FAU’s “The Royal Family” Opens on June 26

Florida Atlantic University’s Department of Theatre and Dance presents Festival Repertory Theatre 2015. The comedy “The Royal Family” will run from Friday, June 26 through Saturday, July 25; the musical “She Loves Me” will run from Friday, July 3 through Sunday, July 26; two big band concerts will be presented on Saturday, July 18 at 7 p.m. and Sunday, July 19 at 2 p.m.; and a Piano Gala will be featured on Saturday, July 25 at 5 p.m. All shows are at the University Theatre and Studio One Theatre at 777 Glades Road, Boca Raton campus. Tickets can be purchased at www.fauevents.com or by calling 800-564-9539. A full schedule of the performances can be found at www.fau.edu/festivalrep.

“The Royal Family” is a rollicking comedy that offers a thinly-veiled parody of the legendary Barrymore Family (particularly John and Ethel Barrymore) – stars of stage and screen. Written by the comic team of George S. Kaufman and Edna Ferber, the play is a joyous romp exploring the eccentricities of one of America’s most “royal” families. Nominated for a TONY Award in 2010 for Best Revival of a Play, “The Royal Family” is a real crowd pleaser.

“She Loves Me” is considered by many to be the most charming musical ever written. The play is set in a 1930s European perfumery, where rival clerks Amalia and Georg unwittingly fall in love after responding to a “lonely hearts advertisement” in the newspaper. The play, which was nominated for five TONY Awards in 1964 and the Olivier Award for Best Musical Revival in 1993, was the basis of the film “You’ve Got Mail.” The music for the play was written by Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick, who also wrote the music for “Fiddler On the Roof,” and the book was written by Joe Masteroff, who also wrote the book for “Cabaret.”

Festival Repertory Theatre also includes two big band concerts featuring hits from the 30s, 40s and 50s presented by the FAU Swing Era Jazz Band; and a four-piano extravaganza.

“Festival Rep,” now in its 17th year, will once again feature professional equity actors working alongside FAU’s finest graduate students in their last production before they graduate and enter the world of professional theatre. The professional actors include Barry Tarallo and Megan Buzzard. Tarallo has appeared in five Broadway shows, and many regional plays and musicals; Buzzard appeared in the national tour of “The Music Man” and in several regional musicals.