The Franklin Performing Arts Company (FPAC), Franklin’s own professional theater company, will present The Drowsy Chaperone starring Ben Cameron and Emily Koch March 12-20 at THE BLACK BOX.   

Ben Cameron (Broadway’s WICKED original cast, Footloose, Aida) stars as Man in Chair alongside Emily Koch (Broadway’s WICKED, Waitress) as the title character.  WIth choreography by Clay Rice-Thomson (Broadway’s Moulin Rouge, King Kong, Newsies, Matilda), the star-studded production also features Nick Rehberger (Broadway’s Fiddler on the Roof, The Glass Menagerie) as Robert, Sam Seferian (Broadway’s Pretty Woman) as George, Ali Funkhouser as Janet, Nick Paone as Aldolpho, Paul Rescigno and Robbie Rescigno as The Gangsters, and Kaley Were as Kitty along with an ensemble of local talent including apprentices from the Franklin School for the Performing Arts. The production will be directed by Raye Lynn Mercer with musical direction by Hallie Wetzell. 

Winner of five Tony Awards, including Best Book and Best Original Score, The Drowsy Chaperone is a loving send-up of the Jazz Age musical, featuring one show-stopping song and dance number after another. With the house lights down, a man in a chair appears on stage and puts on his favorite record: the cast recording of a fictitious 1928 musical. The recording comes to life and The Drowsy Chaperone begins as the man in the chair looks on. Mix in two lovers on the eve of their wedding, a bumbling best man, a desperate theatre producer, a not-so-bright hostess, two gangsters posing as pastry chefs, a misguided Don Juan, and an intoxicated chaperone, and you have the ingredients for an evening of madcap delight.

FPAC’s The Drowsy Chaperone runs March 12-20 at THE BLACK BOX in Franklin, MA. Masks will be required for all patrons, regardless of vaccination status, except while actively eating or drinking. Tickets available at THEBLACKBOXonline.com or by calling the box office at (508) 528-3370. THE BLACK BOX is located at 15 W. Central St. in downtown Franklin, MA.