Magic is in the Air at Cape May Stage this Holiday Season!

There is magic in Cape May! The glorious voices on the Robert Shackleton Stage combine with a chill outside to transform an ordinary night into a warm, holiday confection! The final performances of "An O. Henry Christmas" cap the most extraordinary season in memory. If you haven't experienced these funny and poignant musicals that celebrate faith, hope and charity, call now and make reservations. Watch your cares disappear as you escape into this world that O. Henry wrote about over a hundred years ago! Have a hot chocolate on your way to the theater!

This holiday season is the time to give subscriptions to Cape May Stage's 2010 season. This year, CMS is offering more options to fit your budget and your schedule. If you like opening nights there is a special subscription that will reserve your seats for every opening. Hurry to get your favorite seats now and then enjoy the parties and mingle with the cast and directors of each show. There are also special Saturday night subscriptions and bargain prices for shows on weeknights. Seniors get reduced price subscriptions too! Experience the magic of live theater all year long.

The real magic (is magic real?) happens on December 30 at 8 PM and December 31 at 2 PM when Michael Russell Walsh and Johnny Mass perform their spellbinding "Intimate Evening of Grand Parlor Magic". Come to our beautiful theater and be transported on a magical journey reminiscent of the golden era of magic when conjurors entertained high society in parlor rooms fit for kings. These artists will mystify you with their stunning stage show. Magic goes back to ancient China and India. There is mention of magic in the bible. Philosophers have discussed reality and magic from the earliest days to the present. What a way to start the New Years festivities! What you see...may not be. Have another drink and figure out how they do these mind boggling tricks!

The Second Stage is proud to have these great performers as the final act of the season. You can make reservations before all the tickets.....disappear!!

"A O Henry Christmas" takes the stage December 3! Cape May Stage offers a musical event to warm you up for the holidays!

The final production of the 2009 season opens tonight and the entire audience is invited to party with the actors and crew after the performance at the Brown Room in Congress Hall Hotel! "An O. Henry Christmas" features a cast from New York and Hollywood with voices that will delight every audience member. This is the perfect cap to a season that had all of Cape May talking about the new quality of productions at Cape May Stage.

The actors from "Master Harold... and the Boys" have returned to their homes. Gregg Daniel is shooting Allan Ball's "New Blood" for HBO while rehearsing "Fences" for South Coast Repertory in California. Larry Hines has been offered a two year job in "The Rat Pack" in Las Vegas but is deciding whether he wants to be available to do more great work like he did here at Cape May Stage. Jared McGuire is juggling multiple offers back in New York.

Meanwhile, "An O. Henry Christmas" is performing at the Robert Shackleton Playhouse Thursdays thru Sundays at 8PM and with matinees at 3PM on Saturdays and Sundays. Jason Ostrowski played on Broadway in "Company" and Bev Appleton just completed a feature film with Cloris Leachman. Tara Brown comes to us from Los Angeles after working in Disney musicals and Courtnay Griswold just played Maria in "The Sound of Music". Artistic Director, Roy Steinberg spotted Tara Brown a year ago in Los Angeles singing in "A Christmas Carol" that was transported to Chicago. He knew that "An O. Henry Christmas" was planned to close this season and offered her a role after that performance! Our season started with a musical play in "Souvenir" and ends with "An O. Henry Christmas". We have had all sorts of plays this season from comedies like "Social Security" to dramas like "Proof" and now we end with a family oriented musical that will warm your hearts as we enter the holiday season. Director Chuck Hudson has a long list of opera and musical theatre credits from across the country and Music Director Eric Walton is a well regarded New York Music Director. Cape May Stage continues to bring in top artists both on and back stage.

As a final treat, we will be producing the spellbinding "Intimate Evening of Grand Parlour Magic" with Michael Russell Walsh and Johnny Mass. They will mystify your mind with their unique blend of sleight-of-hand magic and comedy! They will perform on the evening of Wednesday, December 30 at 8PM and the afternoon of December 31 at 2PM. Come be astonished by magic and then charmed by "An O. Henry Christmas". The Second Stage offers this final magic act on the last day of our season as a theatrical treat to greet the new year!

Last Chance for "Master Harold...and the Boys" Before We Usher in Our Holiday Show!

On Saturday, November 28 the last performance of "Master Harold...and the boys" will grace our stage. Immediately following that performance a whirlwind of activity sweeps through Cape May Stage as that set is taken down and the actors pack up their dressing rooms and the floor gets painted to get ready for "An O. Henry Christmas" which opens on December 3! If you have not seen "Master Harold...and the boys" yet, get on the phone and call 884-1341 to make a reservation. These amazing actors will be traveling back to New York and Hollywood. Gregg Daniel immediately goes into rehearsal for August Wilson's "Fences" at the South Coast Repertory in California. Now his bio will include all those feature films and television shows and major Shakespearean roles AND playing Sam in "Master Harold..and the boys" at Cape May Stage!

Seniors have a special night on Friday, November 27 to see this extraordinary production! These nights often sell fast so book your tickets as soon as possible.

If you hear beautiful voices coming out of the Shackleton Theatre in the middle of the afternoon, you are overhearing the rehearsals for "An O. Henry Christmas" which previews on December 2 and opens the following night. Those attending opening night are in for a double treat. Once again, actors from Broadway and Hollywood are performing at Cape May Stage. Jason Ostrowski appeared on Broadway in the recent revival of "Company". Bev Appleton just finished shooting a feature film with Cloris Leachman. Courtnay Griswold starred as Maria in "The Sound of Music" and Tara Brown comes to us from LA after working for Disney! The musical director and stage director are both from New York! Chuck Hudson is our director and he has a long list of opera and musical credits. The extra treat on opening night is that our audiences are always invited to the opening night party to mingle with the cast and crew.

The big news is that overwhelming demand has caused us to schedule two matinees during the week! Every Saturday and every Sunday at 3 PM will have a matinee followed by an evening performance. What a marvelous way to celebrate the holidays! At the very end of the month the Second Stage Series wants to create some magic as we go off to 2010 so we have a Victorian Magic Show in our parlour on December 30 and a matinee on December 31. New Year's Eve will be our last performance of "An O. Henry Christmas". A bit of magic and gorgeous voices is the perfect way to usher in the new year!

"Master Harold and the Boys" takes the stage- despite the World Series!

For the past few weeks in a basement not far from the Wawa an usual scene has been taking place. A man in knee pads is scrubbing the floor while another is going through some dance steps and a younger fellow in a school uniform seems particularly agitated. In fact, these were three brilliant artists rehearsing for "Master Harold ...and the boys" which is opening tonight at the Robert Shackleton Playhouse for Cape May Stage. These sought after actors are continuing the tradition of bringing top tier talent to Cape May Stage in this award winning play! Each has distinguished resumes and joins us in our jewel of a theatre because of their commitment to their craft.

Tivo the World Series and skip the commercials to see a live performance where every second is engaging. This newest production is designed to get people talking. We have brought a director from England via Los Angeles to bring a special understanding to this piece. Marlena Lustik Steinberg, a former Broadway dancer, has been consulting with the dance aspects of the play. New lighting and set designers have been engaged to give this play a different look.

On Friday, November 13 PNC Arts Alive will sponsor a special ASL interpreted Performance for our hearing impaired community. "Master Harold...and the boys" by Athol Fugard first burst on the scene some twenty seven years ago and is considered by many to be one of the most important plays in the international canon of dramatic literature. Frank Rich said "we are left with the exultant hope that we may yet practice compassion without stumbling". That it is also funny and beautiful makes it a masterpiece!

Cape May Stage celebrates writers and the Second Stage will present a reading of a Robert Auletta's newest play called "Early On". Actors and directors on both coasts rush to do Robert Auletta's plays. Mr. Auletta is coming to Cape May with actors Ken Ryan and Rebecca Nelson. The three met while at Yale Drama School and all have had important careers in the world of entertainment. On Monday, November 9 at 8 PM the play will be read and discussed. Roy Steinberg will read the stage directions! These Second Stage events are sponsored by Chris and Dave Clemans.

“Master Harold...and the Boys” performances are Wednesdays through Sundays at 8pm from October 28 through November 28 on the Otto Haas Stage at the Robert Shackleton Playhouse, Cape May Stage. Tickets are $35 adults, $25 seniors, and $12.50 students. Call (609) 884-1341 for tickets and information or visit the theatre’s website, www.capemaystage.com. Audio enhancement and wheelchair accessible seating are available with advance notice by calling the box office at (609) 884-1341.

'Master Harold...and the Boys' opens next week with an incredible cast and production team! The Second Stage is hot again!

Athol Fugard is one of the world's most important dramatists and "MASTER HAROLD...and the boys" is widely considered his masterpiece. The play opens at Cape May Stage this Thursday and the opening night party will be at The Mad Batter. The entire opening night audience is invited to party with the cast and crew! Once again, Cape May Stage has assembled an astonishing cast from New York and Hollywood!
Gregg Daniel has been in just about every television show you can name as well as feature films and major theatre! Larry Hines played in Atlantic City with the Platters a short while ago but here has transformed himself into a shy South African waiter. Jared McGuire plays the title role with extraordinary emotional intensity. The director is Elizabeth Swain who comes to us from Great Britain via Los Angeles. A new set designer, Sarah Lambert, who trained at Yale Drama School and works in the most prestigious theatres in the nation has joined our team. Maria Shaplin was brought in to give a new look to the lighting plot. "MASTER HAROLD...and the boys" takes place in the 1950s in South Africa and tells the story of two waiters preparing for a dance competition. Their friendship with the boss's son goes through a major change and this funny, poignant and powerful play will lead to much discussion!

On Friday, November 13 a special American Sign Language performance of "MASTER HAROLD...and the boys" will be presented for the deaf community thanks to PNC Arts Alive. A special screening of the Academy Award-winning film "TSOTSI" will be presented on Monday, November 16 at 8 PM in a joint partnership with Cape May Film Society. "TSOTSI" is a film that was based on a novel by Athol Fugard who wrote "MASTER HAROLD...and the boys". The Artistic Director of Cape May Stage thought that viewing this film would give special insight into the world of South Africa under the system known as Apartheid.

An early reading of a play is a window into the development of the fully mounted production. "EARLY ON" is Robert Auletta's new play and it will be read on Monday, November 9 at 8PM with two wonderful actors from New York who have major credits in the entertainment industry. Robert Auletta is an Obie Award winning writer whose plays have been performed at the Kennedy Center and Yale Repertory Theatre.

New play readings, screenings of related films and special performances of our mainstage productions are all part of our Second Stage Series! There is always something happening at Cape May Stage!

"PROOF" shutters in only two weeks. "Master Harold" takes the stage! Micheal Fischetti appears for one night only!

There are only two more weeks to see what so many people are calling the best show EVER to be at Cape May Stage! "Proof" won the Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize for best play back in 2002 but this production brings new life to this script with an extraordinary cast in a gorgeous production. Bring a friend and turn a cold blustery October night into a special occasion of great theatre and drinks around the fireplace at one of our watering holes!

The actors for "Master Harold ...and the boys have arrived in Cape May. The director, Elizabeth Swain arrived from London after spending time in LA and New York where she was teaching a series of workshops. She is staying in different housing than the actors becaause "it just wouldn't do to have them see me in my knickers in the middle of the night" as she put it! Gregg Daniel arrived at the Philadelphia airport from Los Angeles where he just finished shooting two different television shows. Google him and be astounded by his body of work in feature films and television. Gregg is also a screenwriter and director. Coincidentally he directed a play at the Fremont Theatre Center where James Reynolds ("I, Too, Am America") is the Artistic Director!

The Second Stage presents Michael Fischetti reading poetry about the ravages of war that leading poets and writers have hailed as "extraordinary". He comes to us from New York where this evening was a huge success. We lost a brave countryman from the Villas fighting in Afghanistan. This evening resonates for all of us as we honor our service men and women fighting for our country!

"Visiting Mr. Green" closes! Rehearsals begin for "Proof"!

Music is all over Cape May - in the bars and restaurants - and the schools and churches all over town. Two time Tony Award winner Michael Starobin has composed music especially for Cape May Stage's production of "Visiting Mr. Green". This is the last week to see this extraordinary production. Aside from the amazing music, many people have said this is the best production to have ever been on our stage. The actors are so believable that they don't appear to be acting. Great conversations about the play are happening all over town. The playwright came and said this was among his favorite productions of a play that has been performed all over the world. Don't miss it!

New music is being composed by Will Knapp for our newest production of "Proof". Roy Steinberg met with Will Knapp in the offices above Martini Beach to give direction about the tone of the music between the scenes. The cast just arrived and is settling into town as they rehearse and discover this newest play to be on our stage. "Proof" won the Pulitzer prize for drama and was made into a popular film. This production previews on September 30 and opens on October 1 with an after party at Carney's. Before "Mr. Green" closes, don't forget Thursday, September 24 is a pay-what-you-can-night sponsored by PNC Arts Alive.

Again, a cast of Broadway veterans appears on Cape May Stage. This is a play that is funny and dramatic. It deals with families and notions of what makes a person sane. The set is spectacular and the level of acting just keeps growing with every production.

Coming in October will be a lecture about leadership using the book "Shackleton's Way" as a jumping off point. Later in the month on October 19 a poetry reading will occur.

Stay tuned!

A look behind the scenes with the cast and crew of "Social Security"

A little miracle can be viewed at the corner of Lafayette Street and Bank Street in what used to be a church but now houses Cape May Stage. It is impossible for a small, non-profit theatre to have a Broadway calibre set on its stage. How that came to be is the story of how unique and extraordinary is the community of Cape May.

Like most small theatres, Cape May Stage had mostly used a bit of furniture or a fence to suggest the location for a play. "Social Security" required what is called a "box set" with real walls and doors and platforms. On Broadway, a producer would hire a director and set designer and they would consult with each other until a final plan was approved. Those plans would be sent to a shop where carpenters would build what was required and then scenic artists would paint what the carpenters had built. The set pieces would be trucked to the theatre and then stylists would do the final touches of curtains and pillows. The designer would have a crew of shoppers to find the correct furniture and the final bill could be more than a hundred thousand dollars.

There is no shop to build sets in Cape May and the budget for a the set is a tiny fraction of that aforementioned number. When Alicia Grasso mentioned that her friend's husband was a designer, Roy Steinberg called him and looked at his portfolio. It turned out that Robert Martin made a good deal of his income as an assistant to William Ivey Long, one of Broadway's most prolific costume designers but he loved designing sets. Many emails with sketches of possible sets followed. Robert found examples of 1980's furniture and sent color swatches and choices of floor coverings. After many consultations, the choices were finalized and that is where this story really gets interesting.

Nathan Ruffan is a student at Highpoint University in North Carolina who met Roy Steinberg when Roy participated in a symposium at the university. Nathan signed on as an intern and played Indian #2 opposite Shirley Stiles in "The Chronicles of Cape May". It turned out he is also a skilled carpenter. A garage on Lafayette Street served as a make-shift shop and Nathan worked for more than a month building platforms and stage flats (used for walls) as well as hanging doors on specially constructed door flats. Tools were borrowed from Mal Knapp and Tom Cutler. Nathan built a bar and coffee table and a modern side table. Dave Clemans offered his shop for furniture building. Heather Turner donated half of her garage and that became the painting shop so the walls were painted to Robert's specifications.

When "Say Goodnight Gracie" closed on a Saturday night a crew of volunteers appeared to take down that set and build the set for "Social Security". Dottie Knapp painted some of the artwork including the portrait of Sophie (played by Lynn Cohen). Don Schweikert contributed an abstract expressionist painting he had and Robert Martin painted another canvas in the style of the Russian Suprematist, Malevich. Fred Van Cott appeared like an angel in the night. He had not been involved with the theatre before but knew his way around power tools and stayed until early the next next morning building the set. Don Toal and Monte LoSosso and Hannah Schaeffer and Adele Marks and Dottie Knapp (along with her friend, Mary) worked all night - some slept in the theatre helping Nathan Ruffan and Martin realize their project.

The next morning Vickie Tryon added her expertise and reupholstered a chair and found matching curtains. She had previously transformed a worn, stained sofa into a cutting edge modern statement of design. Vickie had found most of the costumes with her expert eye for period and color detail. Some final choices were loaned by Victoria Clayton to give a sense of glamour!

This rag tag team of volunteers became a family and built what was impossible. The community of Cape May created a set that is extraordinary in every sense of the word. Perhaps most extraordinary is the spirit and desire to help that exists in this town!

Actors Arrive from NYC, CT, DC, & PA to start rehearsals for Andrew Bergman's "Social Security"

The cast for "Social Security" converged on Cape May amidst considerable drama! Neal Lerner boarded a bus in Manhattan bound for Atlantic City and found himself in the emergency room after a truck hit his bus. After being checked out for a few bumps and bruises he was given a clean bill of health and brought to Cape May for some dinner and a good night's sleep. Lynn and Ron Cohen were coming from the O'Neill Playwright's Center in Connecticut and had to find their way in a rental car to the Atlantic City airport where they were met by Roy Steinberg and driven to their new housing. For Manhattanites more use to taxis than driving they were much relieved to be at their final destination. Andy Prosky had just flown back from San Diego where he was performing and Suzanne O'Donnell just finished a show at the Folger in Washington, D.C. Grace Gonglewski put her daughter to bed and drove late at night from Philadelphia.

The next morning they all met in the glorious home of Victoria Clayton and Rick White for a read through of the play. They were presented with a model of the set by Robert Martin, the designer and shown costumes by Vickie Tryon, the costume designer. After croissants and coffee there was a discussion about the style of the play and the time period. This is a large cast (six characters) for Cape May Stage and logistics about dressing rooms and getting table and mirrors became very important!

Across town in a garage on Lafayette Street a one-man construction team named Nathan Ruffan was building a bar and modern furniture for the show. He had already completed platforms and stage flats to resemble the walls of a modern chic apartment circa 1986. He soon transported those set pieces to the theatre so the actors could rehearse with them. This is the most elaborate set in the history of Cape May Stage. In addition to raising the bar with the talent coming to perform here, Cape May Stage has raised the bar on all production elements.

The first day of rehearsal the first act was blocked. The second day was devoted to act II. The actors were finding the best movement patterns for their characters as the director guided them to make the story clear and point out nuances for them to explore. A photo call was scheduled early in the process before the set was up so arrangements needed to be made to find a location. The costumes were not finalized but nothing could wait so costumes were approximated and the location stood in for the set. That is life in the theatre! Each day the rehearsals get more specific as more elements get added until that opening night on Thursday, July 23! The party is being planned and the seats are selling fast. If it is anything like "Say Goodnight Gracie" there is never an empty seat in the house so order them now. This show is bound to be a sell-out hit!!

George Burns shares the stage this week with Pupphitz and Mimes---It's Vaudeville at its finest!

After a week of sold-out performances with standing ovations, "Say Goodnight Gracie" begins another week of keeping audiences convulsed with laughter even as they wipe their eyes from the beautiful love story that is being told. As Joel Rooks emerges in his costume and make-up from the fog that begins the show, there is an audible gasp as the audience sees George Burns before their eyes.


This is hardly the first time Mr. Rooks has played the role. He understudied and played Burns on Broadway and has been performing it all over the country. The difference this time is that Cape May Stage is not part of a national tour but the production has been re-directed to fit in our space. Since we don't have a formal proscenium arch, we decided to use footlights for the vaudeville sections rather than what are called "chaser lights" that blink on and off around the arch. Rehearsals were spent working out wind patterns for the fog and how and when to use that famous cigar. Even though Mr. Rooks has played the role many times, each new production is an opportunity to discover something new. We identified moments that we wanted to heighten and examined possible new readings of certain lines. The Broadway producer of "Say Goodnight Gracie" is William Franzblau and we have been in close contact with him. He generously allowed us to buy the rights and archival footage because he knew that the show would have "artistic integrity" with Joel Rooks in the role.

I first worked with Joel Rooks some twenty five years ago when we both were part of Circle Repertory Company. I directed Joel in a host of new plays that were performed in the "lab". Circle Rep had some of the finest actors, directors, playwrights and designers working in New York in the nineteen seventies and eighties. The theatre eventually closed but artistic relationships continued. I later directed Joel in "The Learned Ladies" by Moliere and he was hilarious as a pompous poet. After that, I was directing a new play off Broadway called "Second Summer" with Joan Copeland. Joel Rooks brought the house down in his comic role. Once I knew I was coming to Cape May Stage, I knew I wanted Joel Rooks to be part of my season!

July 4 week-end is a particularly busy time at Cape May Stage. "Go North Penguin" is a puppet show from the reknowned puppet company called pupphitz. They will be performing at 11 am on July 5 at the Robert Shackleton Theatre on Bank and Lafayette Streets. This is the story of a penguin looking for his home. Since he lives at the South Pole, the only way to go is north! We thought Cape May is the perfect place for a show about going north since we are at Exit Zero of the Garden State Parkway!!

"7 (X 1) Samurai" is the story of "Seven Samurai" performed by a world-class mime and clown. You'll not want to miss David Gaines in this award winning show. It is perfect for families and is much anticipated this season! Call 609 -884-1341 or go on line at www.capemaystage.com for tickets!

When a show closes and another opens: the change-over, the schedule, and saying goodbye!

With the last three performances of “Souvenir” about to happen, plans are underway to strike (take down) the big golden frame that is onstage and return the period furniture to the Saltwood House Bed & Breakfast. The pink bench that is used in the second act goes back with our thanks to Deborah Brown at the Cape May Antique Center. The furniture and set for “Say Goodnight Gracie” is already stored and waiting to be brought to the theatre. On June 20th everything happens at once! It is closing night and the actors will be packing up their dressing rooms. The costumes will be packed and shipped back to New York. A crew will be taking down the blacks and putting in the new set. That baby grand piano needs to come off of the stage and will be picked up by a church that will be its new home. Cape May Stage interns will be driving the actors back to Atlantic City even as the lighting designer will be hanging new lights and focusing them for “Say Goodnight Gracie”. A projector will be installed high in the lighting grid to screen archival footage. Rehearsals have already begun for that show and Broadway veteran Joel Rooks will be reprising the role he played on Broadway.

Across town at the Beach Club, June 20th is also the night of our annual Summer Fundraiser! Bounce into summer is the theme for what will certainly be a fun filled evening. There will be dancing under the stars to live music as fabulous appetizers are passed with complimentary sangria! Save some room for the amazing desserts and get ready to bid at the live auction. If a silent auction is more your preference, we have great items at the silent auction as well!

Closing nights are often emotional for performers! It is the last time that actor will ever say that line in that production and it is a truism that an actor always discovers something new on closing night! Add to that emotional evening the fact that a new show is being launched even as a huge party is rocking the beach club and you have an idea of what Cape May Stage is all about. This is just the beginning. Wait until you see what’s planned for the rest of the season!

Only 2 Weeks left of "Souvenir"!! (Don't miss this special one-night only event) Catherine Wolf: "On Becoming" opens in Cape May, NJ - June 15

There is an energy and excitement on the corner of Lafayette Street and Bank Street where a grey building with red shutters that used to house a church now explodes with laughter. Some people have seen "Souvenir" multiple times and have commented on how much they love the performances and notice the nuances they may have missed the first time around. Dave Clemens exclaimed "the best two hours I have spent in this building" and audiences routinely give standing ovations during the curtain call. When audience members fill out comment cards the words they use are "outstanding", "excellent", "hilarious" and "the best theatre experience I have had". There are only two weeks left to see this opening production of the season. The actors are honing their craft and finding new moments to explore with every audience. On Friday, June 12 Cape May Stage presents a special Senior Night where tickets are half price for seniors. There is nothing like hearing trained artists in an intimate venue like Cape May Stage.

To compliment "Souvenir", Cape May Stage is presenting Catherine Wolf in "On Becoming" on Monday, June 15. "Souvenir" tells the story of Florence Foster Jenkins who sold out Carnegie Hall despite her inability to sing on key. Catherine Wolf comes from a musical family and (though she is an accomplished singer) she opted to be the only member of her family not to pursue a musical career. Her Uncle Boris Goldovsky, was heard on the radio for thirty years discussing opera during the intermissions of the Metropolitan Opera Broadcast. Her grandmother was Lea Luboshutz who was brought to the United States by Sol Hurok to feature as a violinist. Her great aunt and uncle were world famous duo pianists (Pierre Luboshutz and Genia Nemenoff) and this delightful play shows all of these family members through the eyes of a little girl as she grows through her music lessons to adulthood. "On Becoming" is directed by Jack Gindi and features Paul Trueblood on the piano. Audiences in New York have loved this play and Cape May Stage is delighted to present this evening to our theatre community!

“Souvenir” opens this week and it has been a busy time at Cape May Stage! The actors have spent every waking hour learning their lines and working the songs. Both artists are highly trained musicians and they are concerned with every detail of the music. I have been looking for musical jokes and they are wonderful collaborators.

Now the production elements are added to rehearsals, which had been centered mostly on interpretation of the text and finding the right placement on the stage for every moment. The lighting designer drove in from Philadelphia to look at the set and discuss ideas. We have ordered custom made “gobos” which are cutout templates that offer special effects. The set designer will be returning to add some extra elements to his design and the costume designer is driving from New York with a carload of costumes from the Costume Collection and other specialty stores. The Costume Collection is a warehouse in Manhattan of costumes from Broadway shows and operas that is made available to not-for-profit theatres like Cape May Stage. Gail Cooper-Hecht has designed many Broadway shows and knows the Collection well. She has period costumes that are visual jokes for when our main character performs at Carnegie Hall. These costumes need to be changed in seconds and so special rigging has been added to the costumes to get them on and off quickly with the help of a dresser coming all the way from North Carolina. There are eight separate costumes that will delight and entertain you! Will Knapp has designed the sound for this production. The sound design is crucial since so much of the action revolves around an unseen audience.

There is a special half price preview on Wednesday, May 20 and the next night is the official opening! May 21 features an opening night party at Martini Beach after the performance. The cast will be on hand to meet and greet our opening night revelers!

Memorial Day is fast approaching and you’ll want to bring your family to Cape May Stage for Bob Sheets doing his comic magic show on May 24 and May 25. These shows are designed so that you can go the theatre and then off to the beach. Just be back in time to see the main-stage show! There is always something happening at Cape May Stage!

Greetings from the Cape May Stage office!

So much is happening so quickly--- so I'll be concise and brief and, hopefully, hold your attention long enough to read my post....

As you may know, Roy Steinberg has joined our organization this past March as CMS' new Artistic Director. He comes to us by way of the West Coast where he's been working in Hollywood for the past several years. But a calling that harkens back to his days at Yale Rep, led him back to the live Stage and he fancied coming back to the east coast. And so, with the beauty and historic enchantment of our little seaside resort, Roy, with his wife Marlena, decided to make a residence in Cape May devoting his endless energies and big visions to our magical little theatre.

I really do mean ENDLESS energies! In his short time here, Roy has chosen a compelling and exciting season of plays, secured some amazing talent, and managed to bring specialty performers and acts to our theatre on nights and days when we aren't doing our typical thing!

So it is imperative, that you stay up to date with the haps here this season, by frequenting capemaystage.com for all the latest listings and news. You'll see everything from magic shows, to puppet theatre, to operas, to premieres, to special guests, to lecture series, and more!

Something for everyone!!

And, if you want to meet Roy, stop by the theatre next Friday April 17 from 5-6PM for a little meet & greet with the staff and members of the community! No reservations needed....

If there was ever a year to subscribe, this is the year. And it's not too late! Just give us a call (609) 884-1341 or check out the website. We're always here, except when we are watching our shows!

Until next time, keep working on that British accent, lovey.