(FAIR LAWN, NJ) -- Old Library Theatre (OLT), Fair Lawn Recreation Department's resident theatre company, is presenting the unique musical, Cardboard Trees and a Painted Moon, from February 7-9, 2025. John Posada was on hand to take photos. It is a love letter to community theatre in all of its messiness and all of its infinite possibilities. John Posada was on hand to take photos.
Hope, joy, and optimism: the music and lyrics of award-winning songwriter Patrick Dwyer take center stage in the world premiere of the new musical revue. This new “revue-sical” celebrates the diverse personalities who leave their real-world lives at the door and their hearts on the floor as they come together to form the cast of a community theater show. As their lives intertwine and intersect, these twenty individuals forge unexpected connections and discover commonalities as they form a community—both onstage and offstage. Cardboard Trees and a Painted Moon is dedicated to all of those who put the “community” into community theater.
Cardboard Trees and a Painted Moon is written by Patrick Dwyer. The show is directed by Valerie Caniglia, with Music Direction by Christynn Morris. The show is produced by David Toussas and stage managed by Milind Shah with help from Ettie Eggers as the production assistant.
Writer Patrick Dwyer said “Songwriters often work in a bubble. It’s just us at our pianos with a notebook, a fistful of pencils, and a TON of erasers. We hope that what we’re writing is funny or poignant. The songs "work" in our mind, but we have no way of knowing, really, what we’ve got until we get it in front of an audience. If we’re lucky, maybe we can get an excerpt from our shows in a cabaret showcase, or if we’re REALLY fortunate, a reading or workshop. To get all full production, though, is astonishingly rare. I am beyond grateful to Old Library Theatre for taking a chance on an unknown writer like me, and giving my songs this amazing opportunity.”
Performances are on Friday and Saturday evening at 7:30pm, with a Sunday matinee at 2:00pm at the George Frey Center for Performing Arts in the Fair Lawn Community Center, located at 10-10 20th Street in Fair Lawn. Tickets are $25 and available for purchase online. Old Library Theatre is committed to bringing quality entertainment at an affordable cost in Bergen County.
The cast includes John Sapida, Colby Trembley, Brooke Kaye, Heather Antos, Marc Cruz, Katie Felici, Paul Foster, Peter Vaiknoras, Kelly Wenz, Laura Penney Shamir, Natalya Kozlovski, and Michael Del Valle. The phenomenal ensemble is made up of Beth Valenti, Joe Cremoa, Eileen Mager, Annick Vasquez, Stephanie Kaelin, Kay Koch, Nichole Vaiknoras, and Katie Lupfer.
Director Valerie Caniglia said "Community theatre is, in a word, magic. It's not just people putting together a show, it's a space where people can foster friendships, participate in civic engagement and find a home in a place where they can express themselves through words and music. Cardboard Trees and a Painted Moon explores all of that and Patrick has done a beautiful job exploring the lives of the people who participate in this world."
Here are more photos from the production.
John Posada is a New Jersey based photographer specializing in photographing live theatre and music performances. For more than 15 years, John has photographed live events where he mastered the techniques of timing and capturing fast moving action under challenging lighting conditions. Currently, John has spent the last 3 years concentrating on photographing almost 200 theatre productions for over 70 different theatres. Click here for John's website.
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