The Church Basement Ladies return to the Lied Center for Performing Arts with an all-new musical, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our Basement.” Performances are 7:30 p.m. April 25, 2 and 7:30 p.m. April 26 and 2 p.m. April 27. Tickets, $30 for adults and $15 for students, are available at http://www.liedcenter.org, at the Lied Center Box Office, 301 N. 12th St., or by phone at 402-472-4747.
“We are thrilled to have the Church Basement Ladies back for this all new installment of their hilarious saga,” said Bill Stephan, executive director of the Lied Center. “Lied patrons can expect a truly entertaining show perfect for the whole family.”
“A Mighty Fortress is Our Basement” is the fourth installment of the Church Basement Ladies series of musical comedies. The popular series began at the Plymouth Playhouse in Minneapolis with the first installment, “Church Basement Ladies,” in 2005. Its sequel, “A Second Helping, the Church Basement Ladies Sequel,” and the Christmas musical, “Away in the Basement, a Church Basement Ladies Christmas,” have been seen in venues coast to coast to cheering.
In the latest installment, the year is 1960 and a reformation is underway. With a new crop of confirmands, Beverly, the youngest of the bunch, dons her first pair of high heels for her confirmation ceremony. Mrs. Snustad, the matriarch of the kitchen, wins top honors at the county fair for her “Grand Champion” pickles. Mavis, the able-bodied farm wife, must find a way to deal with the new “super highway” that cuts through her farm. Karin, the real homemaker of the kitchen, finds new freedom behind the wheel of her husband’s pickup truck and must reconcile a new world of change for her daughter, Beverly. Pastor, who has always found strength and solace in the church basement, has found new love and announces his impending nuptials.
With all new music by composer Drew Jansen, who wrote the music and lyrics for the past Church Basement Ladies installments, and script by sketch comedy writer, Greta Grosch, who also penned the sequel and the Christmas version, “A Mighty Fortress is Our Basement” continues to be inspired by the writings of author/humorists Janet Martin and Suzann Nelson, including the best-seller, “Growing Up Lutheran.”
