Well after school hours, the Ridgewood Avenue School Auditorium in Glen Ridge is filled with the sound of music as participants in Gas Lamp Players’ Mainstage production of “The Music Man” rehearse their way to the February 10 opening night performance. “The Music Man” is one of America’s most beloved and traditional musicals. Gas Lamp Players’ production has a twist: a unique collaboration with Suzanne O’Connor of StudioKids Art, which is working with Gas Lamp Players to recreate River City, Iowa, on the Glen Ridge stage.
StudioKids Art is an innovative studio on Glen Ridge Avenue in Montclair, offering art classes for Adults, Teens and Kids (of course!) along with Workshops, Music Concerts, and more. O’Connor saw “The Music Man” as a great opportunity to offer a set design workshop to some of her talented teen students.
Suzanne O'Connor with one of her set renderings
“I have been wanting to offer a set design class for a while,” says O’Connor, a former architect and now full-time artist and business owner, “but I didn’t want to teach in the abstract. When Gas Lamp Players asked me to collaborate on the set design for “Music Man,” it was the perfect opportunity to meld theory and practice, so my students could see their work actually used on stage in a show.”
Gas Lamp Players’ mainstage production features nearly 100 performers from Glen Ridge, Montclair, Bloomfield, Nutley, the Caldwells and neighboring towns. The production team includes Jessica Sporn (Director), Amy Baldassare (Choreographer), Lyn Hanson (Executive Producer) and Verona’s Marsha Schreier (Musical Director).
The curtain will open for the Friday and Saturday performances at 7 pm, while the Saturday and Sunday performances are 2 pm matinees.
Sisters Ellie & Katie Kallay (Bloomfield), Madelyn and Maiya Blaney (Montclair), and Lillian and Rebecca Herrick (Montclair)
The Music Man
Who: All ages.
What: Gas Lamp Players presents The Music Man! Con man Harold Hill comes to a Midwestern town with a scam using a boy’s marching band program, but things don’t go according to plan. One of America’s most beloved musicals with famous songs like “76 Trombones!”
Where: Ridgewood Avenue School in Glen Ridge, NJ
When: February 10 – 12: Friday and Saturday performances at 7 pm / Saturday and Sunday performances are 2 pm matinees.
Cost: $20 for adults, $10 for students and senior citizens and $10 for groups of 10 or more. Purchase online here.
