JERSEY BOYS At Mountain Theatre Company Offers Profit-Sharing: Sold Out Run Is Highest Grossing Show In 84 Years

Mountain Theatre Company at the Highlands Playhouse made history with Jersey Boys, its opening production of the 2022 Mainstage Season. All 22 performances of the show's run sold out, totaling over 3,700 tickets sold.

It is rare for a show to sell out its entire run, but once word got out in Western North Carolina that the level of talent on Mountain Theatre Company's stage was rivaling that of Broadway, ticket sales took off at an enormous rate. Multiple performances saw people waiting outside the theatre doors as shows began with patrons hoping for last minute ticket cancellations.

The incredible success of Jersey Boys is setting the stage for a groundbreaking 2022 Mainstage Season at Mountain Theatre Company. With its first season producing theatre under their new company name, MTC is on track to present its biggest season ever. For over 80 years, Highlands Playhouse has traditionally created live theatre under a summer stock model, offering live performances primarily in the summer months. Last year the organization began to expand that, producing Music in Motion in the fall and a sold-out holiday show in December. Seizing on that momentum from 2021's hit productions and launching into an ambitious 2022 season, MTC will produce professional theatre continuously from July - December this year and looks to expand that season further in 2023.

In a rare move in regional theatre, Mountain Theatre Company offered the cast and creative team of Jersey Boys profit-sharing at the end of the production run. Once the Executive Artistic Director, Scott Daniel, realized that the company would not only recoup what they put into the show but would end up making a profit by selling out the entire run of the production, conversations with MTC's board of directors began to take place about the appropriate way to compensate the cast and creative team for such an accomplishment. Daniel stated, "It is important that our artists know that we value their talents. The company's success is everyone's success." Daniel and the board quickly came to the conclusion that offering their creative team a share of the profits from Jersey Boys was the appropriate action to take. Daniel knows that every show won't be as wildly successful as this one, but he feels strongly that regional theatre should be a place where artists thrive. "Not only do we compensate all of our artists above what a theatre our size would under a union agreement," he said, "but we provide every actor, designer, and technician single occupancy accommodations in 4+ star short term rental properties during their contract. Profit-sharing has been a growing conversation in our industry for the past several years. With the success of Jersey Boys, I knew we had an opportunity to articulate to our cast, crew, creatives, and community that we intend to be the future of regional theatre."

Mountain Theatre Company's production of Jersey Boys starred Emanuel Carrero as Frankie Valli, John Mezzina Hannigan as Bob Gaudio, Sam Johnson as Nick Massi, and Gianni Palmarini as Tommy DeVito. The ensemble included Jacob Atkins, Sophia Brazda, Emily Kate Decker, David Gaztanbide, Kyle Ivey, Erin Leigh Knowles, Brandon Leporati, and Ryan Widd. It featured Direction and Choreography by Scott Daniel, Vocal Direction by Lori Niesen, Scenic Design by Tom Hansen, Costume & Hair Design by Scott Daniel, Lighting Design by Cody Basham, and Sound Design by Steve Kraack.

Mountain Theatre Company's 2022 season continues with upcoming productions of Sentimental Journey, Brooklyn: The Musical, and Home for the Holidays. For more information and to get tickets, visit www.mountaintheatre.com.

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