UTEP Dinner Theatre presents Head Over Heels
EL PASO, Texas (CBS4) — As the popular 1980s song says, "Heaven is a place on Earth," and theatre lovers might find it right here in El Paso.
The University of Texas El Paso (UTEP) Dinner Theatre begins its performance of Head Over Heels on Friday, July 8, 2022. Shows will run through Sunday, Jul 24.
According to the show's director, Josey Pickett, The UTEP Dinner Theatre is the only year-round, dinner based theatre in the world, and it's in its 39th season at UTEP. Head Over Heels is the fourth performance this season.
"I'm really excited about Head Over Heels because this is an ensemble show. There are lots of opportunities for us to display the talent we have here at UTEP, who are musical theater majors, also who are theater majors and our community members, " said Pickett.
It's important to highlight that the UTEP Dinner Theatre isn't just for students. All auditions are open to the community, which is part of the reason for choosing Head Over Heels for this summer's show. Since it's an ensemble show, this gives the theatre more opportunities to showcase local talent.
"When we choose a musical for the season, we're thinking about our community. We're thinking about what our community would like to see. We're also thinking about the venue and a great vehicle for the talent here in El Paso," Pickett added.
Another aspect worth highlighting is the amount of work that goes into producing one of the theatre's spectacular shows. Pickett explained there is a team for everything, from a technical directors, show directors, musical directors, artistic directors, choreographers and more.
Everything in the theatre is handmade, from the props, to the costumes and even the dinner that's served.
Each show gets six weeks of rehearsal time. Props and costumes get attention during the day, and actors rehearse during the evening. form 7:00-9:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Each show also features a live band.
On the day of the shows, you'll find an open bar, and dinner is served during the first hour, then the performance immediately follows.
Directors describe Head Over Heels as a romantic comedy with a twist. It's set to hit music from the Gogos, an all female 80s rock band. It highlights different relationships, self discovery and love.
"You're gonna see different types of people on stage, different types of relationships on stage that you wouldn't normally see. It's really about opening your heart and mind, and I think that's something we need in the world today, and I think art really facilitates that for our community," said Pickett.
For a list of showtimes and to purchase tickets, click this link.
