Tuesday, August 20, 2013; 03:08 PM - by BWW News Desk

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The Nebraska Theatre Caravan, the professional touring company of the Omaha Community Playhouse, recently cast the national tour of The Fantasticks. The tour performs coast to coast. It kicks off in Rapid City, SD and concludes in Cullowhee, NC. In April, a week of the tour includes educational programming in Southwest, IA made possible by a grant through the Iowa West Foundation.

The show will feature CHAD BRADFORD (El Gallo), BRENT BURINGTON (Henry), DAN CHEVALIER (Mute), ALEJANDRO GUTIERREZ (Mortimer), JON MCDONALD (Bellomy), PETER O'NEAL (Matt) ANDREW TEBO, JENNIFER TRITZ (Hucklebee Luisa).

"Try To Remember" a time when this romantic charmer wasn't enchanting audiences around the world. The Fantasticks is the longest-running production of any kind in the world, and with good reason: at the heart of its breathtaking poetry and subtle theatrical sophistication is a purity and simplicity that transcends cultural barriers. The result is a timeless fable of love that manages to be nostalgic and universal at the same time. Its moving tale of young lovers who become disillusioned, only to discover a more mature, meaningful love is punctuated by a bountiful series of catchy, memorable songs, many of which have become standards.

Through the creative genius of Director Carl Beck and Costume Designer Georgiann Regan comes a steampunk-inspired adaptation of this classic musical which promises to provide an unparalleled experience, whether you are revisiting this show, or seeing it for the first time.

Of the steampunk concept, Beck said "It's not an intrusive concept. It seems like the allegoric-quality can blend with the fantasy, giving it a quasi-period feel and making for a stronger statement than [The Fantasticks] usually gets." He added that the story is not being re-written or changed in any way. Outside of the costumes, set and props, this show is, in its entirety, the original.

"It's classical simplicity. It's not a contemporary character tale. It's about a boy who is overly in love with a girl. [Their] fathers are trying to keep them together by pulling them apart," Beck said. "Steampunk seems to lend itself to this story by finding beauty among the broken pieces."