David Girolmo

Review: MSMT's WHITE CHRISTMAS Is Pure & Perfect Magic

The thermometer in Brunswick Maine reads 85°F, but as one approaches the Pickard Theater, a band plays Christmas music outside, and inside the lights are twinkling; the halls are decked with garlands and wreaths; there is literally a forest of elegantly decorated trees, and there is a promise of snow in the air. This is, indeed, a white Christmas like no other. The brainchild of Artistic Director Curt Dale Clark, Maine Street Music Theatre has created “Christmas in July” with a spectacular production of Irving Berlin’s classic WHITE CHRISTMAS, directed and choreographed by Marc Robin as its centerpiece. This is a singular and sensational opportunity to experience a breathtaking Broadway musical in a beautiful fantasy setting. 

BWW Q&A: Charis Leos on Irving Berlin's WHITE CHRISTMAS at Maine State Music Theatre

We spoke to Charis Leos about appearing in Irving Berlin's White Christmas at Maine State Music Theatre!  Charis is a familiar face at MSMT, appearing in dozens of shows over the years,  beginning with Nunsense in 1997. Some favorite MSMT roles include Roz (9 to 5), Rose (Gypsy), Louise (Always, Patsy Cline), Paulette (Legally Blonde), Maggie (42nd Street), Madame Thenardier (Les Miserables), Chaperone (Drowsy Chaperone) and Dolly (Hello, Dolly!).

Review: MSMT's FUNNY GIRL: Bold, Beautiful & Star-Studded

Maine State Music Theatre’s new production of FUNNY GIRL is a triumph for its star and a coup for the company. Obtaining the first rights to produce the show after the closing of the recent Broadway revival is an unprecedented accomplishment for the theatre’s Artistic Director, Curt Dale Clark.  In addition, the production, itself, is arguably the first FUNNY GIRL anywhere to use the state-of-the art video technology, and perhaps the most thrilling feat of all: not only does the entire cast deliver stunning performances, but Jenna Lea Rosen, who makes her MSMT debut and role debut as Fanny Brice, is unquestionably a superstar. The result is an evening in the theatre that is as exhilarating and spellbinding as any you will see on any stage and an experience not to be missed!

BWW Q&A: Kenny Ingram on FUNNY GIRL at Maine State Music Theatre

Maine State Music Theatre is the first - and only - regional theatre to be granted the rights to produce Funny Girl since the Broadway National Tour launched. We chat with Kenny Ingram about the upcoming production.

Interview: Jenna Lea Rosen on Doing Justice to Fanny Brice's Legacy

“There was no one else like Fanny Brice!  Since I was a child, I have identified with her in so many ways,” enthuses Jenna Lea Rosen, who makes her MSMT debut and role debut this week in the first regional revival since the Broadway show’s recent closing.

Video: New Trailer for SOUTH PACIFIC at Maine State Music Theatre

Check out an all-new trailer for South Pacific at Maine State Music Theatre! Check out the cast in action in this all-new video.

Review: SOUTH PACIFIC at 75: Prescient, Powerful, and Entirely Enchanting

Respectful of the show’s legacy and sensitive to contemporary context, Maine State Music Theatre has mounted a stunning revival of the Rodgers and Hammerstein classic, SOUTH PACIFIC.  Marshalling the company’s considerable artistic resources, this 75th anniversary production is musically glorious, visually lush, and packed with emotion and talent.

Video: Get A First Look At SOUTH PACIFIC at Maine State Music Theatre

Get a first look at South Pacific at Maine State Music Theatre! Check out the cast in action in this all-new video.

BWW Q&A: Marc Robin on Rodger's & Hammerstein's SOUTH PACIFIC at Maine State Music Theatre

We spoke to Director/Choreographer Marc Robin about Maine Maine State Music Theatre (MSMT)'s upcoming production of the timeless classic, Rodgers & Hammerstein’s South Pacific, the inaugural production for the 2024 Season. Since its premiere in 1949, South Pacific has captivated audiences worldwide, earning widespread acclaim and numerous accolades, including numerous Tony Awards and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

Video: Get A First Look At SOUTH PACIFIC at Fulton Theatre

Get a first look at Fulton Theater's production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's South Pacific! Check out the cast in action in this all-new video.

Video: Go Inside the Sitzprobe for SOUTH PACIFIC at Fulton Theatre

Watch as the cast and orchestra of Fulton Theater's production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's South Pacific rehearse together for the first time in this all-new video.

Rodgers And Hammerstein's SOUTH PACIFIC Opens This Month at the Fulton Theatre

The Fulton Theatre has announced the cast of its upcoming production of Rodgers & Hammerstein's South Pacific. Since its debut in 1949, South Pacific quickly captured the hearts of theatergoers worldwide, earning critical acclaim and many prestigious awards, including seventeen Tony Awards and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

Video: Get A First Look At Fulton Theatre's EQUUS

Get a first look at Fulton Theatre's production of Equus in an all-new trailer. Equus tears open the human psyche, exposing primal urges and the thin line between love and destruction. Not for the faint of heart and not for anyone under the age of 17, this is a piece that will challenge its viewers.

Fulton Theatre Presents EQUUS By Peter Shaffer

Equus brings the power of passion to Fulton Theatre. Fulton Theatre brings this story about the power of passion to its 4th Floor Tell Studio Theatre as part of the Ellen Arnold Groff Studio Series. Peter Shaffer's controversial play Equus opened on Broadway in 1975 to critical acclaim.

Review: CHRISTMAS IN CONNECTICUT at Pioneer Theatre Company Could Become a Perennial Holiday Favorite

Pioneer Theatre Company’s not-to-be-missed production of the brand-new musical CHRISTMAS IN CONNECTICUT is worthy of becoming a perennial holiday favorite, perfectly delivering feel-good nostalgia in a beautifully wrapped contemporary package. 

Pioneer Theatre Company Presents 2023 US Holiday Exclusive Production Of CHRISTMAS IN CONNECTICUT

Pioneer Theatre Company presents the 2023 US holiday exclusive production of 'Christmas in Connecticut'. Get ready for a festive and heartwarming holiday show.

SOMETHING ROTTEN! Comes to the Fulton Theatre

The Fulton Theatre has announced the highly anticipated production of the uproarious musical comedy, Something Rotten! This Tony Award-nominated hit will open the Fulton’s 2023/24 Mainstage season, and is set to captivate audiences with its show-stopping musical numbers, hilarious one-liners, and energetic and colorful stage design, beginning on September 15, 2023 with previews September 13 and 14.

Review: Smart, Silly, Spectacular, SOMETHING ROTTEN! Proves a Dazzling MSMT Main Stage Finale

Dancing omelettes, a zany soothsayer, THE Bard of English theatre, and a ragtag troupe of Renaissance actors struggling to survive all share the Maine State Music Theatre stage in dizzying profusion in the final main stage production of the season: SOMETHING ROTTEN! - an outrageously funny, simultaneously urbane and plebeian send up and homage to classical theatre and that unique genre the MUSICAL. The stylish and brilliant co-production with Lancaster’s Fulton Theatre, directed by Marc Robin, creates an entirely new imaginary universe, a world at the intersection of Elizabethan England and modern American musical theatre – part Renaissance Faire (on steroids), part Monty Python at their most hilarious. The evening, which is filled with endearing characters, showstopping song and dance numbers, comedy fueled by allusions, puns, slapstick, scatological jokes, and occasionally even poetry, is pure entertainment. No one will need to “brush up his Shakespeare” or be able to “name that tune” in order to come away from SOMETHING ROTTEN! thoroughly exhilarated and brimming with joy.

BWW Review: Wacky, Wickedly Funny, and Wonderful, MSMT's All-Star Cast Romps in 9 TO 5 THE MUSICAL

Maine State Music Theatre’s new production of 9 TO 5 THE MUSICAL with Dolly Parton’s pulsating score is a high energy, hilarious madcap misadventure that somehow also manages to ring uncannily true. Both a period piece and a contemporary one, this tale of women in the workplace is propelled by zany humor, but also fueled by the empathetic characters at its core. The trio of women embattled with their narcissistic boss are - as Parton, herself, phrased it “just a step on the boss man's ladder” - and yet they sing and dance their way into our hearts in an evening filled with laughter and warmth.

Review: THE BUDDY HOLLY STORY: The Legend and the Legacy Live in MSMT's New Production

There are certain moments of history that become emblazoned in our collective human  psyches. Fans of American popular music all remember with a searing certainty the day when Charles Hardin Holley was killed in a plane crash at age twenty-two,  his pioneering meteoric rock ‘n’ roll career brought to a tragic end. But if  Feb 3,1959, was “the day the music died “ - as Don McLean wrote - MSMT’s Buddy Holly STORY turns that trope on its head. The new production, staged by Angela C. Howell makes clear that the legacy of Buddy Holly lives, and if MSMT’s production of the jukebox musical about Holly’s legend and his legacy rocks the Pickard Theater to the rafters with its visceral musical energy, it also speaks volumes about the warmth and heart of the Holly story.