When a down-on-his-luck artist stumbles upon a roller-skating beauty, two worlds collide for a hilarious musical adventure staring muses, moguls, and more in the musical Xanadu. On stage from October 1-11, TheatreZone’s season opener is a co-production with Florida Gulf Coast University’s Bower School of Music & the Arts. Starring Eddie Mekka, who played the iconic role of Roman slave Pseudolus in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum at TheatreZone in 2011, this roller-disco musical takes its cues from the 1980 cult classic film of the same name that featured Olivia Newton-John as a roller-skating Olympian muse. Going by the name of Kira—she is in fact Clio, the Muse of History—she comes to the mortal plain to convince Sonny, an artist, and Danny, a band leader turned real estate mogul, to open a nightclub/roller disco named Xanadu. But as the plan progresses, Kira/Clio falls for Sonny, breaking the mystical rules of the muse game.
Filled with big hair, big tunes, and big 80s nostalgia, Xanadu is the perfect production for anyone that mourned the death of disco, as well as those who celebrated its demise. With a book composed by pop-rock legends Jeff Lynne (record producer and member of The Electric Light Orchestra) and John Farrar (co-producer of Grease and longtime songwriter with Newton-John), as well as new arrangements from Eric Stern, including “I’m Alive” and “Magic,” Xanadu won the 2007 Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical, and a Drama Desk Award for Best Book.
- TheatreZone’s Artistic Director Mark Danni will direct Xanadu at Theatre Lab on FGCU’s Fort Myers Campus. Tickets start at $40. For more information and showtimes, visit theatrezone-florida.com.
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