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It isn’t easy to put together a 90-minute musical that includes the Civil War, the birth of computer programming, indie rock, the internal dynamics of Lord Byron’s family, mathematical formulas, and writing letters back and forth about an invention that will either save the world or be a precursor to the atom bomb.

A female scientist, a poetic script, gizmos, and an intellectual romance — “Futurity” has everything a hipster intellectual could ask for. The show revolves around the cast’s magnetic stage presence which, when combined with an innovative set design, makes this show a quirky musical triumph.

Futurity: A Musical by The Lisps began as a concept album about an imaginative Civil War soldier who dreams of building a machine that creates peace and evolved into a staged musical that combines history, science fiction, technology, and imagination. Upon entering Oberon for the world premiere of Futurity, leave your presumptions about musical theater at the door. Born of the art world and the indie rock scene, the show is part performance art, part rock concert, and totally defies conventional labels.

“The plotline of Futurity is designed to combine an old-fashioned glam with the emptiness of contemporary technology; to recall vaudeville orchestras while looking forward to a synth-heavy future bereft of human strummings.” – Papermag 

“The American Repertory Theater has announced its full 2011-2012 season, which will launch with the previously announced production of Porgy and Bess, starring Audra McDonald and Norm Lewis. Also planned are world premieres of Futurity: A Musical by The Lisps and a play based on Jung Chang’s Wild Swans.” – Playbill.com

“American Repertory Theatre has announced its 2011-2012 season for the Loeb Drama Center, which, as previously announced, will open with The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess, running August 17 – October 2. Diane Paulus will direct the production that will star Norm Lewis and Audra McDonald in the title roles.” – TheaterMania 

“The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.), under the artistic direction of Diane Paulus, is pleased to announce the productions that will be part of the A.R.T.’s 2011/12 Season.” – BroadwayWorld.com 

Final performances of ‘Wild Swans’ “a visually stunning spectacle that gets more intriguing every time you revisit the experience.”

In 1978 the Chinese author Jung Chang left Communist China to study in Britain. Ten years later, inspired by a visit from her mother, she began writing about her life in her homeland. The resulting book, Wild Swans – which is still banned in mainland China – went on to smash bestseller records worldwide. Now Chang’s story is set to make history again, with an international collaboration to perform it on stage for the first time.

WILD SWANS AUDITION NOTICE The American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) will be holding an information/audition session for Non-Equity Local Ensemble roles in the upcoming production of Wild Swans. Wednesday, December 21, 2011 from 5:30-7:30 PM.