The Columbia College Chicago Theatre Department‘s 2021-22 Mainstage Season features three productions for the Spring 2022 semester—two musicals, Cabaret and Head Over Heels, and the drama Hortensia and the Museum of Dreams.

Cabaret, with a book by Joe Masteroff and songs by composer John Kander and lyricist Fred Ebb, is a musical written in 1966 centering around a young American writer’s engagement with Berlin’s underground cabaret culture in the late 1920s and early ’30s, a time when Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Party was gaining in political power in Germany.

Under the direction of Theatre Department faculty member Elizabeth Swanson — with musical direction by faculty member Andra Velis Simon and choreography by faculty member Tommy Rivera-Vega — the show will be performed as a staged concert.

Hortensia and the Museum of Dreams, by Nilo Cruz, is the story of a Cuban brother and sister, whose mother sent them from Havana to the United States in 1961, returning to their native land .

Directed by Theatre Department faculty member Jesse Carlo, this tale of estranged siblings seeking to make sense of the childhood that was subtracted from their lives possesses an imaginative and lyrical landscape that elevates the material to a poetic universality.

Head Over Heels, based on the 16^th century prose poem The Countess of Pembroke’s Arcadia by Sir Philip Sidney, is a comic extravaganza that tears down gender, race, body type, and age stereotypes. A hilarious, exuberant celebration of love, Head Over Heels follows the escapades of a royal family on an outrageous journey to save their beloved kingdom from extinction – only to discover the key to their realm’s survival lies within each of their own hearts.

The production, directed by Theatre Department faculty member Donterrio, features a book by Jeff Whitty and James Magruder and music by The Go-Go’s.

“We are excited about the varied nature of the spring offerings,” says Susan Padveen, the Interim Allen and Lynn Turner Chair of the Columbia College Theatre Department, “which include an intimate story of a family and their memories, a look into the circumstances that served as the powder keg that instigated a world war, and a rollicking musical investigation into love in these ever-changing times.”

Cabaret will run February 16 through 19, Hortensia and the Museum of Dreams March 16 through 26, and Head Over Heels April 27 to May 7. All performances will take place in the Courtyard Theatre of the Getz Theatre Center of Columbia College, located at 72 E. 11th Street in Chicago’s South Loop.

Columbia continues to hold safety measures in place informed by guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the State of Illinois, the City of Chicago, and consultations with epidemiology experts from Rush University and the University of Chicago.

Theatre spaces have an upgraded filtration system and increased cleaning measures. The theatres are limited to 75% capacity. All patrons will be required to either show proof of vaccination for COVID-19 or of a negative test result taken within the previous 48 hours, or scan-in with a current student, faculty, or staff Columbia I.D. In addition, patrons will be required to wear a mask at all times regardless of vaccination status. Please be advised that personnel at the theater are not empowered to waive these requirements.

General admission tickets are $15. Discounted tickets for students and senior citizens are $10. Tickets are available on the Theatre Department’s website.