“Here all is strange.” 

Beckett’s existential tragicomedy Happy Days concerns itself with the plight of Winnie, a middle-class, middle-aged woman who is quite literally stuck, buried to her waist in crusted earth. Her husband Willie lives in a hole behind her mound, physically and emotionally out of reach. Even in his company she is essentially alone.

Armed with a shopping bag of everyday items and routines, a series of half-remembered stories, songs, and prayers, and a heroic capacity for optimism, she presses through an endless series of unforgiving days to the merciful night to come. The bell rings again and when the blazing sun comes charging back, she is buried up to her neck. Her last resources depleted, her arms and body sunk and gone, her predicament is irreversible, hellish, seemingly eternal. Through it all she perseveres, struggling with that which remains to make real her impossibly hopeful exclamation: “Oh this will be another happy day!”

The Houston Chronicle wrote that Catastrophic’s productions of Samuel Beckett’s plays “demonstrate exactly why this company and its artistic director Jason Nodler are so important to the city’s cultural life.” The Houston Press opined, “If man’s wretched existence ever needed a finer hand to paint comic despair, look no further than director Jason Nodler with his superlative interpreters all in the service of the apocalyptic vision from Samuel Beckett.”

Catastrophic’s co-artistic directors Tamarie Cooper and Jason Nodler reprise their roles as Winnie and director, as they did with Infernal Bridegroom Productions (IBP) 22 years ago. Greg Dean rounds out the cast as Willie.Read more

With true fanfare, Gente de Teatro is celebrating its 27th season with Julián Quintanilla’s Spanish version of the world acclaimed comedy TOC TOC by French playwright Laurent Baffie.

TOC TOC is a hilarious play dealing with a serious topic in a humorous vein: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). “TOC” is the Spanish Acronym for OCD. Six characters displaying certain signs of OCD are in the waiting-room of a renowned psychiatrist, a specialist in the treatment of the disorder. Because the doctor is late, however, these potential patients are about to embark on a new journey. Without either the expert or the expertise, and amid roaring bouts of laughter from the audience, they will attempt to create a therapeutic group of their own to help one another control their symptoms. The result is a play that is uproariously upbeat, yet the humor never offends.Read more

Based on the iconic film starring Reese Witherspoon, Ryan Phillippe and Sarah Michelle Geller, Cruel Intentions: The ’90s Musical pulls you into the manipulative world of Manhattan’s most dangerous liaisons: Sebastian Valmont and Kathryn Merteuil. Fueled by revenge and passion, the diabolically charming step-siblings place a bet on whether or not Sebastian can deflower their incoming headmaster’s daughter, Annette Hargrove. As the two set out to destroy the innocent girl— and anyone else who gets in their way — they find themselves playing a perilous game with only one rule: Never fall in love.

Featuring your favorite throwback hits by artists like Boyz II Men, Christina Aguilera, REM, 'NSYNC, and, of course, Britney Spears, this sexy, hilarious, and so-very-cruel musical is “the ultimate night out” (Entertainment Weekly).

This production is not suitable for young audiences, and would be given an R rating. Parental discretion is advised. Read more