Theater: Cultural Events

Groundhog Day: The Musical tells the tale of Phil Connors (Travis Bilenski), a cynical TV weatherman from Pittsburgh. He is sent to cover the annual Groundhog Day event in the small, isolated town of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Accompanied by his producer Rita (Madison Curtis) and cameraman Larry (Keaton Fields), Phil discovers that he is seemingly destined to relive Groundhog Day in an endless loop, unless he finds a way to break the cycle. As each day unfolds in exactly the same manner, Phil grows increasingly despondent. Yet, is there a lesson to be learned through his experiences? Will he ever unlock the secret to breaking the cycle?

For tickets and more information, visit lakewood-center.org.

In Giuseppe Verdi’s final opera, inspired by Shakespeare’s Henry IV and The Merry Wives of Windsor, the charismatic (but bankrupt) Sir John Falstaff conspires to seduce two wealthy married women.

After sending identical love letters, Falstaff’s flimsy plan is foiled; Alice Ford and Meg Page hatch a scheme of their own to expose him.

Portland Opera’s unique take on this classic finds our hero traipsing about a 1980s Country Club, brought to life with vivid projections and colorful costumes.

Merriment and mischief are at the heart of the tale as this beloved buffoon endures mishaps and deceptions, ultimately discovering his humility.

With bright and lively melodies and unparalleled polyphonic arrangements, this exuberant masterpiece is widely considered one of the best comedic operas ever written.

Cost: $25 – $150

For tickets and more information, visit portlandopera.org. 

Groundhog Day: The Musical tells the tale of Phil Connors (Travis Bilenski), a cynical TV weatherman from Pittsburgh. He is sent to cover the annual Groundhog Day event in the small, isolated town of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Accompanied by his producer Rita (Madison Curtis) and cameraman Larry (Keaton Fields), Phil discovers that he is seemingly destined to relive Groundhog Day in an endless loop, unless he finds a way to break the cycle. As each day unfolds in exactly the same manner, Phil grows increasingly despondent. Yet, is there a lesson to be learned through his experiences? Will he ever unlock the secret to breaking the cycle?

For tickets and more information, visit lakewood-center.org.

Beethoven’s Fifth and Young Artists Competition Winners
Friday May 16, 2025 at 7:30pm at The Reser, 12625 SW Crescent St., Beaverton, OR 97005
Sunday May 18, 2025 at 3:00pm at Village Church, 330 SW Murray Blvd., Beaverton, OR 97005

Verdi – Overture to La forza del destino
Competition winners perform with the orchestra
Beethoven – Symphony No. 5 in C minor, op. 67

For tickets and more information, visit beavertonsymphony.org. 

Imago Co-Founder Carol Triffle premieres her newest show: Happyness (The Wrecking Ball)
May 16 – 31
Friday and Saturday at 7:30
Sunday at 2:00

Imago Theatre, 17 SE 8th Avenue
imagotheatre.com

TICKETS

https://www.onthestage.tickets/show/imago-theatre/670ef4d1f392d26c3b9ca2b4

Tickets also available at the door. Theatre opens one hour before showtime. All seats
$20.

If there’s anyone who understands where hysteria and hysterical meet, it’s Imago Theatre’s absurdist auteur Carol Triffle. And that crazy common ground of hilarity and despair has never been as strikingly apparent as it is in her newest work, Happyness (TheWrecking Ball). If you’ve been paying attention to Imago since the pandemic, then you’ll know that Triffle has, in recent years, been slyly satirizing American culture via a series of wildly entertaining alt-rock farces. Her Where’s Bruno? (2023) cleverly lampooned the fame game and spiritual psychobabble; her Mission Gibbons (2024) was a witty, sci-fi send-up of our collective response to the climate crisis. Indeed, her ability to find humor despite a looming apocalypse suggests that perhaps Hollywood escapism has lost its effectiveness. We’d be wiser to confront reality head on and see how ridiculous humanity is. With the war-torn world of Happyness (TheWrecking Ball), our ability to laugh in defiance of destitution may be our key to long-term survival. Well, that and a sock puppet who recognizes a catchy tune.

Carol Triffle – Director/Writer
Kyle Delamarter – Music Composition

Characters
Anne Sorce – Anny, Danny’s roommate
Laura Loy – Danny, Anny’s roommate
Kyle Delamarter – Jason, Danny’s partner
Zeno – Puppet

Cost: $20

Portland Youth Philharmonic’s Chamber Orchestra Camerata continues its 101st season with a mesmerizing program featuring both contemporary and classical works.

Camerata PYP will be playing the reflective tones of Isolation for String Orchestra by Dinah Bianchi, a contemplative piece that explores solitude through haunting melodies. Next, Eric Simonson‘s Short Variations for String Orchestra presents a fresh and intricate take on theme and variation, offering both complexity and beauty. Polina Nazaykinskaya’s Symphony No. 2 brings the program into the present, with a work that captures the emotional depth and power of modern orchestral music.

After intermission, Farhad Poupel’s Dance of the Blossoms add to the evening’s dynamic range, balancing traditional forms with contemporary energy. Then, PYP Camerata invites Delaram Amiri, a world renowned Tombak player, as the guest soloist for Kamyar Mohajer‘s Lights Away, a piece that transports us to the streets of Iran. To end the evening, you will hear Bobak Salehi‘s new commissioned work Rostam on the Hunt for Persian Instruments and String Orchestra.

For tickets and more information, visit portlandyouthphil.org. 

Wednesday, May 14, 2025 at 7:30 PM
Patricia Reser Center for the Arts, 12625 SW Crescent St., Beaverton, OR 97005

Saturday, May 17, 2025 at 2:00 PM
Walters Cultural Arts Center, 527 E Main St, Hillsboro, OR 97123

Music by Giacomo Puccini
Libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa

Giacomo Puccini’s melodrama returns to the McCaw Hall stage in a classic production that “has just about everything: great tunes, desperate lovers, loads of action, and a bad guy you’re going to love to hate” (The Seattle Times). Two lovers are thwarted by the power-hungry Scarpia while the fiery prima donna Tosca is pushed past sanity when her only hope for freedom means submitting to the evil Baron’s lecherous desires.

“Vocally perfect” (Broadway World) soprano Vanessa Goikoetxea (Alcina ’23, Don Giovanni ’21, Carmen ’19) and the “gleaming soprano” (Opera Warhorses) of Lianna Haroutounian (Madame Butterfly ’17) return to McCaw Hall as Floria Tosca. As Cavaradossi, the “warm, rich tenor” (Bachtrack) of Rame Lahaj alternates with “ardent tenor and an impassioned actor” (The Seattle Times) Yonghoon Lee, who returns to Seattle after his debut as Samson (Samson and Delilah in Concert ’23).

Imago Co-Founder Carol Triffle premieres her newest show: Happyness (The Wrecking Ball)
May 16 – 31
Friday and Saturday at 7:30
Sunday at 2:00

Imago Theatre, 17 SE 8th Avenue
imagotheatre.com

TICKETS

https://www.onthestage.tickets/show/imago-theatre/670ef4d1f392d26c3b9ca2b4

Tickets also available at the door. Theatre opens one hour before showtime. All seats
$20.

If there’s anyone who understands where hysteria and hysterical meet, it’s Imago Theatre’s absurdist auteur Carol Triffle. And that crazy common ground of hilarity and despair has never been as strikingly apparent as it is in her newest work, Happyness (TheWrecking Ball). If you’ve been paying attention to Imago since the pandemic, then you’ll know that Triffle has, in recent years, been slyly satirizing American culture via a series of wildly entertaining alt-rock farces. Her Where’s Bruno? (2023) cleverly lampooned the fame game and spiritual psychobabble; her Mission Gibbons (2024) was a witty, sci-fi send-up of our collective response to the climate crisis. Indeed, her ability to find humor despite a looming apocalypse suggests that perhaps Hollywood escapism has lost its effectiveness. We’d be wiser to confront reality head on and see how ridiculous humanity is. With the war-torn world of Happyness (TheWrecking Ball), our ability to laugh in defiance of destitution may be our key to long-term survival. Well, that and a sock puppet who recognizes a catchy tune.

Carol Triffle – Director/Writer
Kyle Delamarter – Music Composition

Characters
Anne Sorce – Anny, Danny’s roommate
Laura Loy – Danny, Anny’s roommate
Kyle Delamarter – Jason, Danny’s partner
Zeno – Puppet

Cost: $20

Saturday, May 17 @ 7:30pm
St. Mary’s Cathedral, 1739 NW Couch St Portland, OR 97209

Sunday, May 18 @ 3pm
Our Lady of the Lake Parish, 650 A Avenue Lake Oswego OR 97034

Cappella Romana and In Medio (John Eisemann, director) form a choir of over 40 singers to perform Ivan Moody’s powerful oratorio Passion and Resurrection. English cantillation of Holy Week’s drama mixes with soul-stirring Orthodox hymns sung in Slavonic, Greek, and English, accompanied by string quartet and bells played by our friends in 45th Parallel Universe.

These concerts are given in memory of Fr. Ivan, our beloved and much-missed friend who wrote his longest choral work, The Akáthistos Hymn, for Cappella Romana.

Tickets are $33-$53

For tickets and more information, visit cappellaromana.org.

Groundhog Day: The Musical tells the tale of Phil Connors (Travis Bilenski), a cynical TV weatherman from Pittsburgh. He is sent to cover the annual Groundhog Day event in the small, isolated town of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Accompanied by his producer Rita (Madison Curtis) and cameraman Larry (Keaton Fields), Phil discovers that he is seemingly destined to relive Groundhog Day in an endless loop, unless he finds a way to break the cycle. As each day unfolds in exactly the same manner, Phil grows increasingly despondent. Yet, is there a lesson to be learned through his experiences? Will he ever unlock the secret to breaking the cycle?

For tickets and more information, visit lakewood-center.org.

Soloist, Yaron Kohlberg, Piano

The Orchestra Nova Northwest welcomes international competition winner and President of the Cleveland International Piano Competition Yaron Kohlberg as he performs one of the most challenging and exciting piano concertos in the repertoire, the dazzling Piano Concerto No. 3 of Sergei Prokofiev. The orchestra performs Shostakovich’s mighty, tragic, but ultimately triumphal Symphony No. 10, a musical rebuke of the oppressive regime of Joseph Stalin, written immediately after the death of the Soviet dictator. For tickets and more information, visit novanw.org.

Program:

SERGEI PROKOFIEV Piano Concerto No. 3
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No. 10

Sat. May 17, 2025, 7:30 p.m. | Mt. Hood Community College, Gresham
Sun. May 18, 2025, 3:00 p.m. | The Reser, Beaverton

Selected Shorts is a live theatrical experience featuring guest actors reading stories selected specifically for each memorable event. The three to four stories are mostly fiction, sometimes classic, sometimes new, and are always read by great actors from stage, screen, and television. Selected Shorts began in 1985 and has enjoyed sold-out performances throughout its history. Produced by Symphony Space in New York City, the stories presented live at Selected Shorts are often featured on the hit public radio show and podcast, which reaches hundreds of thousands of listeners on over 130 stations and streaming services each week.

Performances feature three stories read by three actors that are based on themes tailored to suit a particular venue, community, or overall season.

Makoto Ozone delivers his “thrilling, unabashedly personal rendition” (New York Times) of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue — a jazzy, kaleidoscopic tribute to the kinetic energy of America’s cities in the 1920s. And composed the same year as the Gershwin, Bartók’s Miraculous Mandarin channels the turmoil of post–World War I Europe in a scandalous tale of sex, violence, and the supernatural.

Program
Derrick Skye: Prisms, Cycles, Leaps 
Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue
Suk: Scherzo fantastique
Bartók: Suite from The Miraculous Mandarin

Artists
Kevin John Edusei, Conductor
Makoto Ozone, Piano

In Giuseppe Verdi’s final opera, inspired by Shakespeare’s Henry IV and The Merry Wives of Windsor, the charismatic (but bankrupt) Sir John Falstaff conspires to seduce two wealthy married women.

After sending identical love letters, Falstaff’s flimsy plan is foiled; Alice Ford and Meg Page hatch a scheme of their own to expose him.

Portland Opera’s unique take on this classic finds our hero traipsing about a 1980s Country Club, brought to life with vivid projections and colorful costumes.

Merriment and mischief are at the heart of the tale as this beloved buffoon endures mishaps and deceptions, ultimately discovering his humility.

With bright and lively melodies and unparalleled polyphonic arrangements, this exuberant masterpiece is widely considered one of the best comedic operas ever written.

Cost: $25 – $150

For tickets and more information, visit portlandopera.org. 

Makoto Ozone delivers his “thrilling, unabashedly personal rendition” (New York Times) of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue — a jazzy, kaleidoscopic tribute to the kinetic energy of America’s cities in the 1920s. And composed the same year as the Gershwin, Bartók’s Miraculous Mandarin channels the turmoil of post–World War I Europe in a scandalous tale of sex, violence, and the supernatural.

Program
Derrick Skye: Prisms, Cycles, Leaps 
Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue
Suk: Scherzo fantastique
Bartók: Suite from The Miraculous Mandarin

Artists
Kevin John Edusei, Conductor
Makoto Ozone, Piano

Groundhog Day: The Musical tells the tale of Phil Connors (Travis Bilenski), a cynical TV weatherman from Pittsburgh. He is sent to cover the annual Groundhog Day event in the small, isolated town of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Accompanied by his producer Rita (Madison Curtis) and cameraman Larry (Keaton Fields), Phil discovers that he is seemingly destined to relive Groundhog Day in an endless loop, unless he finds a way to break the cycle. As each day unfolds in exactly the same manner, Phil grows increasingly despondent. Yet, is there a lesson to be learned through his experiences? Will he ever unlock the secret to breaking the cycle?

For tickets and more information, visit lakewood-center.org.

Imago Co-Founder Carol Triffle premieres her newest show: Happyness (The Wrecking Ball)
May 16 – 31
Friday and Saturday at 7:30
Sunday at 2:00

Imago Theatre, 17 SE 8th Avenue
imagotheatre.com

TICKETS

https://www.onthestage.tickets/show/imago-theatre/670ef4d1f392d26c3b9ca2b4

Tickets also available at the door. Theatre opens one hour before showtime. All seats
$20.

If there’s anyone who understands where hysteria and hysterical meet, it’s Imago Theatre’s absurdist auteur Carol Triffle. And that crazy common ground of hilarity and despair has never been as strikingly apparent as it is in her newest work, Happyness (TheWrecking Ball). If you’ve been paying attention to Imago since the pandemic, then you’ll know that Triffle has, in recent years, been slyly satirizing American culture via a series of wildly entertaining alt-rock farces. Her Where’s Bruno? (2023) cleverly lampooned the fame game and spiritual psychobabble; her Mission Gibbons (2024) was a witty, sci-fi send-up of our collective response to the climate crisis. Indeed, her ability to find humor despite a looming apocalypse suggests that perhaps Hollywood escapism has lost its effectiveness. We’d be wiser to confront reality head on and see how ridiculous humanity is. With the war-torn world of Happyness (TheWrecking Ball), our ability to laugh in defiance of destitution may be our key to long-term survival. Well, that and a sock puppet who recognizes a catchy tune.

Carol Triffle – Director/Writer
Kyle Delamarter – Music Composition

Characters
Anne Sorce – Anny, Danny’s roommate
Laura Loy – Danny, Anny’s roommate
Kyle Delamarter – Jason, Danny’s partner
Zeno – Puppet

Cost: $20

Soloist, Yaron Kohlberg, Piano

The Orchestra Nova Northwest welcomes international competition winner and President of the Cleveland International Piano Competition Yaron Kohlberg as he performs one of the most challenging and exciting piano concertos in the repertoire, the dazzling Piano Concerto No. 3 of Sergei Prokofiev. The orchestra performs Shostakovich’s mighty, tragic, but ultimately triumphal Symphony No. 10, a musical rebuke of the oppressive regime of Joseph Stalin, written immediately after the death of the Soviet dictator. For tickets and more information, visit novanw.org.

Program:

SERGEI PROKOFIEV Piano Concerto No. 3
DMITRI SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No. 10

Sat. May 17, 2025, 7:30 p.m. | Mt. Hood Community College, Gresham
Sun. May 18, 2025, 3:00 p.m. | The Reser, Beaverton

Beethoven’s Fifth and Young Artists Competition Winners
Friday May 16, 2025 at 7:30pm at The Reser, 12625 SW Crescent St., Beaverton, OR 97005
Sunday May 18, 2025 at 3:00pm at Village Church, 330 SW Murray Blvd., Beaverton, OR 97005

Verdi – Overture to La forza del destino
Competition winners perform with the orchestra
Beethoven – Symphony No. 5 in C minor, op. 67

For tickets and more information, visit beavertonsymphony.org. 

Saturday, May 17 @ 7:30pm
St. Mary’s Cathedral, 1739 NW Couch St Portland, OR 97209

Sunday, May 18 @ 3pm
Our Lady of the Lake Parish, 650 A Avenue Lake Oswego OR 97034

Cappella Romana and In Medio (John Eisemann, director) form a choir of over 40 singers to perform Ivan Moody’s powerful oratorio Passion and Resurrection. English cantillation of Holy Week’s drama mixes with soul-stirring Orthodox hymns sung in Slavonic, Greek, and English, accompanied by string quartet and bells played by our friends in 45th Parallel Universe.

These concerts are given in memory of Fr. Ivan, our beloved and much-missed friend who wrote his longest choral work, The Akáthistos Hymn, for Cappella Romana.

Tickets are $33-$53

For tickets and more information, visit cappellaromana.org.

The Vancouver Symphony Orchestra USA presents the final performance of its 2024/25 Chamber Music Series season on May 18, 2025 at 3 p.m. at First Presbyterian Church. The program will feature multi-GRAMMY Award nominee violinist Philippe Quint leading the VSO Chamber Orchestra. Quint is returning by popular demand on the heels of his triumphant debut with the VSO in November 2023.

For tickets and more information, visit vancouversymphony.org. 

The Southwest Washington Wind Symphony’s 20th anniversary season continues with Principal Conductor Patrick Murphy, from the University of Portland, sharing the podium with two guest conductors and showcasing works by local composers. Danielle Armstrong, Band Director at Battle Ground High School , will conduct a composition by Corvallis-based composer Isabella Morrill.

David K. Parker, a retired university band director and accomplished musician/composer, will conduct a composition commemorating the history of his hometown of Washougal. Additional musical selections will include Aubrey Fanfare by Jack Stamp, Emmy Award winner Scenes from “The Louvre” by Norman Dello Joio, and more.

The concert title is a nod to the fact that so much wonderful music is written in movements. Many pieces on the program for this concert are either movements of a larger work or a work written in movements. There is something for every musical taste, beginning with the opening showcase piece, Finale from Symphony #4 by Tchaikovsky. There follows contemporary pieces from Robert Sheldon, Robert Smith, and Jim Curnow; dance music from Jan Van Der Roost and Carol Britton Chambers; a John Philip Sousa March; music from Leeroy Anderson; and a medley of familiar tunes from Andrew Lloyd Webber.

There is no admission fee for the concert, though donations are greatly appreciated. Doors open at 6:00 PM, so come early and listen to the West Linn High School Jazz Combo while you browse the artists in the lobby. The concert begins at 7:00 PM. All ages are welcome.

The award winning Lake Oswego Millennium Concert Band has been entertaining Lake Oswego and the surrounding communities with eclectic, high-caliber musical concerts since 2000.

For tickets and more information, visit lakeoswegoband.org.

Makoto Ozone delivers his “thrilling, unabashedly personal rendition” (New York Times) of Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue — a jazzy, kaleidoscopic tribute to the kinetic energy of America’s cities in the 1920s. And composed the same year as the Gershwin, Bartók’s Miraculous Mandarin channels the turmoil of post–World War I Europe in a scandalous tale of sex, violence, and the supernatural.

Program
Derrick Skye: Prisms, Cycles, Leaps 
Gershwin: Rhapsody in Blue
Suk: Scherzo fantastique
Bartók: Suite from The Miraculous Mandarin

Artists
Kevin John Edusei, Conductor
Makoto Ozone, Piano

Sitka is bringing US Poet Laureate ADA LIMÓN to the Oregon Coast. Join us for an intimate evening of poetry and inspiration with one of the most celebrated poets of our time. Hear Ada Limón read from her acclaimed works and share insights on the power of language and the natural world. This in-person event will take place at Nestucca K8 in Cloverdale, Oregon. Mark your calendars and get ready for an unforgettable experience.
Ada Limón is the author of six books of poetry, including The Carrying, which won the National Book Critics Circle Award. Her book Bright Dead Things was nominated for the National Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the Kingsley Tufts Poetry Award. Her most recent book of poetry, The Hurting Kind, was shortlisted for the Griffin Poetry Prize. She is also the author of two children’s books: In Praise of Mystery, with illustrations by Peter Sís; and And, Too, The Fox, released in 2025. In October of 2023 she was awarded a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship, and she was named a TIME magazine woman of the year in 2024. She is the recipient of a Guggenheim fellowship and wrote a poem that was engraved on NASA’s Europa Clipper Spacecraft that was launched to the second moon of Jupiter in October 2024. As the 24th Poet Laureate of The United States, her signature project is called You Are Here and focuses on how poetry can help connect us to the natural world. She will serve as Poet Laureate until the spring of 2025.

Groundhog Day: The Musical tells the tale of Phil Connors (Travis Bilenski), a cynical TV weatherman from Pittsburgh. He is sent to cover the annual Groundhog Day event in the small, isolated town of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Accompanied by his producer Rita (Madison Curtis) and cameraman Larry (Keaton Fields), Phil discovers that he is seemingly destined to relive Groundhog Day in an endless loop, unless he finds a way to break the cycle. As each day unfolds in exactly the same manner, Phil grows increasingly despondent. Yet, is there a lesson to be learned through his experiences? Will he ever unlock the secret to breaking the cycle?

For tickets and more information, visit lakewood-center.org.

One night only! A symphonic meditation on the evolution of swing, taking you on a journey that infuses classical music with the best of the best from living jazz legend and composer, Wynton Marsalis. From American jazz–New Orleans Ragtime to Kansas Swing to New York bebop–celebrate our country’s tremendous musical history. Jazz great Darrell Grant and his 15-member Pacific Northwest Jazz All-Stars join as equal partners to your Eugene Symphony in a perfect send off for Francesco Lecce-Chong’s tenure as Music Director and Artistic Partner.

For tickets and more information, visit eugenesymphony.org. 

To celebrate and bring more awareness to Mental Health Awareness Month, this show focuses on highlighting different journeys people have within mental wellness, and how struggles can manifest in unexpected ways. Anna Schaum, musician and mental health specialist, joins the mousai REMIX quartet in unpacking these themes and creating dialogue on what mental health care can look like, what it can mean, and how it can change the world. For tickets and more information, visit 45thparallelpdx.org.

The Columbia Gorge Orchestra Association presents
Swing Into Spring.

The CGOA Jazz Collective Big Band is thrilled to Swing into Spring, two unmissable performances on Friday, May 23 and Sunday, May 25. Join the band for an exhilarating journey through the heart of big band jazz, with a repertoire that spans timeless classics and contemporary works, brought to life with the band’s signature energy and passion.

CGOA offers discounted $5 tickets at the door for SNAP cardholders and FREE tickets for all students with high school or college ID. Regular ticket prices are $25, or $20 for CGOA members.

The Columbia Gorge Orchestra Association is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting and presenting musical performances of the highest quality in the Columbia River Gorge region. With a commitment to artistic excellence and education, CGOA brings the joy of music to audiences of all ages.

For tickets and more information, visit gorgeorchestra.org.

Imago Co-Founder Carol Triffle premieres her newest show: Happyness (The Wrecking Ball)
May 16 – 31
Friday and Saturday at 7:30
Sunday at 2:00

Imago Theatre, 17 SE 8th Avenue
imagotheatre.com

TICKETS

https://www.onthestage.tickets/show/imago-theatre/670ef4d1f392d26c3b9ca2b4

Tickets also available at the door. Theatre opens one hour before showtime. All seats
$20.

If there’s anyone who understands where hysteria and hysterical meet, it’s Imago Theatre’s absurdist auteur Carol Triffle. And that crazy common ground of hilarity and despair has never been as strikingly apparent as it is in her newest work, Happyness (TheWrecking Ball). If you’ve been paying attention to Imago since the pandemic, then you’ll know that Triffle has, in recent years, been slyly satirizing American culture via a series of wildly entertaining alt-rock farces. Her Where’s Bruno? (2023) cleverly lampooned the fame game and spiritual psychobabble; her Mission Gibbons (2024) was a witty, sci-fi send-up of our collective response to the climate crisis. Indeed, her ability to find humor despite a looming apocalypse suggests that perhaps Hollywood escapism has lost its effectiveness. We’d be wiser to confront reality head on and see how ridiculous humanity is. With the war-torn world of Happyness (TheWrecking Ball), our ability to laugh in defiance of destitution may be our key to long-term survival. Well, that and a sock puppet who recognizes a catchy tune.

Carol Triffle – Director/Writer
Kyle Delamarter – Music Composition

Characters
Anne Sorce – Anny, Danny’s roommate
Laura Loy – Danny, Anny’s roommate
Kyle Delamarter – Jason, Danny’s partner
Zeno – Puppet

Cost: $20

Groundhog Day: The Musical tells the tale of Phil Connors (Travis Bilenski), a cynical TV weatherman from Pittsburgh. He is sent to cover the annual Groundhog Day event in the small, isolated town of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Accompanied by his producer Rita (Madison Curtis) and cameraman Larry (Keaton Fields), Phil discovers that he is seemingly destined to relive Groundhog Day in an endless loop, unless he finds a way to break the cycle. As each day unfolds in exactly the same manner, Phil grows increasingly despondent. Yet, is there a lesson to be learned through his experiences? Will he ever unlock the secret to breaking the cycle?

For tickets and more information, visit lakewood-center.org.

Groundhog Day: The Musical tells the tale of Phil Connors (Travis Bilenski), a cynical TV weatherman from Pittsburgh. He is sent to cover the annual Groundhog Day event in the small, isolated town of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Accompanied by his producer Rita (Madison Curtis) and cameraman Larry (Keaton Fields), Phil discovers that he is seemingly destined to relive Groundhog Day in an endless loop, unless he finds a way to break the cycle. As each day unfolds in exactly the same manner, Phil grows increasingly despondent. Yet, is there a lesson to be learned through his experiences? Will he ever unlock the secret to breaking the cycle?

For tickets and more information, visit lakewood-center.org.

Imago Co-Founder Carol Triffle premieres her newest show: Happyness (The Wrecking Ball)
May 16 – 31
Friday and Saturday at 7:30
Sunday at 2:00

Imago Theatre, 17 SE 8th Avenue
imagotheatre.com

TICKETS

https://www.onthestage.tickets/show/imago-theatre/670ef4d1f392d26c3b9ca2b4

Tickets also available at the door. Theatre opens one hour before showtime. All seats
$20.

If there’s anyone who understands where hysteria and hysterical meet, it’s Imago Theatre’s absurdist auteur Carol Triffle. And that crazy common ground of hilarity and despair has never been as strikingly apparent as it is in her newest work, Happyness (TheWrecking Ball). If you’ve been paying attention to Imago since the pandemic, then you’ll know that Triffle has, in recent years, been slyly satirizing American culture via a series of wildly entertaining alt-rock farces. Her Where’s Bruno? (2023) cleverly lampooned the fame game and spiritual psychobabble; her Mission Gibbons (2024) was a witty, sci-fi send-up of our collective response to the climate crisis. Indeed, her ability to find humor despite a looming apocalypse suggests that perhaps Hollywood escapism has lost its effectiveness. We’d be wiser to confront reality head on and see how ridiculous humanity is. With the war-torn world of Happyness (TheWrecking Ball), our ability to laugh in defiance of destitution may be our key to long-term survival. Well, that and a sock puppet who recognizes a catchy tune.

Carol Triffle – Director/Writer
Kyle Delamarter – Music Composition

Characters
Anne Sorce – Anny, Danny’s roommate
Laura Loy – Danny, Anny’s roommate
Kyle Delamarter – Jason, Danny’s partner
Zeno – Puppet

Cost: $20

Groundhog Day: The Musical tells the tale of Phil Connors (Travis Bilenski), a cynical TV weatherman from Pittsburgh. He is sent to cover the annual Groundhog Day event in the small, isolated town of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. Accompanied by his producer Rita (Madison Curtis) and cameraman Larry (Keaton Fields), Phil discovers that he is seemingly destined to relive Groundhog Day in an endless loop, unless he finds a way to break the cycle. As each day unfolds in exactly the same manner, Phil grows increasingly despondent. Yet, is there a lesson to be learned through his experiences? Will he ever unlock the secret to breaking the cycle?

For tickets and more information, visit lakewood-center.org.