Department of Theatre and Dance

Once Upon a Mattress

music by Mary Rodgers, lyrics by Marshall Barer, book by Jay Thompson, Dean Fuller, and Marshall Barer

Presented by the Hayes School of Music and the Department of Theatre and Dance

April 15 – 19, 2026

Valborg Theatre

Directed by Kevin Warner

Students $10, Faculty/Staff $15, Adults $17

Many moons ago in a far-off place, Queen Aggravain decreed no couples could marry until her son, Prince Dauntless, found a bride. Princesses came from far and wide to win the hand of the prince, but none could pass the impossible tests given to them by the Queen. That is, until the “shy” swamp princess, Winnifred the Woebegone, showed up. Would she be able to pass the Sensitivity Test, marry her prince and help Lady Larken and Sir Harry to the altar? Carried on a wave of wonderful songs, by turns hilarious and raucous, romantic and melodic, this rollicking spin on the classic tale The Princess and the Pea provides some side-splitting shenanigans. For after all, a princess is a delicate thing. Produced by special arrangement with Concord Theatricals.

All evening performances begin promptly at 7 p.m. with matinee curtains at 2 p.m.

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