Civic Center 23-24 Season Closes Curtains

Students and staff are excitedly waiting for the Waukee Theatre Arts production of “Monty Python’s Spamalot”. Waukee is unfortunately one of the only places theatergoers can watch theater as many theaters’ seasons start to end about this time of the year. However, this is also when new seasons get announced! Community theaters in Des Moines such as the Des Moines Playhouse have been hyping up their season announcements with many hints posted on their social media as to what the shows might be. This has also been happening in bigger more professional theaters in Des Moines such as the Civic Center. 

The difference between community/high school theater vs. professional theater (Playhouse/Waukee Theatre Arts vs. Civic Center)  is the quality of the show, so the set, costumes, acting, singing, dancing, and much more are more of what you would see on Broadway. Many times the show is stripped straight from Broadway and put on tour, and because of that, things are set to higher standards and it is harder to land a role in touring shows. In community theater, you are normally under some restrictions. Because of things like casting, budget, and especially TIME, community/high school theater is normally lower quality than what you would see at the Civic Center. 

Community theater actors are also just from Iowa, whereas professional touring performers can be from anywhere in the world. Community theater is more seen as a recreational activity whereas in professional theater it is a very serious and competitive job and that as well as other things are the biggest differences between the two different types of theater. But both spaces provide great experiences for many people in Iowa and all around the world, to see amazing and educational shows that are always memorable so they are also both worth going to and supporting. 

The Civic Center is located in downtown Des Moines and is a performance venue for many different types of media such as dance, music, comedy shows, and orchestra concerts as well as being used as a performance space for many community theaters and organizations such as Des Moines Young Artists Theatre, Iowa Theatre Stage Company, Pyramid Theatre Company, and The Des Moines Symphony.

 The Civic Center also hosts many theater camps in the summer and hosts the Iowa’s High School Musical Theatre Awards of which Waukee sometimes participates. But the main function of the Civic Center is to host touring musicals. These are put on through the Willis Broadway Series, every year the Civic Center announces the Willis Broadway Series season as well as the add-ons to the season. Add-ons are simply shows that got added to the Willis Broadway Series providing audiences with more shows! Many students and staff enjoy going to the Civic Center and watching the variety of shows put on throughout the season. 

The Civic Center also provides season tickets, so many people can buy season tickets and get to see every show that comes to the Civic Center for any season of their choosing. The Willis Broadway Series is the series where all the big musical theater shows come through. But they also have other series like the Wellmark Family Series, the Dance Series, the Live at the Temple Concert Series, the Temple Comedy Series, the Explorer Speaker Series as well as the Applause Series which is a curriculum-connected performance for schools. They also provide Student Rush Tickets, Student Rush Tickets provide students with a way to see these amazing professional productions for a very affordable price with GREAT seats! 

Junior Atiana Pilipovic talks about her experience using Student Rush Tickets. “For me, I go to the theater the day of the show and simply show my school ID (or PowerSchool) and ask for the closest seat. Student Rush pricing varies from show to show but on average it’s about $25. I have been very lucky with the seats I’ve been able to sit in. I have been fortunate enough to be in the first few rows in almost every show I’ve seen. These are seats that are normally hundreds of dollars that I have sat in for only $25.” This is a great and educational way for students to be able to see theater especially since ticket prices for the Civic Center are often very expensive. 

This year’s season of the Civic Center has been a truly truly fantastic one. The season consisted of 6 shows and 3 Add-Ons: “Girl from the North Country”, “THE WIZ”, “Mamma Mia” (add-on), “Company”, “Les Miserables” (add-on), “Funny Girl”, “MJ The Musical, “Moulin Rouge! The Musical”, and “STOMP”. This year’s season was “Like a Rolling Stone ” with “Girl from the North Country” which stopped in Des Moines from November 28th – December 3rd. This show is a jukebox musical. Which is a musical made up of songs from music artists in the real world. These songs are often not in a musical theater style and are then transformed into one through the use of a plot. This jukebox musical uses music by Bob Dylan. The show follows a group of Minnesota travelers whose lives cross paths in very interesting and extraordinary ways. 

The second show that “Eased On Down The Road” to the Center was “THE WIZ” which stopped by December 12th -17th. This show is a twist on The Wizard of Oz with fun 70s, gospel, and soul influences. 

“You are the Dancing Queen” at the Civic Center if you went to “Mamma Mia!” On January 23rd – 28th on their 25th-anniversary tour! “Mamma Mia” is one of the Willis Broadway Series add-ons. It also is another jukebox musical. This show is about a girl named Sophie and her situation when she invited 3 of her possible dads to her wedding. Junior Ana Bull shares why it was her favorite show she saw this season. “I had never seen the movie or musical before, so I went in completely blind and I loved it. The characters were well-developed, the set was simple but fun, the songs were ALL enjoyable (love ABBA), and the costumes were amazing. The story was also really easy to follow and super funny”

“Phone rings, Door chimes” in came…”Company”! This show stopped by February 6th – 11th. The company follows Bobbi on her 35th birthday as she is paraded through her 5 married couple friends as they tell her why she should and shouldn’t get married. This show is straight from Broadway and is a gender-bend show. This means that the genders are flipped from how they were originally, so originally Bobby was a boy. 

“I Dreamed A Dream ” that I got to see “Les Miserables” at the Civic Center only it’s not a dream it’s a reality! Les Miserables or “Les Mis” as many people call it, came to the Civic Center February 27th – March 3rd and was also an add-on to the original Willis Broadway Series. This show is one of the most famous in all of theater history, it follows the main character Valjean, and his life starting from when he got out of prison to his death. Senior and season ticket holder Coria Chaloupecky shares why “Les Mis” was her favorite show this season. “It’s one of my favorite shows already and it was even better than it’s ever been before! The amount of electricity from that cast is outstanding, on top of the already amazing vocals. I loved it.”

“Don’t Rain On My Parade” to the Civic Center. The 6th show to come to the Civic Center through March 12th – 17th is “Funny Girl”. “Funny Girl” follows the story of Fanny Bryce a Jewish girl who longs for the stage but then is swept up by love from a billionaire named Nick Arnstein. Next on April 27th The Willis Broadway Series hosts “An Evening With Reńee Elise Goldsberry ” who is a very famous Broadway actress most known for originating the role of Angelica Schuyler in “Hamilton”. The Civic Center 7th show is “Smooth Criminal”, “MJ The Musical” comes  April 30th – May 5th. This show follows Micheal Jackson during his “Dangerous” World Tour and his life and music

“Roxane you don’t have to put on the red light” at Moulin Rouge! The Musical. The Civic Center is excited to host this show from August 20th – to September 1st this is another jukebox musical. “Moulin Rouge! The Musical” follows Christian and his attempt to win over a girl named Satine which proves challenging with lots of obstacles getting in his way. You can also “STOMP” your way over to the Civic Center June 20 – 23 to see “STOMP”. This is not a typical musical theater experience, as it is just a musical experience. Stomp, however, uses unconventional items as instruments. This show was also scheduled in the season for January but because of weather conditions, it was rescheduled to June 20th -23rd. 

Even though the majority of the season is over don’t miss your chance to spend an “Evening with Rańee Elise Goldsberry”, and go see “MJ The Musical”, “Moulin Rouge! The Musical” and “STOMP”! And get excited because the Civic Center just announced its 2024 – 2025 season! This year’s season consists of 6 shows and 4 Add-Ons. 

These shows are “Santino Fontana With the Des Moines Symphony”, “Back to the Future”, “Chicago”, “Shucked”, “Life of Pi”, “Hadestown”, “Some Like It Hot”, “& Juliet”, “Hamilton”, and “Parade”. This is a great lineup with most if not all the shows coming directly from Broadway. Junior Atina Pillpovic shares what shows she is most excited to see in the coming season. “Since the 24/25 season was announced I am most excited for “Shucked”, “Back to the Future”, “& Juliet”, and “Hadestown”. “Shucked” just opened on Broadway so it will be the first national tour coming in, so it’ll be memorable!” 

All of the past seasons’ shows are amazing pieces of art that should be enjoyed by everyone. They all have amazing sets, props, costumes, lights, sound design, and amazing acting itself of course. Sophomore Fayln DeBord shares her favorite element to look out for when watching a Civic Center show. “Since I do costumes, I look forward to seeing the costumes at every show I go to.” This shows the use of design in all areas is extraordinary. These shows provide audience members with an escape into a different world for a little bit to help soothe some of the stresses of reality. 

One of the most unifying and beautiful parts about watching theater in an amazing venue like the Civic Center is that everyone is doing, looking, hearing, and listening to the same thing. This shared experience is just one of the reasons people think theater is magical and is hence why people keep coming back to the Civic Center. Math Teacher Mr. Paulson shares why he likes the Civic Center. “I enjoy the experience with the music sung by very talented performers, the stage and costumes, and the stories. I also love spending time with my wife doing things we both enjoy.” 

Many of Waukee’s students and staff enjoy going to the Civic Center with loved ones and being told a story with music for a few hours. Senior Coria Chaloupecky shares why the Civic Center experience is such an important one for her. “As someone in theatre, I always leave shows feeling a longing to be up there with them. Seeing shows like Les Mis inspires me to work harder at my dreams.” 

Junior Ana Bull also shares her love for the Civic Center. “It reminds me why I love theater so much. Everybody comes to a theater to see a story, sad or happy, and I find that beautiful. Mamma Mia was a GREAT example of portraying a show well, everybody in the audience loved it.” There are so many amazing and special things about professional theater, and the Civic Center gives Iowa citizens a chance to see these outstanding productions that leave audience members with unforgettable memories.