Theatre TJC raises the curtain on its 2022-23 season with “Disney Descendants: The Musical,” which focuses on the offspring of Disney’s favorite heroes and villains.
The production is under the direction of Dr. David W. Crawford, TJC theatre professor.
Show times are 7:30 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, Oct. 4-8, in Wise Auditorium, located in the Rogers Palmer Performing Arts Center on the TJC main campus.
Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for seniors ages 65 and up, students and active military. The TJC Box Office opens Tuesday, Sept. 27. Box office hours are 1-6 p.m. weekdays. For reservations, call 903-510-2212.
Based on the popular Disney Channel original movies, “Disney’s Descendants: The Musical” features the hit songs from the films.
As the show opens, big changes are afoot in the kingdom of Auradon.
All of Disney’s favorite heroes and heroines are living in peace, happily ever after, while the evil villains have been banished to the Isle of the Lost, where they are stripped of their magic and powers.
Ben, the beloved son of King Beast and Queen Belle, is about to be crowned king of Auradon and, for his first proclamation, has a radical idea: He decides to invite the children of four of the most wicked Disney villains to take their places as students at Auradon Prep school.
Mal, Evie, Jay and Carlos — the children of Maleficent, Grimhilde, Jafar and Cruella De Vil, respectively — come to Auradon with an evil plan of their own: They have been tasked with stealing the Fairy Godmother’s magic wand and restoring their parents to power. However, will they go through with the plan? Or do they have the potential to learn to be good?
The cast and crew
TJC faculty members and alumni are taking the stage as villains, including: Maleficent, played by Denise Weatherly Green, TJC theatre professor; Grimhilde, Andrea Trent, TJC music professor; Jafar, Luke Howland, TJC theatre professor; and Cruella De Vil, Toni Crawford, TJC alumna.
Isle of the Lost: Mal, played by Addi Saxon of Tyler; Evie, Rachael Gibbs of Winona; Jay, Asaiah Ruiz of Tyler; Carlos, and Manny Matatila of Fort Worth.
Auradon: Ben, played by Sam Murphy of Tyler; King Beast, Devin Myers of Tyler; Queen Belle, Corlie Hardy of Tyler; Fairy Godmother, Jillian Nutt of Crandall; Jane, Anastasia Maloney of Tyler; Chad, Colton Turner of Whitehouse; Audrey, Kate Durbin of Lindale; Doug, Layton Pratka of Tyler; Royal Page, Ian Martin of Tyler; Royal Guard, Hayden Nach of Tyler; Maurice, Juan Hernandez of Chapel Hill; Coach, Edmund Davies of Whitehouse; and Snow White, Audrey Lassanske of Brownsboro.
Ensemble: Edmund Davies, Whitehouse; Juan Hernandez, Chapel Hill; Nathan Hill, Lindale; Ian Martin, Tyler; Hayden Nach, Tyler; Layton Pratka, Tyler; Izayek Suarez, Palestine; Mary Katheryn Dillon, Elysian Fields; Olivia Domain, Ferris; Tae’Kira Jackson, Tyler; Maddy Kimble, Winona; Audrey Lassanske, Brownsboro; Crystal Mendoza, Tyler; Brittnee Morman, Bullard; Oakley Serrano, Bullard; and Skyler Strickland, Hughes Springs.
Theatre, music and dance faculty production staff: Crawford, stage direction and theatre management; Andrea Trent, music director; Carolyn Hanna, choreographer; Luke Howland, costumes; Denise Weatherly-Green, set design and properties; Jacob L. Davis, lighting and sound design; Lara K. Smith, theatre department chair; and Ethan Beam, director of facility.
Student production staff: stage manager, Jackson T. Holmes of Tyler; assistant director, Faith Nicole Shelton of Atlanta; music director’s assistant, John Bradshaw of Rusk; dance captain, Audrey Lassanske of Brownsboro; and assistant stage managers, Shay Van Leer and Victoria Ricketts, both of Tyler.
The 2022-23 season also includes:
• “Holes” by Louis Sachar, Wednesday-Saturday, Nov. 9-12, Jean Browne Theatre
• “An Evening of O’Neill: The Glencairn Sea Plays” by Eugene O’Neill, Wednesday-Saturday, Feb. 22-25, Jean Browne Theatre
• “Metamorphosies” by Mary Zimmerman, Tuesday-Saturday, April 25-29, Rogers Palmer Cultural Arts Plaza
For more information, go to TJC.edu/PerformingArts.