About Something Rotten

Welcome to the Renaissance and the outrageous, crowd-pleasing musical farce, Something Rotten.  Created by Grammy Award-winning songwriter Wayne Kirkpatrick, and successful screenwriters Karey Kirkpatrick and John O’Farrell, Something Rotten was lauded by audience members and critics alike, receiving several Best Musical nominations and hailed by Time Out New York as "the funniest musical comedy in at least 400 years". Where the Black Plague has ceded power to the Puritans, farthingales and codpieces are the latest fashion trend, and the biggest celebrity in England is a playwright and part time rock star named William Shakespeare. In the midst of all this excitement, brothers Nick and Nigel Bottom are trying to keep their acting company afloat. In a desperate attempt to out-Bard the Bard, Nick consults with a soothsayer, who informs him that the future of theatre involves acting, singing, and dancing -- sometimes all at once! As the Bottom brothers strive to write the world’s very first “musical”, they find themselves caught in a bitter battle with the Bard and the play's the thing. Something Rotten! is a hysterical, joyous celebration of everything you love about Broadway.

Festival 56

Founded in 2003, Princeton Theatre Group is a volunteer driven, non-profit arts organization dedicated to developing Princeton and the surrounding region as a home for professional theatre and theatre arts education. Festival 56 offers professional theatre in central Illinois and is produced by Princeton Theatre Group.

Learning Stage, the education committee of Princeton Theatre Group, promotes theatre arts education and enrichment for children and adults. Camp 56, a two-week summer theatre camp for children, is sponsored by Learning Stage.