MONMOUTH — The plays of season 48 at Theater at Monmouth will explore the role of power, passion, and privilege in families, friendships, society and politics. Through classic Shakespearean thrillers, contemporary romances and fantastical flights of fantasy, the dynamics of gender, race, and society take center stage in 2017. 

The summer repertory includes:

• “Three Days of Rain,” July 1 to Aug. 18, by Richard Greenberg and directed by Kate Bergstrom. A famous architect dies and leaves a mysterious will, prompting his children and their best friend to search for answers about their families’ history. Darkly funny, Greenberg’s play trips through time, playing children’s perceptions against their parents’ reality.

•  “The Learned Ladies,” July 7 to Aug. 20, by Molière and directed by Sally Wood. Clitandre seeks the hand of Henriette but her mother has other plans. The course of true love runs anything but smoothly in Moliere’s comp romp of pompous poets, pretentious parents, and seductive servants. Thanks to the clever maneuvering of Uncle Ariste all is set right in the end, with true love trumping intellectual snobbery.

•  “Macbeth,” July 14 to Aug. 18, by William Shakespeare and directed by Dawn McAndrews. In a savage world of ghosts, witches, and bloody battlefields, a dark prophecy leads a warrior and his wife past the point of no return. From its mesmerizing first moments to the last fulfillment of the witches’ curse, Shakespeare’s swift and relentless tragedy unearths the terrifying consequences of blind ambition.

•  “Othello,” July 21 to Aug. 19, by William Shakespeare and directed by Catherine Weidner. Newly married and promoted, Othello finds himself the pawn in the manipulative games of his right-hand man, Iago. As his imagination is poisoned, Othello turns on his new bride, Desdemona, and loyal lieutenant Cassio, rapidly spiraling from hero to murderer in Shakespeare’s tale of jealousy, duplicity and destruction.

•  “Red Velvet,” July 28 to Aug. 17, by Lolita Chakrabarti and directed by Jennifer Nelson. This is the Maine premiere. Edmund Kean, the greatest actor of his time, collapses on stage while playing Othello. A young black American actor is asked to take over the role. But as the public riots in the streets over the abolition of slavery, how will the cast, critics, and audience react to the revolution taking place on stage?

•  Family show. Each summer, the Theater at Monmouth presents a family play adapted from classic literature. It runs weekends starting June 24 and as scheduled through Aug. 17. This summer’s offering is “My Father’s Dragon” adapted from Ruth Stiles Gannet’s classic by Dawn McAndrews and directed by Adam Blais. When Elmer Elevator hears about the plight of a poor mistreated baby dragon, he packs his knapsack and stows away on a ship headed for Wild Island. Nothing will stop Elmer from rescuing the dragon. With the help of two dozen pink lollipops, rubber bands, chewing gum, and a fine-toothed comb, Elmer outwits the fiercest of beasts and saves the day.

•  Fall show. The Maine premiere of “Peter and the Starcatcher” will run Sept. 14-24. It was conceived for the stage by Roger Rees and Alex Timbers from the novels of Dave Barry and Ridley Pearsons. It’s directed by Bill Van Horn. This swashbuckling prequel to Peter Pan chronicles the adventures of Molly, a girl charged to protect a cargo of stardust, and an orphan named Peter who eventually becomes “The Boy Who Never Grew Up.”