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PHOTOS from "Drop Dead!" at WHATCo

By John Posada

originally published: 02/27/2023

(WEST HUDSON, NJ) -- The West Hudson Arts & Theater Company (WHATCo) is celebrating their Main Stage 2023 season with the debut of the comedy farse Drop Dead! by Billy Van Zandt and Jane Milmore, and with a much-anticipated move to a new performance space in Harrison, NJ.  Productions of this potboiler murder mystery continue Friday and Saturday, March 3rd and 4th at 7:00pm.  Photographer John Posada was on hand to take photos.

A nonstop physical comedy, Drop Dead! Is sponsored in part by Armitage & Wiggins Funeral Home.  The play takes the idea of “the show must go on” to a deadly new level. A cast of has- been actors plan to revive their careers but when the murders and mysteries exceed those in the script - these thespians must save the show and their careers as well as their lives!

“This is show is a perfect vehicle to help us kick off our season in our fantastic new theater space,” said WHATCo president Brandi-Leigh Miller.  “This dark comedy  filled with larger than life characters has our audiences howling with laughter and excited to be back enjoying live theater here in West Hudson!”

Directed by WHATCo alumni  Matt Masiello, the cast includes Dylan Myers, Nicole Gallin, Arthur Carlson, John Fraissinet, Donna Frassinet, Jessica Jones, John Branwell, Richard Dwyer, Jonathan Rueda, and K. Dixon. Miller notes that the themes and situations presented are best suited for mature audiences.

General admission tickets are $20;  $15 for students and seniors. Tickets can be purchased online at www.whatconj.org. The WHATCo Box Office at 15 Frank E. Rogers Blvd South will also be open for advance ticket sales; check WHATCo Instagram and Facebook pages for Box Office hours. Some tickets may also be available at the door the evenings of the performances. 




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With their new location at 15 Frank E. Rodgers Blvd South in Harrison (the former Holy Cross School.) WHATCo is now conveniently located less than a 10 minute walk from the Harrison PATH station and along the #30 and #40 NJTransit bus routes. 

Free parking is available in the fenced lot at the corner of Frank E. Rodgers Blvd. South and Jersey Street. 

Here are more photos from the production.

“Drop Dead!” is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Samuel French, Inc. www.concordtheatricals.com

This program is made possible by a grant from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a division of the Department of State, and administered by the Hudson County Office of Cultural & Heritage Affairs, Thomas A. DeGise, Hudson County Executive & the Hudson County Board of County Commissioners.

About the author:

John Posada is a New Jersey based photographer specializing in photographing live theatre and music performances. Currently, John has spent the last 6 years concentrating on photographing almost 400 theater productions at over 70 different NJ theatres. Click here for John's website.





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EVENT PREVIEWS

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The Barn Theatre presents The Solstice Showcase

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(MONTVILLE, NJ) -- The Barn Theatre presents The Solstice Showcase, its biennial festival of original one-act plays, from June 19-21, 2026. This three-day event showcases new works of up-and-coming playwrights from the NJ/NY area and beyond and other theatrical talent.

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(CHATHAM, NJ) -- The Chatham Community Players present a reading of Indecent by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Paula Vogel on Sunday, June 21, 2026 at 7:00pm. The play charts the history of an incendiary drama and the path of the artists who risked their careers and lives to perform it.
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(CAPE MAY, NJ) -- Cape May Stage presents a reading of What Would Meryl Do? by Neal Lerner on Monday, June 22, 2026 at 7:00pm. This is a one-man comic whirlwind about a desperate man in a small upstate town who decides to teach a class on how to live like Meryl Streep — because why not? Admission is free, but donations are accepted.

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(MADISON, NJ) -- The Acting Apprenticeship Company at the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey presents Love's Labour's Lost on Friday, June 26, 2026 at 7:30pm in the K.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre. Fall under the spell of Shakespeare's sparkling comedy of romance, wit, and unexpected desire.

Middlesex County's Plays in the Park presents "All Shook Up"

(EDISON, NJ) -- Middlesex County's Plays in the Park kicks off its season with All Shook Up from June 17-27, 2026. Loosely based on Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, it's 1955, and into a square little town rides a guitar-playing young man who changes everything and everyone he meets.

Middlesex County Plays-in-the-Park presents "All Shook Up" by Joe DiPietro

(EDISON, NJ) -- Middlesex County's Plays-in-the-Park presents All Shook Up by Jersey's own Joe DiPietro from June 17-27, 2026. Loosely based on Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, it's 1955 and into a square little town rides a guitar-playing young man who changes everything and everyone he meets.

"Golden Girls - The Tribute Show!" comes to Kelsey Theatre on June 27th

(WEST WINDSOR, NJ) -- Drag Events Unlimited presents Golden Girls - The Tribute Show! on Saturday, June 27, 2026 at the Kelsey Theatre. This is an evening of hilarious fun with your favorite Sassy Seniors! Live Scenes, Trivia, Games, Musical Performances, Sing-Alongs, and more! Showtime is 8:00pm.

Cumberland Players presents "Reefer Madness, the Musical"

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