CLASSIC AMERICAN TALES to Present Final Porch Reading for 2026

Classic American Tales (CAT) is having its final Tales at the Dormer House in Cape May, NJ for 2026, on October 15 at 4:00 p.m., featuring seasoned storytellers Frank Smith, Stephanie Garrett, Gayle Stahlhuth, and newcomer Liberty Ero presenting some of their favorite short stories and monologues by well-known American writers.

The eighteen previously weekly readings included Anita Loos's Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Sinclair Lewis's Free Air, Calamity Jane's Diary, Vladimir Nabokov's Pnin, and Chester Himes' 'Headwaiter,' read by ten different professional actors from Philadelphia, New York City, and South Jersey areas. Usually, scheduling for tales and performers is done weeks in advance, but for the final of the year, storytellers don't divulge their choices until they present them.

Starting out as Tales of the Victorians in 1989 by East Lynne Theater Company (ELTC) when Warren Kliewer was producing artistic director, stories were read weekly during the summer on the porches of a variety of Cape May B&Bs, while the Equity professional fully-staged production season was happening at the same time. Gayle Stahlhuth, the next producing artistic director from 1999 through 2022, kept Tales going, along with the production season and other programs. In 2023, ELTC no longer wanted to continue Tales, but The Dormer House wished to continue them, so Stahlhuth, along with the three original CAT board members, founded the nonprofit CAT. Since then, programming has expanded to one-person shows, lectures, readings, playwriting and acting workshops, touring shows, and in-school theater workshops at a variety of locations. In 2027, CAT adds to its programming with readers theater productions in which the story itself is centerstage - no sets, just actors seated on stage, performing rich dialogue with intriguing plot twists in adaptations of American novels and stories. First up is Tom Sims' adaptation of Sinclair Lewis's delightful Free Air (1919), the first road-trip romcom, with a cast of 8.

Tales at the Dormer House are every Thursday at 4:00 from mid-June to mid-October at this historic B&B located at 800 Columbia Avenue. Performances are on the porch, but move to the parlor if weather isn't cooperating. Lemonade and homemade desserts are also served. Cost is $12, cash or check at the door and guests staying at The Dormer House and ages 12 and under are free. Reservations are appreciated and may be made by calling 609-884-5898 or emailing ClassicAmericanTales@aol.com.

Upcoming events include Poe by Candlelight and a Christmas show at Rea's Farm in West Cape May, Calamity Jane's Diary at the Avalon Public Library in Avalon, NJ, and performances of Margaret's Diary During a Revolution to celebrate the 250th Anniversary of the American Revolutionary War at the Morristown and Morris Township Library and The Cape May Presbyterian Church.

Funding for CAT's 2026 season has been made possible in part from the Cape May County Board of County Commissioners via the Cape May County Division of Culture & Heritage, a partner of the Jersey State Council on the Arts, from the Cape May business community, and individuals. CAT is a proud partner of REVNJ, a New Jersey Historical Commission program promoting the history of American Revolutionary War events in the Garden State.