The Talcott Mountain Music Festival, Hartford Symphony Orchestra’s summer pops season in Simsbury, has announced its 2025 program, which opens with The Australian Bee Gees on June 27, followed by the annual Celebrate America concert with fireworks on July 4 (rain date July 5.) Livingston Taylor will be a guest artist. The Music of Queen will be celebrated July 11, followed by The Music of Tina Turner on July 18 (rain date July 19.) Ben Folds joins the Hartford Symphony Orchestra on July 25. For details: hartfordsymphony.org.
Orlando, Sarah Ruhl’s adaptation of Virginia Woolf’s novel, will be performed by Eggtooth Productions on May 17, at The Academy of Music Theater in Northampton. Featuring Linda Tardif in the title role, this ensemble cast includes Kyle Boatwright, Lindel Hart, and Rich Vaden with Broadway makeup artist and beloved character Mr. Drag, Joe Dulude II, as Queen Elizabeth. For details: aomtheatre.com.
The Pioneer Valley Symphony Orchestra performs “Carmina Burana” on April 26, at Greenfield High School. Tian Hui Ng conducts. The program also includes John Adams’ “Lollapalooza.” For details: pvsoc.org.
Matthew Morrison. (SUBMITTED)The Portrait Lab
Broadway HeartThrob Alert. Headed to The Bushnell are Jeremy Jordan (Oct. 26), Mania: The Abba Tribute (Oct. 31) and Matthew Morrison (March 6). For details: bushnell.org.
Shakespeare & Company will honor longtime company members Annette Miller and John Douglas Thompson at a gala on June 28. For details: shakespeare.org.
SHOVEL, a new solo show written and performed by Matthew Dicks, will be at TheaterWorks Hartford on May 4-5. Dicks performed at the theatre in 2023, with her solo piece “You’re A Monster Matthew Dicks.” For details: twhartford.org.
Andrew Rannells. (SUBMITTED)The Westfield News
The Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center has added three new shows to its upcoming roster. Soul musician Marc Broussard on July 11, country singer-songwriter Rosanne Cash on July 23, and comedian Paul Reiser on July 25. Plus, Broadway’s Andrew Rannells will headline The Mahaiwe Gala on July 13. Rannell’s starred in “The Book of Mormon” and “Guttenberg: The Musical on Broadway.” For details: mahaiwe.org.
Rock and Roll Circus, featuring James Montgomery, Jon Butcher, Jeff Pitchell, Danny Klein, and Kevin James Graham, plays The Shea in Turners Falls on April 25. For details: https://tinyurl.com/4t3uup24.
Ben Scranton. (LORRIE SCRANTON / SUBMITTED)The Westfield News
Ben Scranton, the Springfield-based playwright who had been an actor with the now defunct StageWest, will see the Maine premiere of his play “The Back Porch Gang,” May 15-18, at the Levi Stewart Community Theatre in Corinna, Maine. For details: lsct.cattailpress.com.
William Finn, the Broadway composer and lyricist, has passed away. He’s best known for “Falsettos” and “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” the latter of which premiered at Barrington Stage Company, which has a theatre space named for him. Finn grew up in Natick and went to Williams College. “Falsettos,” a musical which combined two of his works, premiered at Hartford Stage. For details: https://tinyurl.com/mr4dzumk.
The Scariest Thing to See in the Woods, a new play by Julia Byrne, wraps up the current Silverthorne Theater Company’s “Theatre Thursday” readings, on April 24, at the Shea Theater in Turners Falls. Directed by Ezekiel Baskin, it stars Gabriel CiFuentes, Sophia Defayette, Jake Kuhn, Marcus Neverson, and Weaver. Tickets are free, but space is limited. For details: https://tinyurl.com/49suzbse.
New England Public Media and the Academy of Music Theatre present the “Best of Valley Voices Story Slam” on April 26 at the Academy of Music Theatre in Northampton. This special event will celebrate the 10th season of the beloved competitive storytelling series that has captured the hearts of Western Massachusetts audiences for nearly a decade. For details: aomtheatre.com.
Mark G. Auerbach studied theatre at American University and The Yale School of Drama. He has worked for arts organizations nationwide, and reported on the arts for print and broadcast. Mark produces and hosts Arts Beat, Survivor Stories, and On The Mark for WCPC15 and 89.5fm/WSKB. He’s a regular contributor to Berkshire onstage and a member of the Berkshire Theatre Critics Association.