This is officially the first weekend of summer and the summer theater companies are flourishing.
In the next few weeks there will be big musicals, small musicals, dramas, opera and comedies. There are even world premieres and works that are still in their developmental stages.
Actually, this week you can find almost every one of the categories at Union Preservation Hall in Saratoga Springs where Opera Saratoga opened its brief season on Friday evening.
It consists of a comical opera, “La Vie Parisienne” and the Broadway favorite “ She Loves Me.” Both run in repertory and each is guaranteed to be a crowd pleaser. They run in repertory until June 29.
However, for those with bolder tastes there is also “A Mass for Women in a Bathroom”. The work in progress addresses several aspects of contemporary issues. The electronic 45-minute work has only two performances, June 22 and 27.
On the subject of new, there is also a work-in-progress musical presented by Adirondack Theatre Festival in Glens Falls. The troupe which is devoted to new work is producing a staged reading of “Valley of the Vale.” It’s a science fiction mystery with themes that have contemporary significance.
After an environmental disaster eliminates most of mankind, a new hopeful society is built, but a mysterious stranger appears. He knows a secret that can destroy their progress. It plays at the Charles Wood Theatre Friday, June 27 to Sunday, June 29.
Shakespeare & Company in Lenox, MA also starts its summer season this week with a world premiere.
“The Victim” is a work that uses three interconnected monologues offered by women to show how most humans can be blind to the needs of others. In so doing it reveals our capacity for both cruelty and compassion. It opens Thursday, June 19 and continues in repertory until July 20.
Traditional musicals are also to be found in the Berkshires. Barrington Stage Company opens its main stage on Tuesday with a fresh look at the classic Lerner and Lowe musical, “ Camelot.” It plays through July 19.
Proctors in Schenectady is not a summer theater, but with this week’s opening of “Beauty and the Beast” it offers strong competition to the warm weather theaters. The Disney super hit is in town for a two week run, starting Wednesday and continuing through July 3.
It’s easy to be dazzled by some of the big, flashy shows offered by major companies. However, some of the smaller theater troupes deserve attention for doing good work on small budgets.
Mac-Haydn Theatre in Chatham is one of the last surviving summer stock theaters in the country. The performers you see on stage in the evening often spend their afternoons rehearsing the next musical.
For instance, playing now is “Guys and Dolls” a classic comic-musical about endearing gamblers who thrived in Manhattan in the 1940s. It plays until July 6. A few days later on July 10, many return as Bronx gangsters of the 1960’s in “A Bronx Tale” which plays until July 20. Then a few days later the cycle continues.
The Fort Salem Theatre in Salem is also utilizing young talent to energize their productions. The combination should be great for “Kinky Boots,” the Cyndi Lauper musical which plays through July 6. Considering this is only the first week or two of summer there is so much yet to come.
Bob Goepfert is theater reviewer for the Troy Record.
The views expressed by commentators are solely those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the views of this station or its management.
