Lambertville's Downtown Performing Arts Center Celebrates 5th Year at Washington Crossing Open Air Theatre

Over 350 actors, ages 7 to adult, attended auditions on Saturday, March 22 for the 2014 season at the Washington Crossing Open Air Theatre. The outdoor venue is located inside Washington Crossing State Park, 355 Washington Crossing-Pennington Rd. in Titusville, NJ. Auditions took place at the Downtown Performing Arts Center in Lambertville, N.J.

Along with over 100 adults vying for roles in the upcoming summer shows, over 250 young actors from Mercer, Hunterdon and Bucks counties were seen, many from Hunterdon Central Regional High School, Hunterdon South High School and New Hope-Solebury High School. Ginny Brennan, director of the Lambertville performing arts school, was excited to see the March 22 crowd, saying, "We've always been able to secure amazing talent for our summer shows at the Open Air Theatre and this year will be no exception." When asked about the upcoming 5th season at the Open Air Theatre, Brennan added, "We knew when we started in 2010 that the Open Air Theatre had been a much loved venue for generations of audiences and we're thrilled to continue here and draw bigger crowds each year."

The 2014 Open Air Theatre season includes 11 musicals and 6 children's shows which will run from late-May through mid-October. Mainstage productions are Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 pm. Children's shows take place on Friday and Saturday at 11 am and Sunday at 4 pm. This year's mainstage musicals include West Side Story, Seussical the Musical, The Secret Garden, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Li'l Abner, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Big the Musical, Fiddler on the Roof and The Mystery of Edwin Drood. Children's theatre productions include Disney's The Jungle Book Kids, Cinderella Kids and Aladdin, Jr. as well as Little Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel and Snow White, three original musicals written by Open Air Theatre artistic director Louis Palena.

Along with producing the 2014 Open Air Theatre season, Brennan and the Downtown Performing Arts Center continue efforts to secure a permanent, indoor, theatrical venue. The focus of these efforts is aimed towards historic, Flemington, N.J and include a theater, rehearsal and classroom space. Brennan's plan is to relocate the school to Flemington and provide the region with year-round theatrical productions while continuing the school's focus on arts education for the area's kids.

The Downtown Performing Arts Center's 5th season at the Washington Crossing Open Air Theatre will begin on May 30 with West Side Story. To learn more about the full 2014 season of mainstage musicals and children's shows and the Downtown Performing Arts Center's future plans in Flemington, NJ, visit the website at www.downtownpac.com.

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