University Theatre Season opens in October with football-themed play

Season expanded to five productions, including hit musical Hair

Performed in four fifteen-minute quarters with a half-time show, a dance company, a drum corps, and a fully-padded cast, Colossal opens the University Theatre Series on Wednesday, Oct. 3, in Hansen Theatre in the Roland Dille Center of the Arts at MSUM. The play is both a celebration and an indictment of the nation’s most popular form of theatre — football. The production runs through Saturday, Oct. 6. All performances begin at 7:30 p.m.

On Saturday, Nov. 17, MSUM’s Children’s Theatre presents two performances of The Cat in the Hat, one of Dr. Seuss’ most beloved children’s stories. Performances take place in Hansen Theatre at 1 and 4 p.m.

A concert version of the hit rock opera Hair takes the Hansen Theatre stage for one performance only on Friday, Feb. 8 at 7:30 p.m. Hair celebrates ’60s counterculture and features songs like “Aquarius,” “Good Morning, Starshine,” “Hair,” “I Got Life,” and “Let The Sun Shine.”

The Wolves, a portrait of a girls’ indoor soccer team, tackles big questions and tiny battles of nine American girls who just want to score some goals. The play is set for Wednesday, Feb. 20, and runs through Saturday, Feb. 23 on the Gaede stage. All shows begin at 7:30 p.m.

The Series closes with a production of Reefer Madness. Inspired by the original 1936 film of the same name, this musical comedy takes a tongue-in-cheek look at the hysteria caused when clean-cut kids fall prey to marijuana, leading them on a hysterical downward spiral filled with jazz music, sex and violence. The show runs April 10 through 13 in Hansen Theatre. All shows begin at 7:30 p.m.

For more information about the performances, contact Craig Ellingson at 701-388-9382 or Craig.ellingson@mnstate.edu. For tickets, including free tickets to The Cat in the Hat, visit or call the MSUM Box Office Monday through Friday from noon to 4 p.m. at 218-477-2271, or buy online at mnstate.edu/tickets.