Besides "Spamalot," shows in the 2008-09 lineup of the Famous Artists Broadway Theater Series are:
Jan. 20-22: "The Wizard of Oz"
This stage adaptation by the Royal Shakespeare Company follows the story line of the 1939 film of the same name starring Judy Garland. With music and lyrics by Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg, songs include classics like "Follow the Yellow Brick Road," "We're Off to See the Wizard" and "Over the Rainbow."
"The Wizard of Oz" is appropriate for all ages and particularly suitable for families.
March 24-26: "The Drowsy Chaperone"
This relatively new show began on Broadway in 2006 and has won two Tony Awards and four Drama Desk Awards. It is an homage to American musicals of the Jazz Age told through the daydreams and reminiscences of "Man in Chair," a Broadway fanatic.
The show-within-a-show is a spoof of clichéd Broadway musical themes ranging from mistaken identity to spit-takes. Characters include a jaded chaperone, a vain starlet, a suave groom, a Latino Lothario, a cigar-chewing producer and a gang of criminals on the lam.
April 14-16: "Sweeney Todd"
The Tony Award- winning musical is based on the 19th century fictional character Sweeney Todd and the 1973 play "Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street." It opened on Broadway in 1979 and was revived in 2005.
The dark musical follows barber Sweeney Todd's quest for revenge against Judge Turpin, a man who sent Todd to Australia on a trumped-up charge in order to steal Todd's wife. After Todd returns from Australia and discovers that his daughter is under the care of Judge Turpin, he teams up with Mrs. Lovett, a widow who bakes the worst meat pies in London, for grimly satisfying results.
May 12-14: "Ain't Misbehavin'"
A revue (a multiact theatrical performance that combines music, dance and sketches), "Ain't Misbehavin'" is a tribute to the black musicians of the Harlem Renaissance. It hit Broadway in 1978 and again in 1988, winning a Tony Award along the way.
Five performers, including "American Idol" winner Ruben Studdard and former "Idol" contestant Frenchie Davis, will present humorous and rowdy songs that reflect the 1920s and 1930s as part of the 30th anniversary national tour.