Theater notebook: Options brighten with new seasons, stages across Lower Hudson

A world premiere romantic comedy, a Tony-winning musical about a musical icon, a Neil Simon comedy, a suspenseful story about something unexplained in the Hudson Valley night sky, a reborn Antrim Playhouse – and the closing of the high school musical season – make for a busy spring on stages across the Lower Hudson Valley in coming weeks.

Here’s a reporter’s notebook.

‘The Sabbath Girl,’ singing this time, at Penguin Rep

When Cary Gitter’s “The Sabbath Girl” first played at Penguin Rep in Stony Point in 2019, it was a play without music.

This spring, the romantic comedy — about an ambitious New York City art dealer who finds love in an unexpected place — is back as a musical, directed and conceived by Penguin Artistic Director Joe Brancato. It has a book by Gitter, music by Nyack’s maestro Neil Berg (“The 12,” “Grumpy Old Men,” the upcoming “My Cousin Vinny: The Musical”) and lyrics by Gitter and Berg.

No Will? No way! Fans bemoan lack of Shakespeare title at Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival

The cast includes Marilyn Caserta as Angie (Broadway's "Six"); Diana Di Marzio as Sophia (Broadway "The Visit"); Nyack's Rory Max Kaplan as Blake (Broadway's "Jersey Boys"); Lauren Singerman as Rachel ("Caroline, or Change"); and Max Wolkowitz as Seth (Penguin's "My Name Is Asher Lev").

It opens Penguin’s 46th season on Crickettown Road, running from May 3 through 26. Tickets $54, $46 if purchased by May 5 at www.penguinrep.org or 845-786-2873. Season tickets are also available. The season includes “Centennial Casting,” “Dear Jack, Dear Louise,” and “The Steel Man.”

Big props for ‘Small’

Robert Montano's “Small,” an autobiographical coming-of-age story set in the world of racetracks that premiered at Penguin in 2022, is nominated for a 2024 Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Solo Performance. “Small” was produced Off-Broadway at 59E59 last season. The one-man show will move to George Street Playhouse in New Brunswick, New Jersey, next January.

‘Beautiful’ at WPPAC

The White Plains PAC wraps up a monthlong run of “Beautiful: The Carole King Muiscal” with performances this week. The Tony-winning musical goes deep into King’s canon, her work with husband Gerry Goffin, and the songs of Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil.

At the risk of sounding like one of those old-time record commercials, the hits include: "You've Got a Friend,” "One Fine Day,” "So Far Away,” "Take Good Care of My Baby,” "Up on the Roof,” "Will You Love Me Tomorrow,” and "Natural Woman." If those titles have you smiling, there’s one weekend of performances remaining at WPPAC in the City Center mall in downtown White Plains.

With Brianna Kothari Barnes as Carole King, Dan Hoy as Gerry Goffin, Jillian Butler as Cynthia Weil and Stavros Koumbaros as Barry Mann. Directed by Marc Tumminelli with music direction by Stephen Ferri and choreography by Cameron Anika Hill. Tickets at wppac.com or 914-328-1600.

A Schoolhouse season gets a starry start

The hilltop Schoolhouse Theater in Croton Falls has a star-studded world premiere kicking off its 2024 season: Barbara Dana's "What Keeps Us Going," directed by Austin Pendleton. It will star Tony-winner Karen Ziemba ("Contact"), Anthony Arkin ("Succession"), and Tony nominees Amelia Campbell ("Our Country's Good") and Tim Jerome ("Me & My Girl").

Dana, a celebrated children's book author, playwright, actress and channeler of Emily Dickinson, was once married to Alan Arkin and is the mother of three actor Arkins: Adam, Anthony and Matthew.

A longtime Westchester resident, Dana appears to be writing of what she knows in "What Keeps Us Going." The story involves Marie (Ziemba), who has been a star all her life and is enjoying her later years in Westchester when she is approached to add her name to a friend's A-list benefit.

Performances are May 24 to June 9, at 7 p.m., Fridays, 3 and 7 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays. Individual tickets $50, $45 for seniors, $15 for students.

The season continues in the fall with Athol Fugard's "Master Harold ... and the Boys," (Sept 6-22) and Brian Friel's "Faith Healer" (Dec. 6-22). Season subscriptions and individual tickets at www.theschoolhousetheater.org.

ACT Brings Neil Simon Comedy to Bronxville

The Café Edison, the great greasy spoon in the heart of the Theater District — where you could get a pretty decent matzoh ball soup and could see working actors between shows — shuttered in 2014, but it lives on in Neil Simon’s comedy “45 Seconds From Broadway,” which will be staged by Actors Conservatory Theater in Bronxville May 9 to 19.

Simon fills the stage with theatrical continuum from the on-the-rise to the on-the-way-out, drawn to the “Polish Tea Room” for conversations professional and personal. The title is a play on George M. Cohan’s song, “45 Minutes From Broadway,” a deprecating take on New Rochelle, which he billed as the home of “rubens” and “jays.” (An insult.) The restaurant in Simon’s play is much closer. Just step out the door and walk 45 seconds and behold Broadway.

The ACT production, directed by Armand Paganelli, is at the community theater’s new home: Taylor Hall at Christ Church in Bronxville.

“45 Seconds from Broadway” runs May 9-11, 16-19 at Taylor Hall at Christ Church, 18 Kensington Road, Bronxville. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m., Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets — $30 for adults, $27 for students, seniors and veterans — are available at www.actshows.org.

‘Sightings’ at the Depot

Mona Z. Smith’s new play “Sightings” — running at the Philipstown Depot Theater May 10-12 and May 17-19 — sounds a bit like “Stranger Things.”

“It’s March 1983, and on an eerily quiet night in a city park along the Hudson River, three high school seniors get the shock of their lives when they witness something in the night sky that they can't explain. Now bound together by this unsettling mystery, the teens must decide what to do. A secret pact, a painful struggle, and a shattering betrayal could jeopardize each teen’s hopes for the future.”

Written by Smith and directed by Traci Mariano, the cast includes Anuka Sethi, Michael Tyler Jennings, and Emilio Picayo as the teens, with Karen Kapoor, Robert “Bobby” Convertino, and Jordan Kaplan in supporting roles. It will run eight performances only, May 10-12 and May 17-19, in the intimate (make that “cozy") Depot Theater, 10 Garrison's Landing, Garrison, NY 10524. Tickets: $29, $25 for seniors, $20 for students. At www.philipstowndepottheatre.org.

A final weekend of high school musicals

After 14 weeks, the 2024 high school musical season draws to a close this weekend.

Archbishop Stepinac ends its two-weekend run of "Catch Me If You Can," with performances at 7 p.m., May 2 and 4, and at 2 p.m., May 5. (Note: There is no performance on May 3.) Tickets are $25 and $20 at https://stepinac950.booktix.net. On Instagram: @stepinac_drama

"Iona Prep" brings "Footloose" to its brand-new theater, with performances at 7 p.m., May 3, and 2 and 7 p.m., May 4. Tickets are $20 at the door or at www.ionaprep.org/prepplayers.

Yonkers Charter School of Educational Excellence marks the return of musicals to Yonkers high schools with a production of "Godspell." Performances at 7 p.m., May 3, and 2 and 7 p.m., May 4. Tickets are $10 at the door. On Instagram: @cseeowls

Open Mic to celebrate the season

If you missed a school show this season, there's still time to catch up, in a way, at Pedro's Open Mic 2024, a celebration of the season. The Open Mic will be at Harrison High School at 7 p.m., May 11, a night of showtunes, games, trivia and cake, as schools from across Rockland, Putnam and Westchester send singers and dancers to give a taste of what graced their stages. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for students at www.tinyurl.com/pedros2024.

Slated to perform: Rye Neck's "Beauty and the Beast," Hendrick Hudson's "The Little Mermaid," Pleasantville's "Footloose," Haldane's "Chicago," Carmel's "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying," Suffern's "Into the Woods," Valhalla's "Footloose," North Salem's "Hello, Dolly!" New Rochelle's "Young Kind of Love," Pelham's "Into the Woods," Blind Brook's "Mamma Mia!," Harrison's "Mean Girls," Walter Panas' "Mamma Mia!," Clarkstown South's "Newsies," Sleepy Hollow's "Cinderella," Eastchester's "The Addams Family," Ramapo's "Urinetown," White Plains' "Fiddler on the Roof," Iona Prep's "Footloose," Ossining's "Sister Act," and Archbishop Stepinac's "Catch Me If You Can."

'Machinal' in Larchmont

The ambitious teen-run Valley Road Theatre Company — which has staged Martin McDonagh’s “The Lieutenant of Inishmore,” and Chekhov’s “The Cherry Orchard” — presents Sophie Treadwell’s expressionist 1928 play “Machinal” May 10 and 11 in Larchmont’s St. John’s Episcopal Church.

Frequently found on best-play lists though rarely staged, "Machinal" tells the story of Helen Jones, who seeks to escape a loveless and abusive marriage to her boss. Artistic Director Alex Gross and his cast of six will tell “Machinal” in immersive fashion, turning the church’s 4,000 square feet into the George H. Jones Company, complete with parlors, offices, and bedrooms. The cast: Galle Blaustein (Mother); Nate Dower (Jones); Erin Ellis (Young Woman); Rebecca Gross (Telephone Girl); Jadyn Schwartz (Prosecution); and Nico Maysonet (Lover).

At 7 p.m., May 10, and 2 and 7 p.m., May 11. Theatergoers invited to arrive at least 10 minutes before curtain. Latecomers will not be admitted. $15 in advance, $20 at the door (cash or Venmo). At St. John’s Episcopal Church, 4 Fountain Square, Larchmont. www.valleyroadtheatre.com

In the wings, Take 1: Armonk’s ‘Desperate Measures’

June brings musical comedy to Armonk in the form of “Desperate Measures” from the Armonk Players.

Billed as “a witty and wild new musical comedy” that “takes the bard’s ‘Measure for Measure’ and shakes things up with a toe-tapping score,” it is directed by Pia Haas with musical direction by Will Rich and choreography by Jill Paganelli. The cast includes Tom Ammirato (Father Morse), Annie Fitz (Bella Rose), Michelle Foard (Susanna), Anthony Malchar (Johnny Blood) and Steve Taylor (The Governor) and Robert Agis (Sheriff).

At 8 p.m., June 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, and 4 p.m., June 9. Whippoorwill Theater, 19 Whippoorwill Road East, Armonk, NY 10504. Tickets are $25, $20 for students and seniors, at www.armonkplayers.org.

In the wings, Take 2: Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival

Yes, it's the beloved Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival, a Lower Hudson Valley tradition once again under the tent at its new home, the former Garrison Golf Club off Snake Hill Road and Route 9 in Garrison. No, there's no Shakespeare title this summer, its 37th.

Instead, Artistic Director Davis McCallum serves up a season of adaptations by living American playwrights for the 2024 season, kicking off June 11:

• “Medea: Re-Versed,” a battle-rap, hip-hop version of the story of the murderess mother Medea. It is written by Luis Quintero and co-conceived and directed by Nathan Winkelstein;

• “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd,” an Agatha Christie story featuring Hercule Poirot, adapted by Heidi Armbruster and directed by Ryan Quinn;

• “By the Queen,” a work that deconstructs two Shakespeare plays, “Richard III and “Henry VI,” to focus on the perspective of Queen Margaret. Written by Whitney White, it will be directed by Shana Cooper.

Season calendar at www.hvshakespeare.org.

In the Wings, Take 3: A new home for Antrim in Tappan

Generations of community theater fans in Rockland County headed to Antrim Playhouse at the end of Spook Rock Road in Suffern. Founded in 1936, it saw a wave of actors who would become household names from another time: Fred Gwynne, Henny Youngman, and Rockland natives Tyne Daly and Christine Andreas.

That old building in Suffern, shuttered by COVID, was sold in 2022, sparking a two-year effort to secure and outfit a new home, newly unveiled at the Manse Barn in Tappan.

Antrim’s 2024-2025 won't kick off till mid-September, with an original musical “Hang On,” followed by: “Barefoot in the Park”; “Steel Magnolias”; “Billy Elliot”, and “Blue Orange.” But Artistic Director Dana Duff said there will be a sort of soft opening for the space, with pop-up events this summer.

Details at www.antrimplayhouse.com.

Reach Peter D. Kramer at pkramer@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Westchester, Rockland, Putnam NY theaters ready new seasons and stages