The Grand Opera House, a performing arts center of Mercer University, released details on its 24th season of presenting live and film events at the historic venue.  Mercer University has been presenting events at The Grand since 1995.

“We had a strong Broadway season in 2017-18,” said Grand Opera House Executive Director Gram Slaton. “Working with our audiences to find out the kinds of shows they wanted to see paid off with some happy surprises on both sides of the stage. Having that dialogue extended as we considered selections for the 2018-19 season has resulted in the shows we’re announcing today. Plus, when patrons return in the fall, they’ll have a fantastic new Grand experience, as our lobby project wraps up in October, bringing two new bars, greatly expanded restrooms, and a classically beautiful atrium entryway that really speak to the grandeur of this flagship theatre. We really think 2018-19 is going to be the year that we realize ‘A Grander Grand,’ starting at the curb and ending with wild applause for our Broadway and concert selections.”

Starting with the Broadway Series, the titles and dates for the coming year are:

·       Spamalot on Wednesday, Nov. 14, and Thursday, Nov. 15.

·       Evita (single performance) on Tuesday, Jan. 15, sponsored by Center State Bank.

·       Finding Neverland on Tuesday, Feb. 12, and Wednesday, Feb. 13, sponsored by Navicent Health.

·       Chicago on Thursday, March 21, and Friday, March 22, sponsored by Center State Bank.

All Broadway shows will begin at 7 p.m.

“We surveyed our audience, and they definitely preferred an earlier start for the Broadway evenings,” said Slaton. “No one wants to be worried about how late it is when they’re having a great evening out.”

The 2018-19 season will also feature a special add-on selection for the holidays. A Christmas Carol, the Charles Dickens classic adapted for the stage and performed by Montana Repertory Theatre, will play a single performance on Saturday, Dec. 15, at 7:30 p.m.

The Grand’s Concert Series will feature seven evenings of great performances:

·       Live And Let Die, a tribute to the five-decade songbook of Paul McCartney, on Sunday, Nov. 18.

·       Celtic Angels Christmas, which brings a touch of Ireland to the winter holiday season, on Tuesday, Dec. 11.

·       Returning for his 20th year, John Berry’s Christmas Concert on Thursday, Dec. 22.

·       The Brawner Brothers big-band extravaganza for a Georgia favorite son, Ray Charles On My Mind, on Thursday, Jan. 17.

·       Three uniquely down-home comediennes combine forces for a great evening of stand-up comedy with Southern Fried Chicks on Friday, Feb. 15.

·       ABBAMANIA, the ABBA tribute show that was the surprise hit of the 2017-18 season, returns on Sunday, Feb. 17.

·       And, long considered the ultimate Led Zeppelin tribute band, Get The Led Out brings the power and stomp of rock ’n’ roll to The Grand on Thursday, March 14.
Performance times vary, so patrons should call or check The Grand Opera House website.

For 2018-2019, The Grand will also feature its second two-part Saturday Kids Series, sponsored by Primary Pediatrics:

·       Pirate School! on Saturday, Jan. 19, at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

·       Mutts Gone Nuts on Saturday, March 16, at 1:30 p.m. and 7 p.m.
And, finally, The Grand will also feature its third season of classic films:

·       A double-feature of concert movies featuring The Allman Brothers Band (1973) and The Gregg Allman Band (2013) performing at The Grand on Friday, Oct. 19.

·       A Halloween double-feature of horror classics from the silent-film age, Nosferatu and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, on Friday, Oct. 26.

·       The Humphrey Bogart-Ingrid Bergman classic Casablanca on Friday, Nov. 2.

·       One of the great filmed Broadway musicals, Funny Girl with Barbra Streisand and Omar Sharif, on Friday, Nov. 9.

·       The modern holiday-season classic Love Actually on Friday, Dec. 14.

·       A double feature of Jack Nicholson classics, Easy Rider and Five Easy Pieces, on Friday, Jan. 4.

·       Two of the most brilliant physical-comedy movies ever, Harold Lloyd’s Safety Last! and Buster Keaton’s The General, share a silent-movie double-feature on Friday, Jan. 18.

·       The young Maggie Smith in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie on Friday, Feb. 8.

·       A double-feature of Lady in the Dark and Gaslight on Friday, March 1.

·       The World War II classic Thirty Second Over Tokyo on Friday, March 15.

·       Sam Peckipah’s new-western groundbreaker The Wild Bunch on Friday, April 5.

·       And, for the Easter season, the epic Quo Vadis? on Friday, April 12.

All films start at 7 p.m.

“Many of our films celebrate either their 50th or 75th anniversary in 2018-19,” said Slaton. “These also happened to be landmark years for filmmaking, and it’s great to give these films a fresh look on the big screen, the way they were meant to be seen. We’ve also added two evenings of brilliant and highly-influential silent films that still delight audiences after nearly a hundred years. It’s just a rich slate of movies that we hope everyone will want to turn out and see.”