Pioneer Productions brings Tony Award winner Jason Robert Brown’s (“The Last Five Years”, “Bridges of Madison County”) powerful musical, Songs for a New World, to the stage at Fellowship Hall in the Morristown Methodist Church in downtown Morristown, NJ. The show will have six performances in June, June 9, 10, 16, and 17 at 8:00 PM and June 11 and 18 at 3:00 PM. Pioneer co-founder, Daniel Peter Vissers of Sparta, directs this musical that examines life, love and the choices we make.
This contemporary musical is a moving collection of songs that examines life and weaves its characters and history together, illuminating the timelessness of self-discovery. This song-cycle concept takes the audience through time, making stops in 1492, 1775, the 20th century, and the present day. As Brown’s lyrics explain, “It’s about one moment. The moment before it all becomes clear.”
“What speaks to me most about this show are the powerful stories of human experience, and all the struggles, pain and triumphs that come with life,” says Vissers. “It’s about finding that glimmer of light in our darkest moments that gets us through to tomorrow.”
The actors play a variety of roles, from a young basketball star, a Revolutionary War heroine, the captain of a Spanish sailing ship on a harrowing voyage across the Atlantic, a young woman confronting her dreams, and a woman who reflects on missed love and opportunity. Each one tells a unique story of change, overcoming obstacles, or facing a difficult choice. The talented cast includes Amber Brown (Montclair), Tracey Lynn Haskell (Lebanon), Sherry Mayce (Little Falls), Connor McDowell (Jersey City), Jazmynn Perez (Metuchen), Shanna Levine Phelps (Livingston), Daniel Peter Vissers (Sparta), Michael Willis (Parsippany) and Andrea Wright (North Plainfield). The show is choreographed by Pioneer co-founder Jon Mantes (Whippany), with musical direction by Hannah Comia.
“Though the themes are deeply profound and moving, there are lighter moments as well,” says Shanna Levine-Phelps of Livingston, Pioneer co-founder and cast member, “I am confident that the audience will be moved to laughter as well as tears. This show is quite an emotional ride!”
Pioneer Productions was incorporated in 2003 as a 501c-3 nonprofit theater company by founding members Dan Vissers, Shanna Levine-Phelps and Jon Mantes. The Company’s mission is to share our collective human story through live theatrical performance by producing shows that are relevant to our time and inspire audiences to attend live theater. Funding for this show has been made possible in part by funds from Morris Arts through the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a partner agency of the National Endowment for the Arts.
New Jersey's jazz legacy takes center stage in A Tribute to Count Basie: The Kid from Red Bank. Performed by James Langton's New York All-Star Big Band, this high-energy concert celebrates the unmistakable sound and driving swing of Count Basie - music that still thrills and moves audiences today.
Rick Steves host
New Jersey Symphony
Blue-eyed soul pioneers The Righteous Brothers are back! With a string of #1 clas-sics, including the most played song in radio history, You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Fee/in’, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame duo of Bill Medley and Bobby Hatfield topped the charts in four decades. After Bobby’s death in 2003, Bill Medley con-tinued to perform to sold-out crowds around the world, but fans and friends pleaded with him to keep The Righteous Brothers alive.
Between 1925 and 1928, Louis Armstrong made a series of influential recordings with a studio group, the Hot Five, that changed the shape of jazz to come. To pay tribute to these legendary sessions, Jazz on a Sunday Afternoon will welcome the dynamic trumpeter and recent Juilliard graduate Andrew Stephens, along with a small group made up of some of New York’s finest traditional jazz musicians.
Rick Steves host
Nicholas Hersh conductor
New Jersey Symphony
"Ale Pak" is a popular, clean, and family-friendly Marathi stand-up comedy special by well-known comedian Mandar Bhide. The show features relatable everyday observations, nostalgia, and lighthearted humor rooted in Maharashtrian culture.
Dunbar Repertory Company presents Ntozake Shange’s FOR COLORED GIRLS Who have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow is Enuf, the groundbreaking “choreopoem” – a spellbinding collection of vivid prose and free verse narratives about and performed by Black women. Directed by Darrell Lawrence Willis, SR.
Amidst the chaos of the Iraq War, the Khachaturian family is trapped in a firefight between U.S. Marines and insurgents, and one Marine’s split-second decision devastates the family. Years later, haunted by his time in Iraq and aided by a New Yorker journalist, the Marine seeks to reconcile with the Khachaturian matriarch. Anchored by unforgettable performances from Boyd Holbrook (A Complete Unknown, Narcos, The Morning Show), Hiam Abbass (Succession), and Kenneth Branagh, Atonement is a powerfully human true story about the immeasurable costs of war, exploring universal questions about guilt, redemption, and the nature of forgiveness.
A group of dads building a movement to support their trans and gender expansive kids are forced to make an impossible choice amid a shifting political landscape: stay and fight or flee the country.
A haunting yet life-affirming film about reframing pain and the radical power of choice. It follows grieving mother Iris Haim as she mourns the loss of her son in the aftermath of October 7th and forms an unexpected bond with Dr. Edith Eger—a renowned psychologist, author, and Auschwitz survivor—whose hard-won wisdom guides her toward transformation.
(NEWTON, NJ) -- The Newton Theatre presents Puss N Boots featuring Norah Jones, Sasha Dobson, and Catherine Popper on Sunday, November 8, 2026 at 7:00pm.
(TEANECK, NJ) -- The Teaneck International Film Festival (TIFF) has named filmmaker Luchina Fisher the first recipient of the Sandi Klein Creative Woman in Film Award, a new annual honor celebrating an exceptional woman whose work reflects the creativity, curiosity, integrity and commitment to social impact that defined Klein's life and her nearly two decades with the festival. The award includes a $1,000 grant. Fisher will receive the inaugural award at the TIFF screening of her film, The Dads, on Sunday, November 8, 2026 at 2:30 pm at Teaneck Cinemas (503 Cedar Lane).
(EDISON, NJ) -- With a new dance studio year now underway for many dancers and families, registration is officially open for the LIT Tap Dance Experience, coming to Edison VFW Post 3117 on Sunday, November 8, 2026. Presented by Taplife Hero Foundation, LIT is a focused one-day tap dance experience built around technique, musicality, artistry, mentorship and community.
(FREEHOLD, NJ) -- Center Players presents It's A Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play with four performances across two Sundays (November 8 and November 15, 2026). Performances are split between the American Hotel and Mattison Crossing.
(ATLANTIC HIGHLANDS, NJ) -- After its world premiere at Dances With Films LA (DWFLA), one of the nation's leading indie film festivals, Directors' Commentary will have its New Jersey Premiere at SModcastle Film Festival, hosted by filmmaker Kevin Smith. The film will screen on Sunday, November 8, 2026 at 12:00pm.
