"Avenue Q, " the risque, Tony Award-winning musical that stars a cast of both puppets and people, headlines the 2008-2009 season at the Overture Center, auditorium officials announced Thursday.

The 2004 hit for adult audiences comes to Madison for eight performances Oct. 21-26 after a unique post-Broadway run in Las Vegas. "It 's edgy, it 's smart, and it 's very funny, " said Overture President and CEO Tom Carto. "I think it 's a really good show for Madison. "

Other big names coming to the Overture next season include comedian Bill Cosby, singer Art Garfunkel, musicians The Neville Brothers and Dr. John, humor writer David Sedaris, and a pairing of bluegrass star Ricky Skaggs and pop pianist Bruce Hornsby.

"Wizard of Oz, " "Sweeney Todd, " "Jesus Christ Superstar, " "The Drowsy Chaperone " and "Stomp " will fill out the Broadway series. "Wicked " did not make the list this year because its producers want to keep it in Chicago as long as they can, said Carto, although "it will be here eventually. "

Overture will continue the "Creative Edge " series it began in 2007, but will move "a little farther and deeper into it, (with) some things that are kind of on the fringe, " Carto said.

That includes "Dixie 's Tupperware Party, " a one-man show performed in drag that is part comedy, part improv and part social satire designed to lure a younger audience. Performed in the Promenade Hall, the late-night show will come complete with martini bar and a "wear-what-you-like " atmosphere, said Carto, adding that it 's the type of show that sells on word of mouth.

Overture also will offer three new cabaret nights, which include catered dining and music for 180 in the Capitol Theater. Seated on the stage itself, diners can look out over the historic performance palace, a concept that Carto tried successfully at his former employer in Mansfield, Ohio.

Overture likewise will venture into new territory with country acts Travis Tritt and Marty Stuart.

"I think there 's a country audience out there that has not been here before, " said Carto. "We 're trying to reach out farther in the region. "

Overture will cut back on its holiday programming in late 2008, featuring only one Christmas concert with Jim Brickman. "One thing we 've learned is that we don 't do well necessarily with a lot of Christmas programming on top of everything else the resident companies are doing, " said Carto. Ticket sales for 2007 's Kathy Mattea concert and "Christmas with the Steeles " were disappointing, he said.

Sales for the musicals "Gypsy " and "The Putnam County Spelling Bee " in 2007-2008 also fell below expectations, although "Riverdance " sold out and "Monty Python 's Spamalot " has few tickets left, Carto said.

The 2008-2009 season is the first full season programmed with Carto at the helm. "My programming philosophy is really one of a team effort, " said Carto, who came on board in early 2007. "I like to bring in all the brain trust from the staff. "

A lesson from the current season is that "we have to be careful what we put in Overture Hall, because the overhead and the capacity is so much more in there, " he said. "With less than 1,000 to 1,500 (tickets sold), it doesn 't make sense. It looks empty and it doesn 't feel right, and of course you don 't make a lot of money on it, if any. "

Continued Carto, "I think that we 're starting to find our footing from a programming standpoint with all the different possibilities that we have with the venues that we have. We have the marquee names and the big shows in Overture Hall, but we 're doing more in Capitol Theater. Our overhead 's less in there, and we can do more cutting-edge and different type of programming in Capitol Theater than we can do in Overture Hall. "

Season ticket packages with as few as five shows are on sale now. Go to www.overturecenter.com

for information. Single ticket sales begin in late August.