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It's hard to believe
that it is September already! The summer seemed to fly by, and as we
shared last month, we are feverishly planning to bring you news about
our 2020–2021 season. We hope to have those specifics for you in
October. But right now, I'd like to look back at some of the wonderful
things that have been happening over these past few months.
Our restaurant at the
F.M. Kirby Carriage House has been busy serving up delicious
meals, alfresco, plus star-studded cabaret performances on
Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday nights, and the reviews has been
terrific! We will continue outdoor dining, brunch, and cabarets into
October (and as long as the weather holds) as well as adding evenings
of beer-garden-style fare with entertainment. Artists, dates, and menus
will be announced shortly.
I am overjoyed that we
recently completed the 2020 Summer Musical Theater
Conservatory—virtually! The Education Department and our dedicated
teaching artists reevisioned this hallmark program and engaged over 70
students in high-level theatrical training classes plus seminars with
professional theater practitioners, all held online. This year's
installment of the annual New Voices concert cannot be produced
live and in person, of course, so we are creating an extra-special
virtual video program called Pure Imagination, showcasing the
amazing talents of New Jersey's best youth performers (details below).
Virtual delivery of
arts education will continue in the fall; the online sessions we
offered over the spring and summer were extremely popular and classes
booked up very quickly, and we're thrilled to be able to welcome
students from all over the country since the virtual classroom knows no
geographical boundaries! It is gratifying to know that we can provide
fine arts instruction to young people anywhere, and to know our
reputation for excellence reaches nationwide.
We were pleased to
offer our first online concert in August with Christopher Jackson,
best known as George Washington in Broadway's Hamilton. Paper
Mill partnered with 16 other not-for-profit institutions across the
country to produce this live concert, streamed directly to our patrons'
living rooms from New World Stages in New York City—an exclusive
offer in our area for members of the Paper Mill Playhouse family. It
was a huge success and the response was overwhelmingly positive, so we
are very excited to also present multitalented virtuoso Hershey Felder
in his one-man production George Gershwin Alone, to be
broadcast from Florence, Italy. Also this month, we will be joining
over 40 other performing arts centers to coordinate a nationwide watch
of the new documentary John Lewis: Good Trouble, followed by a
virtual panel of national leaders in civil rights and social
justice. More information on both upcoming virtual events can be found
below—please tune in!
We hope that you and
your families are safe and healthy. While we navigate ever-changing
reopening guidelines, our task force is working very hard to ensure the
safest environment for your eventual return to live theater here at
Paper Mill. In the meantime, know that we are thinking about you and
appreciate your support. 
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GEORGE GERSHWIN ALONE
Produced in partnership
with Hershey Felder Presents, Paper Mill is proud to bring you Hershey Felder
as George Gershwin Alone—Live from Florence, streamed live on
Sunday, September 13, at 8PM (and on-demand for one week). George
Gershwin Alone has had over 3,000 performances worldwide, including
Broadway, London’s West End, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Diego, San Francisco,
Boston, Philadelphia, Washington DC, and more. The show incorporates the
composer’s best-known songs, from “The Man I Love” and “Someone to Watch Over
Me,” through the hits of An American in Paris and Porgy
and Bess, to a complete performance of Rhapsody in Blue. BUY TICKETS
JOHN LEWIS: GOOD TROUBLE
Join audiences from across
the country for a nationwide watch of the riveting new documentary John
Lewis: Good Trouble followed by a live virtual panel on Monday,
September 21, at 7PM featuring the film's director and civil rights advocates
as they talk about Representative Lewis's legacy of fearless protest and how we
can keep his campaign for justice alive. LEARN MORE
BROOKSIDE CABARET NIGHTS
The theater is dark, but the show will go on! Every Wednesday,
Thursday, and Saturday night the Carriage House Restaurant, located at the F.M.
Kirby Carriage House, will continue its popular live Brookside Cabaret through
September with a talented roster of Broadway and Paper Mill favorites.
Prix fixe outdoor dining is
available Wed–Sat evenings along with small plates and cocktails, plus brunch
on Sundays. Reservations required for outdoor dining and pre-orders for
contactless curbside pickup. LEARN MORE
FALL ONLINE CLASSES COMING SOON!
Paper Mill’s 10-week fall
Theater School session continues with weekly classes online and worldwide! Join
our award-winning faculty of theater artists to make creative playmaking a part
of your child’s week. Book small group classes or a private voice lesson or
coaching session. Designed for students ages 7 to 17, our limited weekly class
spots assure students will receive dedicated attention and instruction. Theater
School fall session kicks off the week of September 14—join us! CLASSES INFO
VIRTUAL PROGRAMMING
The theater comes to you
with virtual programming.
Join us each week as we stream previously live New Voices concerts on Mondays
and Babbling by the Brook—conversations with Mark S. Hoebee—on
Wednesdays at 7PM. Enjoy a night out at the theater without leaving your couch! On Sep
9 Babbling by the Brook features a West Side Story reunion
with Belinda Allyn, Natalie Cortez, and Matt Doyle from our 2016 production.
Tune in on our Facebook page!
NEW VOICES OF 2020: PURE IMAGINATION
World premiere webcast Tuesday, September 22, at 7PM
Tune into Paper Mill
Playhouse on Facebook and YouTube for a night unlike any other! Join the
talented and persevering students of the Summer Musical Theater
Conservatory—our professional training program for aspiring young musical
theater artists—in a montage of short musical films that pay tribute to the
songs and shows that opened the doors of our imaginations and took us
to remarkable places!
COLLEGE DISCOVERY SEMINAR
Paper Mill continues to be
a national leader in college preparation after drafting the new Musical Theater Common Prescreen
Criteria, now adopted by over 60 major universities. The Education
Department again offers its two-part informational discovery workshop for
students and parents to explore the questions: What are the available
programs of study? How do I pay for school? How do I choose the program that is
right for me? What types of material should I be choosing for my audition? What
is the Musical Theater Common Prescreen and how does it affect me? What is the
audition season timeline?How has COVID impacted the audition season? The
online, interactive seminar will be held Tuesday, Sep 29 (part 1) and
Thursday, Oct 1 (part 2), 6:30PM–9PM. A $300 registration fee includes
both sessions for one student and their parents. For more information or to
register contact Mariah Black, Education Associate, at MBlack@PaperMill.org. MORE INFO
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