CT Season Too! Presents Broadway Trivia

Actor Bill Dennison hosts a Theatre Trivia Night at the Cumberland Theatre

The Cumberland Theatre Season Too! will present “Tragedy Tomorrow, Trivia Tonight” and interactive evening of Theatre and Broadway trivia on Friday, May 26th at 7:30 pm at the theatre on 101 North Johnson Street.

Tickets are available for a $10 donation at the door or on the theatre’s website: cumberlandtheatre.com. Each ticket includes a drink coupon valid for wine, beer, or a soft drink. The lobby bar will open at 7:00 pm. The program will feature live performance and trivia questions related to theatre. Teams of up to four people will compete to win a CT prize pack.

The evening will be hosted by veteran CT actor Bill Dennison who has been seen recently on the CT stage as Ben Hecht in Moonlight and Magnolias, Austin in True West, Little Charles in August: Osage County, David in Company, Mr. Green in Clue on Stage and Lloyd Roberts in The Wisdom of Eve.

The show continues the new series of programming at the Cumberland Theatre appropriately called “CT Season Too!”. The series features pop-up supplemental programming that will play for limited engagements of one or two evenings and feature cabarets, one-man shows, readings, murder mysteries and more. The theatre is now taking ideas and submissions for these types of programs. Proposals can be emailed to kim@cumberlandtheatre.com.

Cumberland Theatre is supported in part by the Maryland State Arts Council, Allegany Arts Council, Allegany County and the city of Cumberland.

For tickets and more information, visit cumberlandtheatre.com or call the theatre at 301.759.4990.

Play Reading Series Continues

The Cumberland Theatre will continue their New Play Reading Series this month with the play Women of a Certain Age by Steve Duprey. The series features original plays that have not yet been formally produced. Submissions are accepted from all over the country; however, a special emphasis is placed on playwrights who reside in the state of Maryland.

The plays submitted are read and evaluated by a selection committee. Selected plays receive an informal reading held at the theatre for a live audience. The playwright may attend to hear audience feedback or the session will be recorded for their use as they adapt and refine their work.

This year, three plays were chosen for a reading: Waiting for Fair by F.J. Hartland, Women of a Certain Age by Steve Duprey and Poolside by Chad Marriott. This year’s play selection committee consisted of Steve Cairns, Heather Wallen and Barry Weinberg.

The second reading will be held this Wednesday, May 22nd and will feature Duprey’s original comedy centering on four college friends, now in their sixties, who discover that one of them has been “gifted” with an abandoned baby. They try to figure out what’s next; for the mother, for the baby, and for the four of them. Utilizing the often ignored “older woman” demographic, the play examines the themes of lasting friendships, older female empowerment and the current adoption system. It is a character-driven comedy with some bawdy language and an interesting twist at the end.

"I really enjoyed reading this, “said Steve Cairns, a selection committee member. “I feel that it has a strong story line that is defined and driven by very good dialogue. I enjoyed the uniqueness of the dilemma the characters find themselves in and how it exposes the depth of the friendship shared between the four main characters."

The reading will feature the talents of local actors Ellen McDaniel-Weissler, Luann Lancaster and Lura Thompson as well as visiting actor Joan Crooks.

The theatre began the reading series in 2019 with the play Good Morning, Miss America which went on to have an Off-Broadway production and is currently being developed into a feature film. “It is exciting to be a small part of the process of developing a new work,” said Artistic Director Kimberli Rowley. “Every theatrical journey starts somewhere and we are excited to see where these plays end up and how they evolve, knowing that CT was a stop along the way.”

The reading is free for the public to attend and will begin promptly at 7:00 pm. The lobby bar will be open for refreshment. All readings are held at the theatre at 101 North Johnson Street. For more information on the reading series, selection process and dates, please visit cumberlandtheatre.com.

Announcing our 2024 Season

Join us this Wednesday for our annual VIP Launch Party and be the first to know what's coming up!

Be the among the first to know what's coming in 2024 as we reveal our exciting line-up of shows for next year's 36th Season! We will be announcing the eight shows in our 2024 Main Stage Season ...and a few more exciting developments! 2024 will be another exciting year for the Cumberland Theatre and we want to include our loyal patrons and sponsors as much as possible!

There will also be a special announcement involving our Stars of Tomorrow program - which will also reveal its 2024 line-up as well as games, prizes and more!

Also, once again, we have let you - our audience - select one of the play choices for our Main Stage Season - our big summer musical! ....and we will continue letting you vote until the Launch Party officially starts! Cast your vote for this year's "Audience Choice" by clicking the image below.

There will be food, open bar and entertainment provided by some of our young performers from this year's The SpongeBob Musical as well as from our professional cast of our current show, THE PROM. We will also be awarding prizes and playing some fun games as we reveal our season.

So, please join the CT staff and board of directors for an evening filled with performance, gratitude, good food and exciting announcements about the future of Cumberland Theatre! Tickets are only $25 and include open bar, hor d'oeuvres and entertainment. Get your ticket at cumberlandtheatre.com.

**please note, 2023 Season Pass Holders and Show Sponsors will be admitted to the event for no charge - it's our thanks to you! Please RSVP to kim@cumberlandtheatre.com