, are: $210 – Diamond Head Circle, $150 – Section A, $105 – Section B, and $54 – Section C.
Individual tickets for all shows go on sale Aug. 24. The 2009-2010 season will run from September 2009 – July 2010. Unless otherwise amended, all performances run Thursday and Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 3 p.m. (second and third weekends) and 8:00 p.m., and Sunday at 4 p.m.
Subscriptions and single tickets can be purchased at the DHT Box Office, Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., or by calling 733-0274. Single tickets can also be purchased online at www.diamondheadtheatre.com.
DIAMOND HEAD THEATRE 2009-2010 SEASON
“THE DROWSY CHAPERONE” – A Musical Within a Comedy
Sept. 25 – Oct. 11
Music and lyrics by LISA LAMBERT and GREG MORRISON
Book by BOB MARTIN and DON McKELLER
A show of unprecedented originality, The Drowsy Chaperone begins with the audience being greeted by narrator, Man in the Chair, sitting on a darkened stage. He is a fan of vintage musicals who seems to be suffering from the blues, and he quickly decides to cheer things up by playing a record of the original cast recording of a (fictional) Broadway musical entitled “The Drowsy Chaperone”. No sooner has the needle touched the record than we, together with the narrator, are transported to a 1928 Broadway theatre and into “The Drowsy Chaperone”, a play-within-a-comedy crammed full of every cliché, gag and gimmick from the golden age of musicals. Musical numbers: “Show Off”, “As We Stumble Along” and “Toledo Surprise”.

Irving Berlin’s “WHITE CHRISTMAS,” The Musical
Dec. 4-20
Based Upon the Paramount Pictures Film Written for the Screen by
NORMAN KRASNA, NORMAN PANAMA and MELVIN FRANK
Music and lyrics by IRVING BERLIN
Book by DAVID IVES and PAUL BLAKE
Two army buddies from World War II have become a very successful song and dance team. They meet up with two sisters and follow the girls to their next show at an inn in Vermont. Arriving at the inn, they discover it’s empty – no snow! – but the innkeeper turns out to be their beloved former commanding general. The boys decide to try to drum up some business for the old man by bringing in their New York show...and ultimately their whole army division. But not without mishaps! One of the all-time best feel-good Christmas musicals.
Irving Berlin’s White Christmas features all the songs familiar to fans of the movie, plus the producers secured rights to additional Berlin songs as well. The phenomenally successful Broadway engagement last Christmas season at New York’s Marquis Theatre broke industry-wide box office records, raising the profile of this already popular show.
It won’t be long before “I Love a Piano,” “Blue Skies,” “Sisters,” “How Deep Is The Ocean?,” “Snow,” “Happy Holidays,” and of course, the title song “White Christmas” fill the air and the seats in our theatre.

“THE JOY LUCK CLUB”
Jan. 29 – Feb. 14
Written by SUSAN KIM
Adapted from the novel by AMY TAN
The Joy Luck Club tells the story of four older Chinese-American women and their complex relationships with their American-born daughters. The play moves between China in the early 1900s to San Francisco in the 1980s as the eight women struggle to reach across a seemingly impassable chasm of culture, generations and expectations to find strength and happiness.

“SHOUT! THE MOD MUSICAL”
March 19 – April 4
Created by PHILLIP GEORGE, DAVID LOWENSTEIN and PETER CHARLES MORRIS
Originally produced Off-Broadway in New York City by
VICTORIA LANG, P.P. PICCOLI and MARK SCHWARTZ
SHOUT! flips through the years like a musical magazine and takes you back to the music, the fashion and the freedom of the 60s – with tongue planted firmly in cheek. Everything from the period is recreated – from the fashions and the dances, to the music and the hair. A non-stop journey through the infectious and soulful pop songs such as “To Sir With Love”, “Downtown”, “You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me”, “Georgy Girl”, and “Windy”, which made household names of stars like Lulu, Petula Clark, and Dusty Springfield.

“GUYS AND DOLLS”
May 14-30
A musical fable of Broadway based on a story and characters of DAMON RUNYON
Music and lyrics by FRANK LOESSER
Book by JO SWERLING and ABE BURROWS
Set in Damon Runyon’s mythical New York City, the show – considered by many to be the perfect musical comedy – soars with the spirit of Broadway as it introduces a cast of vivid characters who have become legends: Sarah Brown, the upright but uptight “doll”; Sky Masterson, the slick, high-rolling gambler; Adelaide, the nightclub performer, engaged to the same man for 14 years; and Nathan Detroit, her devoted fiancé, desperate as always to find a spot for his infamous floating crap game. Musical Highlights: “Luck Be a Lady Tonight”, “A Bushel and a Peck”, and “Guys and Dolls”.

“THE SOUND OF MUSIC”
July 9-25, 2010
Music by RICHARD RODGERS
Lyrics by OSCAR HAMMERSTEIN II
Book by HOWARD LINDSAY and RUSSEL CROUSE
When a postulant proves too high-spirited for the religious life, she is dispatched to serve as governess for the seven children of a widowed naval Captain. She captures the heart of the stern Captain, and they marry. Upon returning from their honeymoon, they discover that Austria is being occupied by the Nazis. The family’s narrow escape over the mountains to Switzerland on the eve of World War II provides a thrilling and inspirational finale. Musical Highlights: “The Sound of Music”, “My Favorite Things”, and “Edelweiss”.