William Parry, Maureen Silliman & Philip Hoffman to Star in ADAM'S GIFTS at St. John's Lutheran Church, 12/19-21

Producer/director Daniel Neiden will team up with St. John's Lutheran Church (81 Christopher Street) to present the World Premiere of ADAM'S GIFTS by Peter Filichia. This Christmas offering will have three initial performances on December 19, 20, and 21 at 7:00 pm. Tickets are FREE with a donation to St. John's "at the door." Reservations required. Contact info@adamsgiftstheshow.com

In a seasonal riff on Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, ADAM'S GIFTS is a story of redemption and the heart-melting surprise of feeling needed. ADAM'S GIFTS will star Broadway performers William Parry (Gypsy; Sunday In The Park; Passion); Maureen Silliman (Is There Life After High School?; I Remember Mama; Shenandoah); and Philip Hoffman (Into The Woods; Is There Life After High School?; Falsettos). Rounding out the cast are Julia Peterson and Hayden Wall. Neiden adds, "For over four decades, and ten thousand actual reviews, Peter Filichia has remained a supportive literary light of our community, and I am thrilled to see one of his own pieces mounted, and hopefully published."

Speaking about the upcoming world premiere of ADAM'S GIFTS, Filichia said, "When you're a theater critic, you see A CHRISTMAS CAROL quite a bit in December. There's always one extravaganza, one musical, one solo-show and almost always one update where there's an Ebenezer Scrooge (or even an Eleanor Scrooge) living in the present day. And yet nobody in the update says, 'Hey, you've got the same name as that Dickens' character.' I wondered if there were any way to update A CHRISTMAS CAROL where this wouldn't be an issue. Once I started thinking along those lines, I envisioned a character who isn't named Scrooge and an entirely new plot in which the arts makes this old man a better person."

Peter Filichia is the theater critic emeritus for both the Newark Star-Ledger and its television station, News 12 New Jersey. He writes a weekly column for Musical Theatre International. He has served four terms as president of the Drama Desk, the New York Association of Drama Critics and is now head of the voting committee and the emcee of the Theatre World Awards. A frequent contributor to theater publications and the writer of many cast-album CD liner notes, he lives in New York City. This World Premiere production of Adam's Gifts is directed by Daniel Neiden; casting consultant Nancy Carson; and co-produced by June Rachelson-Ospa, a member of The League of Professional Theater Women.

Filichia also wrote the recently released "Strippers, Showgirls, and Sharks: A Very Opinionated History of the Broadway Musicals That Did Not Win the Tony Award." Charles Strouse has called Peter Filichia, "One of our most important theater writers." and Fiddler On The Roof's Joseph Stein called Peter, "The finest interviewer I have ever encountered."

Photo by Walter McBride/Retna Ltd.

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