Shucked

Drew McOnie’s first season in charge of the Open Air Theatre isn’t hugely distinguishable from those assembled one by his predecessor Timothy Sheader. Which is all to the good really, and nobody was seriously expecting musical theatre director and choreographer McOnie to ditch the splashy outdoor musicals. Plus, Shucked is a superb way to kick off his tenure: it’s the UK premiere for Robert Horn, Brandy Clark and Shane McAnally’s multi Tony-nominated 2022 musical comedy about a comically isolated rural farming community which must send representatives to the big city after their corn crop starts to fail. US director Jack O’Brien will restage his smash show with a new, UK cast.