Urinetown the Musical

The Relevant Stage Theatre Company at San Pedro’s Warner Grand Theatre present Mark Hollman and Greg Kotis’s Urinetown: The Musical, winner of three Tony Awards. The idea for Urinetown was born in the spring of 1995 when Greg Kotis, traveling in Europe, encountered pay-per-use toilets at the Luxembourg Gardens in Paris. It was then that the musical’s central idea hit him: a Gotham-like city where all the toilets were controlled by a greedy, crooked corporation with no concern for the poor, bladder-oppressed masses. According to Kotis, the show "was created in a spirit of defiance against what’s typically offered up as stage worthy in America today." The result is pure, hilarious and innovative entertainment. The show parodies many popular musicals and theater conventions and playfully pokes fun at itself. Urinetown is also rich with social commentary about the American economy, the division between rich and poor, and the way we abuse the environment we depend on. In 1999 Urinetown got its start when the New York City Fringe Festival was looking to add more musicals to its lineup. Urinetown became the hit of the festival, and its success led to a commercial production. Flush with the talents of an all-star creative and producing team, Urinetown took home Tony Awards in 2002 for best director, best original score and best book of a musical. Ray Buffer, founder and artistic director of The Relevant Stage Theatre Company is the director of Urinetown. The choreographer is Kristin Taylor. Kristin’s love of dance lead her to New York for a while where she worked with Noah Racey the Assistant Choreographer for the 2002 Best Musical of the Year Thoroughly Modern Millie. The musical director and conductor is Chip Colvin. He is currently working towards his Masters in Collaborative Piano at The University of Southern California. Costumes have been envisioned by Kara McLeod. Set design is by Brooke Corpus.