Madison Recreation, Playwrights Theatre to Present MAGIC TO DO and HOW TO EAT LIKE A CHILD This Summer

The Madison Recreation Department and Playwrights Theatre will present two summer musicals in July. MAGIC TO DO -- A Musical Revue of Stephen Schwartz and HOW TO EAT LIKE A CHILD And Other Lessons In Not Being A Grownup. Performances will take place at Fairleigh Dickinson University, The Barn Theatre, 285 Madison Avenue, Madison, NJ.

MAGIC TO DO -- A Musical Revue of Stephen Schwartz will be presented on Thursday, July 23 at 7:30pm, Friday, July 24 at 2:00pm and 7:30pm and Saturday, July 25 at 2:00pm. The production (appropriate for teenagers and adults) will be directed by Danielle Constance and musical direction by Karen Romero. The cast includes: Anastasia Arvanites, Melissa Barry, Bernandette Bizer, Larry Bissett, Erin Colligan, Kasey Colligan, Loren Donnelly, Lauren Ebert, Pauline Figarelli, Brian Lang, Kathryn McManus, Erin Quinn, Alex Post, Samantha Resnick and Jayati Samar.

The production of HOW TO EAT LIKE A CHILD And Other Lessons in Not Being a Grownup (appropriate for all ages) will directed by Jane Keitel with Loren Donnelly as Assistant Director. The cast includes: Carolyn Bishop, Devon Donnelly, Camille Miller, Elizabeth Palmer, Avery Pennington, Reeselyn Rahman, Alexa Ruina, Emily Ruina, Josie Salko and Melanie Veras. Performances will take place on Thursday, July 30 at 7:30 pm, Friday, July 31 at 2 pm and 7:30 pm, Saturday, August 1 at 2pm.

About The Production (MAGIC TO DO - A Musical Revue of Stephen Schwartz): Stephen Schwartz has had a long and storied career, writing music and lyrics for some of the most successful Broadway and Off-Broadway musicals, as well as movies and TV. Magic To Do takes the audience on a journey through all of his work, famous and not-so-famous, including some pieces that will surprise audiences who might not have known Schwartz to be the author.

About The Production (HOW TO EAT LIKE A CHILD): The first musical version of HOW TO EAT LIKE A CHILD was produced for television in 1981 as an NBC Project Peacock special, starring Dick Van Dyke. Using songs from the television show, it was adopted for the stage as a musical revue to be performed exclusively by children. The show is a collection of songs and sketches and is meant to be a guide to the art of being a child told from a child's point of view.

"These two plays are part of our continued commitment to provide youngsters in Madison and environs with fun and meaningful learning experiences in performance and writing for the stage," said John Pietrowski, Playwrights Theatre's Artistic Director. "This is an especially talented and motived group of students, and we hope audiences will come out and see an excellent and entertaining evening of Youth Driven Theatre."

Single tickets are on sale now $10 for adults and $5 for students/child. For tickets, call the box office at 973-514-1787 X31 or online at www.ptnj.org. There will no charge for Senior Citizens who should call the Senior Center at 973-593-3095 to secure their tickets.

Founded in 1986, Playwrights Theatre is a 501(c) 3 not-for-profit professional theatre and arts education institution dedicated to developing and nurturing the dramatic imagination of artists, students, and audiences. Our New Play Program, which includes the The New Jersey Emerging Women Playwrights Program and the Literary Artist Fellowship Program creates development opportunities for professional writers through readings, workshops and productions, and invites audiences to participate in authentic feedback experiences. Our New Jersey Writers Project, Poetry Out Loud, New Jersey Young Playwrights Contest and Festival, and Creative Arts Academy programs provide a comprehensive and hands-on arts education experience to over 31,000 students, Pre-K through adult.

Writers in the New Play Program are drawn from across the country, including our affiliation with the National New Play Network, a nation-wide group of theatres dedicated to the development and production of new work. Teaching Artists in our Education Programs are professional artists working in their field in the New Jersey, New York, and Philadelphia metropolitan areas. From 2003-2016, we have been designated a Major Arts Institution by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts (along with only five other theatres: The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, George Street Playhouse, McCarter Theatre Center, Two River Theatre and Paper Mill Playhouse) as "an anchor institution that contributes vitally to the quality of life in New Jersey."

Playwrights Theatre is a member of the New Jersey Theatre Alliance, the National New Play Network, and Madison Arts & Culture Alliance.

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