Continuing with our preview series of theaters around the Metro Detroit area, we turn our attention to a playhouse just south of our previous entry. Located just east of I-75 on Long Lake Road in Troy, Michigan, is Ridgedale Players, one of the oldest community theaters in the our beautiful state! Having entertained audiences for decades, Ridgedale is looking to continue the fun with seven exciting shows for its 2024-2025 season!
From comedies to musicals, Ridgedale’s newest season has a little something for everyone! With some shows geared more towards adults, this theater also has plenty for families of all ages, with their Junior Actors and Teen Actors series! So, without further ado, let’s break down what show is currently running at Ridgedale Players and what fun we can expect from other upcoming shows from their 2024-2025 season.
Unnecessary Farce
This staple in the local community theater scene decided to kick off its season with a comedy, setting the tone with some laughs! Unnecessary Farce, written by Paul Slade Smith, has been produced 350 times worldwide, with the script translated into multiple languages, which is an extraordinary feat! It even had its premiere in our very own state of Michigan back in 2006, at the BoarsHead Theater in Lansing. There’s nothing like bringing a play home, playing Unnecessary Farce, a perfect show for Ridgedale to showcase.
Unnecessary Farce brings audiences to a motel room, where we find an embezzling mayor who is supposed to meet with his female accountant. Shady, to say the least, but what else do you expect from a mayor who is taking money from his constituents? What he doesn’t know is that there are two cops in the room next door, waiting to catch him in the act. Only problem? No one is sure who’s in what room, leading to hijinx and hilarity. Everyone gets confused, and no one is sure what is happening, which provides plenty of laughs for the audience.
Unnecessary Farce runs for only one more weekend, September 27-29, so get tickets before it’s gone!
Fun Home
From a comedy to a drama, Ridgedale Players is looking to switch gears with its second show, Fun Home. This stage show is adapted from the graphic novel/memoir of the same name by cartoonist Alison Bechdel. The story is not only a bestseller and praised by critics of all types, but it was named Time Magazine’s #1 Book of the Year and was a National Book Critics Circle Award Finalist and winner of the Stonewall Book Award. There is so much acclaim for the source material that it makes it a no-brainer for this theater to put on its own production of the stage show.
Fun Home showcases the concept and impact of grief as graphic novelist Alison explores the life of her father, Bruce, after his untimely death. Bouncing between the past and present, audiences exhume the Bechdel family’s life, such as growing up in the family business of a funeral parlor, Alison coming to terms with her sexuality, and, most importantly, examining her father’s life and temperament through a new lens.
This play cracks the Bechdel’s family dynamics wide open with an open and honest look at just how dysfunctional a family can be through the eyes of someone who can see things a bit clearer now that they are grown.
Fun Home runs from October 25th through November 10th, with Friday and Saturday performances at 8 pm and Sunday at 2 pm. Get your tickets now!
Babes in Toyland: The Musical
Just in time for the holiday season, the Junior Actors of Ridgedale are putting on a Christmas classic, Babes in Toyland: The Musical. With music from Victor Herbert book and lyrics from Glen MacDonough, composed and developed back in 1903, Babes in Toyland is an absolute thrill to see performed on stage as Winter sets in and magic comes alive!
Using characters and themes from our childhood’s well-known Mother Goose nursery rhymes, Babes in Toyland is the perfect show for the whole family! Traditionally featuring songs such as “Go to Sleep, Slumber Deep,” “Toyland,” and, of course, the famous piece “March of the Toys,” the show is sure to make the season come to life on stage right in front of our eyes. I don’t know about anyone else, but there’s nothing as special as spending time with your family during the holiday season. What better way than to take in a show that truly celebrates the magic of Christmas?
Babes in Toyland: The Musical will only be around for three days, December 13th-15th, so you want to make sure you have a seat, get them now!
Knock ‘Em Dead
What better way to ring in the new year than murder and laughter? Yes, you read that right, as Ridgedale is looking to bring to life on stage Tom Oldendick and Will Roberson’s Knock ‘Em Dead, which combines my two favorite things: solving murders and laughing my butt off. Haven’t heard of Knock ‘Em Dead? Don’t worry, dear readers; we have you covered!
Everyone’s dying to get into Vinnie’s Belly Laugh Club, all the puns intended. On the eve of the finals of a competition, five contestants arrive at the club, ready to give it their all for audiences. Who are these people, you may ask? Well, we have a stand-up comedian who might require some Orbit gum or a bar of soap to clean up his language, a hypnotist who is just a little twitchy, a “bimbo” with a baton, a ventriloquist who never understood that he has to keep his mouth shut, and the owner of a lip-synching poodle.
Quite the combination of people, isn’t it? However, it isn’t all laughs in the end, as Vinnie turns up dead, and these five contestants are the main suspects. Can they solve the murder before it’s too late? Or is one of the contestants the next body to arrive in the morgue?
Knock ‘Em Dead runs for three weekends between January 17th and February 2nd. Grab those tickets while you still can!
Disney’s The Little Mermaid Jr.
I’m sure many of you reacted like I did when I saw The Little Mermaid coming to the Ridgedale Players. As a gigantic Disneyphile, I’m beyond excited anytime I get to see a production of one of my childhood classics, such as Beauty and the Beast, this past summer. So, to say that I’m excited to see the Junior Actors of Ridgedale’s performance of The Little Mermaid Jr. might be an understatement.
We know the story well of the Disney classic: Ariel, the mermaid princess of the ocean, who falls in love with a human prince and sacrifices her fins and her voice for a chance at love. Making a deal with the sea witch Ursula isn’t anywhere near a great idea, but Ariel’s a child and can’t see past the bond she feels with Eric, so she’ll have three days to make him fall in love with her or risk becoming Ursula’s next victim.
With that classic Disney music from Alan Menken, lyrics by Howard Ashman and Glenn Slater, and a book by Doug Wright, this will surely be an exciting performance for all who visit!
Disney’s The Little Mermaid Jr. runs for three days, March 7th through the 9th, 2025. Purchase your tickets before they swim away!
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
This musical might be one of my favorites of the season, having loved the 1967 film of the same name for years. That being said, I have never seen the musical, which feels like a travesty for someone who can laugh nearly every time they watch the movie! Originally developed in 1961 with musical and lyrics from Frank Loesser and a book by Abe Burrows, Jack Weinstock, and Willie Gilbert, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying has a handful of times, with one of the more recent productions starring Daniel Radcliffe and John Larroquette. It even won the Tony Award for Best Musical!
Audiences have the pleasure of following along with protagonist J. Pierrepont Finch, who hasn’t really worked in the corporate world before but has a trick up his sleeve. What’s the trick? Well, it just happens to be a book called “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying,” and it works. Quickly, J. Pierrepont Finch climbs the corporate ladder without doing much of any real business work, with hilarity around every corner. If there is one show at the top of your “To-see” list, it should definitely be this one!
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying plays for three weekends between May 2nd and the 18th!
Curtains: School Edition
Last but not least, Ridgedale Players closes out its season with Curtains: School edition! This production is one of the Teen Actors of Ridgedale shows, with a slightly adapted story from the original to fit well with younger actors and school productions. This means that you may see specific language or story elements changed to better suit the ages of those in the show or make it more accessible for school adaptations.
Curtains takes audiences back to 1959 at the Boston Colonial Theatre, where it’s the opening night of a new musical. The excitement in the air is practically electrifying, but changes quickly when the leading lady turns up dead. Everyone involved in the production is a suspect, and it’ll take the local theatre-loving detective to get to the bottom of this case.
Curtains: School Edition runs from June 19th through the 22nd, 2025.
Don’t miss this incredible season for Ridgedale Players!
With seven wonderful shows happening throughout the 2024-2025 season over at Ridgedale Players, there’s something for everyone to enjoy. Be it some fantastic musicals, comedies that will make you laugh until you cry, or dramas that will make you cry rivers of tears. It’s important to support local theater, as these actors, crew members, and creatives are the backbone of this field. We wouldn’t have Broadway without community theater, as everyone has to start somewhere. So get your tickets and go and see some local shows!
The Ridgedale Players 2024-2025 season might be in full swing, but there is still time to get your tickets and enjoy a show! What are some local productions that you’ve seen? Let us know on social media @mycosmiccircus or @boxseatbabes!
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