NEW LONDON — Grab your straw boaters and put on a smile because the New London Barn Playhouse is back again for its 86th Summer Season. Building off the successes of 2017 Summer Season, which broke attendance records and earned the Barn the 2017 New England Theater Conference’s prestigious Moss Hart Award for Excellence in Professional Theater and the 2017 New Hampshire Theatre Award for Best Professional Musical, the summer tradition continues with more professionally produced, top-quality plays and musicals.
The Box Office opened May 26. The Main Stage Season begins with “Camelot,” the Golden Age classic of chivalry and love from Lerner and Loewe, running June 13-24. A timeless tale of the triumph of the American spirit, “Little Women” tells the story of the resilient March family, running June 27-July 8. Playing July 11-15 comes the howlingly hilarious comedy “Sylvia,” which answers the question “What’s my dog really thinking?” Then, come and meet those dancing feet July 18 – Aug. 5 when the Barn takes you to that famous thoroughfare in old New York, “42nd Street.”
The New Hampshire premiere of the Broadway smash “Newsies” leaps its way across center stage Aug. 8-19. To close the historic 86th summer season, the Barn will present “Murder For Two,” a musical love letter to the whodunit murder mystery, running Aug. 22 – Sept. 2.
The 86th season features a dazzling crop of talented new Barnies in the 2018 Acting Intern Company. Producing Artistic Director Keith Coughlin traveled to New York, Boston, and to universities across the United States seeking the best and brightest upcoming talent for this season, all according to a press release. After auditioning more than 1,000 actors, the cohort of 14 acting interns is as dedicated as it is skilled. These actors are world travelers focused on personal missions beyond acting in fields like education and direction. They’re already award winning, many with specialized training from outside their college programs and who are already originating roles in new works.
Get ready to meet Caroline Didelot and Andrew Nelin from Baldwin Wallace University; Gabriel Florentino from Point Park University; Justine M. Goggin from Dartmouth College; Graham Hancock, Jake Pedersen and Daniel Teixeira from Penn State University; Frenchie Mancuso and Sam Pearson from Elon University; Dean Marchant from The Boston Conservatory; Monica Owen and Alexander Robinson from The Hartt School; Sara Sargent from Emerson College; and Carly Valancy from The University of Northern Colorado.
The “Spotlight Series,” a fresh take on a familiar favorite, will give Barn audiences the chance to not only hear from the 2018 Acting Intern Company, but experience one-of-a-kind cabarets with Barn alumni and friends. Each Spotlight Series evening offers two performances, at 5 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on July 2, July 23 and Aug. 13.
The Barn also has a children’s series. The Junior Intern Company is comprised of approximately 30 dedicated young performers, ages 12-18, who produce and perform the Children’s Theater Series which includes five shows, with four presented on the historic Barn stage and one free outdoor production. Summer camps are also available.
For full listings, tickets, and more information about children’s productions and camps, visit www.nlbarn.org or call (603) 526-6710.
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