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September 1, 2025

Chestertown Spy

Nonpartisan and Education-based News for Chestertown

6 Arts Notes

Sign up! Summer jobs at Church Hill Theatre’s Green Room Gang camp

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Do you love musical theater; and enjoy working with talented young people? If you have the right qualifications, Church Hill Theatre’s summer theater program, the Green Room Gang, may be the perfect summer intern job for you.  Running from June 23 through July 27, 2025, the program culminates in a fully staged musical production. Past shows have included junior versions of Shrek, Anastasia Youth Edition, Seussical Kids, and Disney’s Aristocats Kids and other well-known Broadway hits.

The camp is divided by age, with an adult director for each group and interns moving between groups according to their skills and interests. GRG Jr., for students in grades 1-5, meets for half a day, four days a week, and produces its own stand-alone show. GRG Sr., for grades 6-12, meets for six hours a day and produces a more complex and challenging show. The final production brings both groups together for a rousing curtain call.

Interns should have a HS diploma and theater experience. Preference is given to those enrolled in a college theater program. Of particular interest is an intern with expertise in the technical side of theater – lighting, sound, set design and construction, costuming, and props – in addition to performance.

Interns assist the director for each group in any capacity requested. They may be asked to run students through theater exercises, review lines, songs, and choreography, help with set construction or work on costumes. The shows almost always play to full and enthusiastic audiences.

Interested applicants can learn more about CHT and its previous seasons by visiting our website at http://www.churchhilltheatre.org. Applications are available on the website or by phoning the CHT office at 410-556-6003 or by email at: [email protected].

The deadline for applications is February 28, 2025, or until all positions are filled.

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Church Hill Theatre to present friends and family cabaret

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Church Hill Theatre is proud to present a Friends and Family Cabaret to chase away the mid-winter blahs. An all-star array of performers from throughout the Eastern Shore will reprise favorite songs and music from Broadway musicals. CHT’s own version of the Copacabana will provide an immersive experience that brings the music straight into our hearts. On January 25 the program begins at 6:30 with a cocktail hour including catered Hors d’oeuvres, followed by the cabaret show at 7:30.  On January 25, the program will start at 7:30 and will not offer catering, however, the bar and concession stand will be open.

The show will highlight Friends of CHT and will include Family as several married couples, mother and son and siblings will perform duets together. The evening will be moderated by the talented Jen Freidman as Master of Ceremonies.

Several graduates of the popular Green Room Gang program for youth will be performing, including many who were also students of Director Shelagh Grasso at QACHS. We will also enjoy a performance by Becca Van Aken, the Director of GRG, who will be joined in a duet by her husband Matt Folker.

Local performers you may recognize from the stage include: Erin Bradley, Bradley Chaires, Nic Carter, Shannon Carter, Jane Copple, Connor Christopher, Debra Ebersole, Marcia Gilliam, Max Hagan, Natalie Hagan, Kathy and Cory Jones, Jamie Johnson, Heather Joyce Byers, Maya McGrory, Colleen Minahan, Greg Minahan, Heather Robuck, JW Ruth,  Ian Stotts, Eddie Vance, Brian Whitaker and Herb Zeigler; all brilliantly accompanied by Michael Casey.

Tickets and more information are available at www.churchhilltheatre.org or by calling the office during business hours at 410-556-6003.

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“WE HAD A DREAM” to commemorate the March On Washington At Church Hill Theatre on February 1, 2025

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To celebrate 2025 Black History Month, recognition of African Americans and Labor, the Church Hill Theater has scheduled an original, one-hour, free event for the whole community. Join us for inspiring music and memorable words on Saturday, February 1, with performances at 3 pm and 5 pm. This is not a ticketed event, but reservations are strongly suggested to guarantee seats.

The original March on Washington, on August 28, 1963, was organized to build an alliance of civil rights, labor and religious organizations under the banner of “jobs and freedom.” It was one of the largest political rallies for human rights in U.S. history, with close to 300,000 (mostly Black) people participating. The last speaker, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., stood in front of the Lincoln Memorial and delivered his historic “I Have a Dream” speech. The march was a key element in the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

This dramatic performance was envisioned and compiled by Herbert Ziegler, who uses the music of the day and the words of Dr. King and other civil rights leaders to chart the progress of the dream. While some objectives have been realized, other goals have not.

Kathy Jones, the show’s music director, along with Diane Shelton and Jahdaya Martin, will cover songs from the March by Peter, Paul and Mary, Bob Dylan and Joan Baez. (If you know the words, join in.) Local actors will give voice to the historic words. Ian Stotts, Noah Thompson, Christopher Wallace, and Michael Whitehill are eager to participate. Others may join the cast before February 1.

This is a wonderful family event, especially for students who know only the brief version in their history books. Church Hill Theatre is located at 103 Walnut Street in Church Hill, Maryland. Reservations can be made online at churchhilltheatre.org or by calling the box office at (410) 556-6003.

 

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Rhythm Xpress to Perform at Church Hill Theatre

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RhythmXpress will be bringing dance magic to the Churchill Theatre as they show that “All the World’s a Stage” on Wednesday, December 18th at 7 pm. This one night only program will include solo, partner and group choreography set to a variety of favorite songs from famous stage productions, including Wicked, Aladdin, The Sound of Music, Hairspray, and more! This year’s production will also feature guest performers from Dancing on the Shore, as well as featured trumpet soloist Dr. Ryan Asprion of the Gunston School.

RhythmXpress, LLC provides competitive and leadership opportunities for dancers with various intellectual disabilities. Coached by Jacki Moreland, founder of Beyond the Ballroom, RhythmXpress was featured recently at the 2024 Global Down Syndrome Gala in Washington DC. The company has provided support and entertainment for numerous charitable organizations, including GiGi’s Playhouse and the Special Olympics Maryland Polar Bear Plunge. Dancers will include International Special Olympic DanceSport champion and 2024 Chesapeake Classic Top Pro-Am Male, Robert Wallop, as well as Certified Special Olympic Athlete Leaders Abby Gibbons and Alicia Gogue. Other dancers are Michelle Andrade, Olivia August, Jamie Hobbs, Michael Maskell, and Thomas Rickloff.

Church Hill Theatre is delighted to host this special event in its historic Art Deco theater at 103 Walnut Street in Church Hill, Maryland. RhythmXpress will entertain audiences of all ages. Tickets are $20 cash per person and can be purchased at the door to support both the Church Hill Theatre and the RhythmXpress Dance Team.  Join us earlier at 6:15 to take a photo with Santa. There will be raffle tickets available (cash only) for some great prize baskets, as well as some Church Hill theatre concessions for sale. The dancers are excited to showcase their talents and look forward to sharing this fun evening with you!

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Church Hill Theatre and Chesapeake College present “The Belle of Amherst” in January

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Christine Kinlock,

In a unique joint production, William Luce’s one-woman play The Belle of Amherst will come to the stage at Church Hill Theatre on January 10, 11, and 12, then move to the Cadby Theatre at Chesapeake College for performances on January 18 and 19.

The play is based on the life of the reclusive poet Emily Dickinson, one of the most important figures in American literature. Her work is known for its bold originality and haunting personal voice, with themes exploring death, immortality, nature, and love.

Director Gil Rambach has worked closely with actor Christine Kinlock, who brings Dickinson to life with wit, occasional mischief, and an irrepressible gaiety of spirit. Kinlock, a local English and Theatre teacher, is a graduate of Wellesley College, a “Seven Sisters” colleague of Mount Holyoke College, where Dickinson studied. She has had a lifelong interest in both Dickinson and this play about her life and art.

The Belle of Amherst is set in Emily Dickinson’s Amherst, Massachusetts home from 1830 – 1866, using her poems, diaries and letters to illuminate her interactions with the significant people in her life—family, close friends, and acquaintances. It balances the agony of her seclusion with the brief bright moments when she experienced joy.

Tickets and further information about the CHT production can be found at churchhilltheatre.org or by calling the office at 410-556-6003. Tickets for the Chesapeake College venue may be purchased at Chesapeake.edu/TPAC.  Enjoy the show!

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“Ride the Cyclone at Opens Church Hill Theatre November 6

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Choreographer Greg Minahan (center) runs actors through some moves (left to right: Saige Wilson, JW Ruth, Natalie Stinchcomb, Ian Stotts)

The waiting is over. The world-wide musical sensation Ride the Cyclone opens at Church Hill Theatre on November 8, for only nine performances. Tickets started selling in August, so be sure to make your own reservations immediately. Ride the Cyclone, with music, lyrics and book by Jacob Richmond and Brooke Maxwell has been called “…the most uproarious and outrageous piece of musical theatre Canada has ever produced.”  Since its premiere in 2008, this musical about doomed students from Uranium City, Saskatchewan, has become that rarity: a viral teen favorite that appeals to all generations. That is thanks to a timeless plot of loss and redemption—and to the memorable music.

Ride the Cyclone is introduced by Karnak (Howard Mesick), a mechanical fortune teller with the macabre ability to foretell when people will die.  Unable to warn students in the St. Cassian Chamber Choir about an impending accident on a fair midway, Karnak arranges a game of life and death, pitting the teens against each other. Karnak also predicts that “the one who wants to win it the most shall redeem the loser in order to complete the whole.” Confusing, right?

The first contestant is Ocean O’Connell Rosenberg (Saige Wilson), a supremely self-confident school leader. She convincingly argues that as the most likely to succeed, she is the most worthy of continued life. Karnak seems less impressed with her song, “What the World Needs.”

Next up is Noel Gruber (Connor Christopher), who, while dishing out orders at Taco Bell, dreams of being a flamboyant French prostitute.  Believing himself the only gay boy in Uranium City, Noel emulates Edith Piaf or Marlene Dietrich in the tear-jerker “Noel’s Lament.”

The third competitor is Mischa Bachinski (JW Ruth), adopted by a Canadian family after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. Instead of the toddler they expected, Mischa arrived a troubled teen and they never bonded. To cope, he projects a gangsta rap image to cover up an acute longing for his old home. His hip-hop performance transitions into the love ballad “Talia.” Although not a contestant, Mischa’s lost love Talia (Chloe Bennett) makes a poignant appearance.

Mischa is followed by Ricky Potts (Ian Stotts), who despite becoming mute and unable to walk after a mysterious illness, is a member of the choir. In compensation for his disability, he has a fully formed fantasy life that features “sexy cat women” from a far-off galaxy.  In “Space Age Bachelor Man,” we meet an entirely different Ricky.

The fifth contestant (Maya McGrory) is nameless because of the severity of her injuries.  Known only as Jane Doe, her spirit has no memory of a past life.  Her hauntingly beautiful “The Ballad of Jane Doe,” is the most memorable song in the whole show.

The final competitor is Constance Blackwood (Natalie Stinchcomb), Ocean’s side-kick and maybe the nicest girl in town. But Constance’s cheerful exterior hides self-loathing and self-harm. Only the roller coaster accident convinced her that living is “goddamn wonderful,” as she expresses in her song, “Jawbreaker/Sugar Cloud.”

Naturally, Karnak then changes the rules of the game, and it gets more exciting before we learn who wins.

Director Kat Melton has put the orchestra in the balcony and incorporated amazing video projections to transform CHT’s Art Deco jewel box theatre into the carnival ambience of a second-rate traveling amusement park.  Ride the Cyclone will open on Friday, November 8, and run through Sunday, November 24, with performances at 7:30 pm on Fridays and Saturdays and at 2 pm on Sundays. More information and tickets on the website: churchhilltheatre.org

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Church Hill Theatre to hold auditions for “A Brief History of Man”

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Director, Earl Lewin will be seeking actors for A Brief History of Man which will be on stage at CHT for five performances, February 6 through 9. Those performances will be

Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7:30 with Matinees at 2 pm on Saturday and Sunday.

Auditions will be held as follows:

  • Thursday, October 24 in the theatre at 7 pm to 9 pm
  • Saturday, October 26 in the theatre at 10 am to noon
  • Saturday, October 26 in the theatre office at 2 pm to 4 pm.

The audition will consist of cold readings from the script. Anyone who wishes to review the digital script prior to the audition, may make a request to [email protected].

Actors needed:

  • Eve, Female God and Female AI robot: (Preferably one actor to do all three. Up to three persons may be cast should that appear to be a better talent option.)
  • Man: (eighteen to forty years of age.)
  • Saint Michael: (any age could work.)

Anyone who wishes to audition but finds these dates impossible can contact [email protected] to try to make alternate arrangements

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Cast chosen for Ride The Cyclone at Church Hill Theatre

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L to R: Connor Christopher, Ian Stotts, Saige Wilson, JW Ruth, Natalie Stinchcomb. Seated center: Reanna Sherman Not pictured: Howard Mesick, Chloe Bennett

Months before it was on CHT’s official list of coming attractions, potential cast members started adjusting their schedules and preparing to audition for Ride the Cyclone. This amazing musical has achieved cult-like status on social media and has played to sold-out houses around the world. Local audiences will soon have the opportunity to see what all the buzz is about.

Director Kat Melton has assembled a stellar cast to portray the doomed members of the St. Cassian Chamber Choir, off on a school trip from their high school in Uranium City, Saskatchewan. After a horrific accident on a fair midway, The Amazing Karnak, a fortune-telling automaton, offers the teens a chance to sing for a second chance at life. They outdo each other in truly glorious music that is sometimes sad, sometimes comic, and always memorable.

In the Church Hill Theatre revival, a live orchestra (positioned in the balcony) will be led by music director Michael Casey, a featured member of the Chester River Chorale. Choreography will be provided by the triple threat Greg Minahan, Artistic Director of Shore Shakespeare.

The essential, but non-singing, role of Karnak will be played by Howard Mesick, one of CHT’s most versatile actors. The teen-aged choir members are portrayed by experienced actors with the outstanding singing chops the score demands.

The first contestant, the overachiever Ocean O’Connell Rosenberg, will be played by Saige Wilson of Galena who is making her CHT debut. Natalie Stinchcomb of Barclay, a Green Room Gang alum, plays her side-kick Constance Blackwood, a girl with serious self-esteem and anger issues.

Connor Christopher, of Ridgely, portrays Noel Gruber, who fancies himself a French reincarnation of Marlene Dietrich.  Connor has been active in CHT productions since early childhood. Mischa Bachinski, played by the multi-talented J.W. Ruth of Centerville, is a Ukrainian, adopted by a Canadian family, but who never fully fit in. Mischa projects a gangster persona through rap music. JW is an accomplished actor and director often seen on the stages of CHT and the Garfield.  Although not a contestant, Mischa’s lost love Talia makes a poignant appearance; Chloe Bennett, a Gunston School student from Centreville, takes on this smaller crucial part. She is making her CHT debut, though she appeared on the CHT stage last year in the Gunston School production of Night Chills.

Ian Stotts, of Sudlersville, another Green Room Gang alum and CHT main stage performer, takes on the role of Ricky Potts. While Ricky is mute and has a degenerative condition, his imagination soars to “infinity and beyond.” The last teen, an enigma known as Jane Doe, is played by Reanna Sherman, of Grasonville, who made her debut at CHT as Eliza Dolittle in My Fair Lady in June. Reanna graduated from Washington College and is the Choral Director at Kent Island High School.

While this is Kat Melton’s directorial debut at Church Hill Theatre, she all but grew up on the CHT stage helping her dad, CHT’s master lighting designer Doug Kaufmann.  She is a graduate of St. Andrews College in Laurinburg, NC with a degree in Communications and Theatre Arts and a minor in Film History.

Ride the Cyclone will open on Friday, November 8 and run through Sunday, November 24, with performances at 7:30 pm on Fridays and Saturdays and at 2 pm on Sundays. More information and tickets on the website: churchhilltheatre.org

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Smooth Jazz from the Bratcher Project at Church Hill Theatre October 19

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For one performance only, on Saturday, October 19, Church Hill Theatre will host an outstanding group of regional musicians for a night of smooth jazz with an R&B twist. The Bratcher Project is an ongoing musical journey founded by acclaimed bass guitarist and song writer Vaughn Bratcher. Other Project members are Karen Linette on vocals, Rodney Kelly Jr. on keyboard, “J. R.” on drums, and Tracey Cutler on sax.

Bratcher calls his group a project because they are a dynamic musical workshop in constant development, exploring new ways to achieve the “almighty Groove.” The musicians intertwine traditional and contemporary jazz in a format that is always fresh and engaging. The other members in the current “project” are all fine musicians at earlier stages in their own careers.

Vaughn Bratcher played with top R&B artists like Al Green, Betty Wright, Doris Duke and Z.Z. Hill early in his career. He moved on to work with gospel legends and “young lions” of the jazz scene like Cyrus Chestnut and George Culligan.  He has performed at the Rehoboth Jazz Festival, Artscapes in Baltimore, and many other important venues.  His CD, “The Pleasure’s Yours,” got substantial air play and his composition “Island Flow” received an award from the John Lennon Songwriting Competition.

Bratcher promises to lay down a funky groove and seduce listeners with a soft and sweet melody. Church Hill Theatre, known mostly for live dramas and musicals, is branching out to include other genres of artistic expression. The theatre’s new seating, decor, and lighting will make this a “date night” to remember.  Join the Bratcher Project on Saturday, October 19, at 7:30 pm.   CHT is located at 103 Walnut Street in Church Hill, MD. Tickets are available through the website: churchhilltheatre.org.  Or call (410) 556-6003 for additional information.

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Church Hill Theatre Welcomes Back Dan Brown’s Clean Comedy

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Dan Brown, a Cleveland native who appeared at Church Hill Theatre in September 2023 is returning, on October 3 and 4. Dan is a favorite at comedy clubs, theatres and corporate events all over the US. His Dry Bar Comedy Special, “Not Shopping Here Today,” was released in October 2021. He headlined the Finger Lakes Comedy Festival in Ithaca. He appeared in Walt Disney Resorts in 2023.

Dan’s combines real life observations and experiences that is honest and insightful and relatable to all audiences. Dan talks about life from the perspective of a father, family man, relations and laughing through life as a wannabe superhero. If you want a sample, danbrowncomedy.com has a few video clips.

Joining Dan this year is friend and colleague Jesse Pimpanella. His debut comedy special, HOT MESS was #1 on Amazon and is currently streaming on Roku TV. He recently shot his second special, which will be released in late 2024. When Jesse is not on the road, he is working with Good Medicine Productions, which brings live and empowering entertainment to children’s hospitals. No matter when or where, Jesse Pimpinella will have an audience rolling in laughter and wanting more!

The Church Hill Theatre will present Dan Brown on Stage on Friday and Saturday October 4 and 5 at 7 pm. Tickets are $20 if purchased online at www.churchhilltheatre.org or $25 at the box-office on performance nights.

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