The Media Theatre Announces All-Star Cast For "Next To Normal" (Jan. 31 to Feb. 25)

The Media Theatre has “Next To Normal” this season, January 31 through February 25, and it’s the region’s only production which features an entire cast that is made up of members of Actors Equity Association. The all-star cast is well known to theatregoers from Philadelphia to West Chester, as well as from Bucks, Delaware, and Montgomery Counties.

“Next To Normal”, with a book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey and music by Tom Kitt, deals with one suburban household’s ability to cope with crisis and mental illness. The musical won three Tony Awards in 2009, including Best Score, as well as the Pulitzer Prize in 2010.

The musical is deeply moving and was chosen as ‘one of the year’s ten best shows’ by major critics including from The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, and The Washington Post.

In “Next To Normal”, a mother who has been battling manic depression for 16 years must learn to deal with major crisis within the family. An intense and heartfelt pop-rock musical, the show was hailed as being ‘Brave and breathtaking’ by The New York Times.

Krissy Fraelich will play the role of Diane, the mother of the household. Fraelich appeared on The Media Theatre stage previously in the power-house role of Mama Rose in “Gypsy”, and had supporting roles in Media’s “A Christmas Story: The Musical” as well as “The Addams Family”. She previously played the role of Diane at The Arden Theatre, and among her other credits was in the National Tour of “Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat”. Fraelich had the honor of performing under the music direction of Jason Robert Brown in his musical “Songs For A New World” at Symphony Space in NYC. She also was a member of the Broadway Gospel Choir and performed at Carnegie Hall.

Ben Dibble, a Barrymore Award winning actor, will play her husband, Dan. He was John Adams in Media’s “1776” two seasons ago, and most recently was seen at The Walnut Street Theatre in “A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum”. Dibble has appeared on every major theatre in the Philadelphia region, in dozens of productions ranging from “A Year With Frog And Toad” to “Arsenic and Old Lace”.

The role of Natalie, the daughter, will be played by Molly Sorensen. She was seen in The Media Theatre’s regional professional premiere of “The Bridges of Madison County: The Musical” in 2016. A past winner of the theatre’s prestigious “Vocalist Junior” summer singing competition, the Malvern resident is now 16 years old.

Ronnie Keller will play the integral role of the brother, Gabe. Keller has been seen on The Media Theatre stage in Disney's "Beauty And The Beast" as well as “Side Show” and “West Side Story”. He was recently seen in The Walnut Street Theatre’s “A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To The Forum”, and has appeared on several regional stages.

Christopher Infantino, of Media, will play the role of Henry. He is thrilled to return home to The Media Theatre, where he studied as a child and teenager, after receiving a B.F.A in Musical Theatre from The Boston Conservatory at Berklee back in May 2017. Christopher has performed in Joseph...Dreamcoat (Reagle Music Theatre, Reuben), ZM (Goodspeed Opera House). You can find him teaching Flywheel in Bryn Mawr and Center City when not performing.

Doctor Fine/ Doctor Madden will be played by Patrick Ludt, who has been in over a dozen shows at The Media Theatre including “Jekyll And Hyde: The Musical”, “My Fair Lady”, “Side Show”, and “A Christmas Story: The Musical”. He has also appeared in several productions at Bucks County Playhouse and other regional theatres.

“Next To Normal” contains strong language and deals with mature subject matter. It is not recommended for children. The musical is on stage at The Media Theatre January 31 through February 25. Geoffrey Goldberg directs, with music direction by Ben Kapilow. Tickets are on sale now at www.mediatheatre.org or by calling 610-891-0100.

THE MEDIA THEATRE'S 'CAROUSEL'....FIRST LOOK PHOTOS!

The Media Theatre has Rodgers and Hammerstein’s classic musical “Carousel” as the opener for its 2017-18 Broadway Series season. The beloved show plays through October 22.

The musical takes place between 1873 and 1888 in a small New England fishing village. The tale revolves around a love affair between Billy Bigelow, a travelling carnival man, and Julie Jordan, a local factory worker. Billy loses his life during an attempted robbery but is allowed to return to earth for a short time to seek out his daughter. 

The 1945 musical reunited the creative team that had brought Oklahoma! to the stage two years earlier. The New York Daily Mirror wrote: "Carousel is beautiful, bountiful, beguiling...it is the product of taste, imagination and skill." In 1999, TIME Magazine voted Carousel "Best Musical of the Century!"

“Carousel” has a memorable score, featuring songs such as “If I Loved You” and “You’ll Never Walk Alone”.

The Media Theatre’s cast features Broadway’s Joseph Spieldenner in the role of Billy Bigelow. Spieldenner was recently seen in the revival of “Les Miserables”. Prior to his Broadway career, he was in The Media Theatre’s production of “Oklahoma!” as Curly.

The Media Theatre’s production is directed by its Artistic Director Jesse Cline, with music direction by Ben Kapilow. Dann Dunn choreographs. "Carousel" is on stage through October 22. GET TICKETS or call 610-891-0100. 

Here are First Look Photos of the production, by photographer Greg Carroccio.

Joseph Spieldenner as Billy Bigelow, with Maxwell Porterfield as Julie Jordan

Carl Nathaniel Smith as Jigger

George Slotin as Mr. Snow

Beada Briglia as Billy's daughter, Louise

Elisa Matthews as Nettie Fowler

Billy Bigelow (Joseph Spieldenner) and Julie Jordan (Maxwell Porterfield) 

A New Musical "Snow White" Is At The Media Theatre Sundays At Noon Oct. 1 Thru Nov. 5

"Snow White" is a favorite fairy tale for youngsters who become enchanted by the story of the beautiful young girl who meets up with seven little people in the forest. The Media Theatre has a new musical version of the story playing every Sunday at Noon from October 1 through November 5.

The show, perfect for audiences of 'little people' ages 4 through 8, features a script by Tim Haney with new music by Ben Kapilow, the theatre's Resident Music Director.

Maya Maloskey, 13, of Malvern, plays Snow White. She was in the theatre's summer singing competition "The Vocalist" in which she won third place. This is her first time in a Media production. The Little People are played by Media Theatre students Brooklyn Bonner, Aiden Fox, Greyson Heneks, Preston Newton, Lily Jo Shelkin, and Olivia Stroup. The leader of the Little People is double cast with two students: Hannah Brady and David Potts.

Kaitlyn Hanrahan, who was in the summer production of "Into The Woods", is the Wicked Queen who transforms herself into a Beggar Girl (Alexsa McKeown and Madison Vassilakopoulos share that role) and an Old Woman (Shannon Clark and Lauren Saddic) to trick Snow White.

The sassy Magic Mirror is Bridget Henry, and Leo Koncos takes on the two roles of The Huntsman and The Prince. Amelia Welch is a busy-body Blue Bird, and The Narrators are Elizabeth Brown, Aidan Crane, Caileigh Crane, and Charlotte Taylor. 

"Snow White" tickets are $12 for children and $15 for adults. It's on every Sunday at Noon at The Media Theatre. Visit www.mediatheatre.org for tickets or call 610-891-0100. 

Watch: "Carousel" Rehearsal Footage at The Media Theatre

Broadway's Joseph Spieldenner is Billy Bigelow
Maxwell Porterfield is Julie Jordan
"Carousel" is on at The Media Theatre Sept. 20 through Oct. 22
Directed by Jesse Cline
Music Direction: Ben Kapilow
Choreographer: Dann Dunn
Get tickets at mediatheatre.org or call 610-891-0100

THE MEDIA THEATRE ANNOUNCES CAST FOR DISNEY'S 'BEAUTY AND THE BEAST'

Disney's smash hit Broadway musical "Beauty And The Beast" is on The Media Theatre stage for the upcoming holiday season. It plays November 15, 2017 through January 14, 2018.

Tickets are now on sale for the extremely popular show, which is based on the Oscar nominated animated film. A live action movie based on the Broadway musical was released this past year, becoming 2017's biggest box office sensation.

The stage version features all of the songs written by Alan Menken and the late Howard Ashman, along with a few new songs created specifically for the stage version. The original Broadway production of "Beauty And The Beast" ran for over thirteen years and was nominated for nine Tony Awards, including Best Musical.

The story focuses on Belle, a young woman, and the Beast, who is really a young prince trapped under the spell of an enchantress. The Beast must learn to love and be loved so that the curse will end. With time running out, if the Beast does not learn his lesson soon, he and his household will be doomed for eternity.

Disney's "tale as old as time" is a treat for the eyes as well as the ears, with one of the most romantic storylines of all time as well as much humor and adventure. Love truly does conquer all, as all ages appreciate the message of "Beauty And The Beast". 

The show at Media is directed and choreographed by Dann Dunn, with music direction by Ben Kapilow (Delaware County's only professional music theatre features a live orchestra). 

For tickets, call 610-891-0100 or GET TICKETS HERE

The cast of Disney's "Beauty And The Beast" at The Media Theatre is:

Belle.......................Alanna J. Smith*
The Beast..............Jarret Jay Yoder*

Gaston...................Bob Stineman*
Lefou.....................Stephen Fala

Maurice..................Nicholas Saverine*

Lumiere.................JP Dunphy*
Cogsworth.............Kelly Briggs*
Mrs. Potts..............Hillary Parker*
Chip.......................Charlie Carroccio/ Adrian Henry
LaGrande..............Molly Tower
Babette..................Julianna Babb

*Member of Actors Equity Association

Ensemble:
Dante Brattelli, Ronnie Keller, Kimberly Maxson, Megan McDevitt, Niklaus Miller, Dana Orange, Maddy Pelesh, Christian Ryan, Jacob Schrimpf, Kristin Smith, Cara Treacy, Erika Wasko

MEDIA THEATRE'S NEW SCHOOL EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM ASKS 'WHO IS THE ACTOR?'---REGISTRATIONS NOW BEING ACCEPTED FOR 2017-18

The Media Theatre's New School is accepting registrations now for its 2017-18 season. A prestigious 'by invitation or audition only' theatre study program for two age groups, The New School focuses on the truth of performance: Who is the actor and how does the actor approach the scene, monologue, or song? 

Based within the Sanford Meisner technique, which is defined with the statement "Acting is living as truthfully as one can under an imaginary circumstance", The New School focuses on two aspects of music theatre (Acting and Vocal Music) for the younger age group (ages 7-10) on Mondays during the 4:30-6:30pm class beginning September 25, while the older age group (ages 11-16) meets on Thursdays during the same hours beginning September 28.

Media Theatre's Artistic Director Jesse Cline, who instructs and leads The New School, a conservatory-style approach to theatre education which is completely separate from the theatre's Acting Classes. 

The New School is a two semester educational program in which students learn advanced elements of acting and vocal music.

This season, all New School students will be also be able to take part in the MEDIA THEATRE DANCE MACHINE Class, which takes place on Sundays at 10am at our Dance Studio (28 West State Street in Media).  

Two frequent performers on our stage, Ronnie Keller and Kim Maxson, 

will instruct the Dance Class.

If one were to synthesize the fundamental premise of the training

it would be that ‘the truth is everything’.This premise is essential and shouldmaintain itself in everything that takes place on stage. 

Each student finds the truth within himself or herself and that particular truth means they are individual and special.

New School students are given priority when it comes to casting shows at 

The Media Theatre which have roles for young actors. 

JESSE CLINE, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR teaches and directs the New School.

He has been at the helm of The Media Theatre since 1994 even as it transitioned to a non-profit in 2000. Has led the theatre to award-winning status and national recognition working with such Tony  nominated actors as Philip Boykin, Ann Crumb, Andy Karl, and Andrea McArdle. He has directed over 100  productions and created the  theatre’s educational programs. He is the winner of two “Best Director” honors from Broadway World.

BEN KAPILOW, RESIDENT MUSIC DIRECTOR, instructs the Vocal Music portion.

He received an M.M. in Composition from the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University and a B.A. in music and      psychology from Swarthmore College.  He is active as a composer of music for children, as his children's chorus pieces have received over 40 performances, and he composed the score to four musicals for the Media Theatre's Children's Series. He has taught at the Meridee Winters School of Music, Darlington Arts Center, Nelly Berman School of Music, Mother of Providence Regional Catholic School, and St. Pius X School.

There is still space available! Email Roger at rer764@gmail.com to set up an audition or interview with Jesse Cline. (Previous New School students may not have to audition or interview)