Published by New Jersey Stage
originally published: 07/12/2025
(SUMMIT, NJ) -– Six playwrights. Fourteen actors. Three singers. A band.
Welcome to the 2025 presentation of Kaleidoscope Kabaret, The Theater Project’s annual festival of short plays and songs, which will entertain audiences August 1–3 at Oakes Center Theater.
This year’s Kabaret will feature short works by four veteran playwrights and two award winners from The Theater Project’s Young Playwrights Competition. In addition, the program will include musical numbers from solo vocalists and a seven-piece band.
“We affectionately describe Kaleidoscope Kabaret as a vaudeville of new work,” said Mark Spina, The Theater Project’s artistic director, “but fundamentally, it’s a showcase for the extraordinary theatrical talent that flourishes in our community.”
After each evening’s performance, the audience will have the opportunity to meet and speak with the playwrights.
Kaleidoscope Kabaret will run on Friday, August 1st at 7:30pm, and Saturday, August 2 at 7:30pm, and Sunday, August 3 at 2:00pm. Tickets cost $35 for general admission, $28 for seniors ($23 for the Sunday show), and $20 for students. Tickets are available for purchase online. Oakes Center Theater is located at120 Morris Avenue in Summit, New Jersey.
The Plays and the Playwrights of Kaleidoscope Kabaret 2025:
* College by Lucas Luchsinger. Decisions, decisions on college selection – consult an expert or toss a coin? The play was a winner in the 2025 Young Playwrights Competition.
* Sister Resisters by Lynn Marie Macy. Two women meet and form a bond in a ladies’ lounge while escaping an American protest march.
* Pay Day by Rosemary Parillo. Two friends engage in a blowout bust-up following a financial collapse that threatens their economic survival.
* The Darkness Between Dreams by Jonathan Samarro. A retiring gravedigger trains his replacement. Maybe.
* A Eulogy by Joseph Vitale. A minister, who has delivered one too many eulogies, lets it all hang out and lets us know how he really feels.
* Dear Margaret by Karma Beech Wilson. Siblings Jenna and Noah unearth and must deal with a disturbing family secret. The play was a winner in the 2025 Young Playwrights Competition.
The Singers
* Gail Lou is the accompanist/vocal coach at Rutgers Summer Acting Conservatory, Rutgers University. She holds a bachelor’s in vocal music from Montclair State College.
* David Tillistrand’s credits encompass off-Broadway, the Texas Shakespeare Festival, and off-off Broadway.
* Sandra Toll has directed more than thirty productions at Thomas Jefferson Arts Academy in Elizabeth and recently received the Governor’s Award in Theatre Education as Outstanding Theater Teacher.
The Band
* Maybe Tomorrow, Renee Gomez and Juliet Luchsinger (vocals), Shamar Thomas and Alexis Mencias (guitar), Kamar Thomas (bass), Lucas Luchsinger (drums), and Juliet Luchsinger (violin).
Kaleidoscope Kabaret is made possible in part by the generosity of many sponsors and donors, especially Joseph Kubala and Stephanie Fein and a grant from Union County Local Arts Program.
Founded in 1994 and based in Union, The Theater Project introduces New Jersey audiences to new plays and supports rising playwrights and theater artists. It develops new audiences for theater by service to the community, providing programs for children, and using theater as a forum to address current issues.
EVENT PREVIEWS
Cape May Stage presents a Staged Reading of "Appendage" by Derek Murphy
(CAPE MAY, NJ) -- Cape May Stage presents a staged reading of Appendage by Derek Murphy on Monday, August 10, 2026 at 7:00pm. A darkly comic and psychologically sharp two-hander, Appendage by Derek Murphy explores grief, masculinity, and the messy ways we cope with loss. Admission is free.
South Camden Theatre Company's New Play Reading Series presents a reading of "The Ocean Deep" by Katherine Vondy
(CAMDEN, NJ) -- South Camden Theatre Company's New Play Reading Series presents a reading of The Ocean Deep by Katherine Vondy on Monday, August 10, 2026. Admission is free with live music at 6:00pm and the reading & discussion at 7:00pm.
Gateway Playhouse to Hold Open Auditions for "9 to 5: The Musical"
(SOMERS POINT, NJ) -- Gateway Playhouse of Somers Point is holding open auditions for their third MainStage production of the year, the incredibly fun 9 to 5: The Musical. Auditions will take place from 6:00pm-8:00pm Monday and Tuesday, August 10 and 11, 2026. All roles are open and any performance experience is welcomed (must be 16 or older).
Middlesex County Plays-in-the-Park to Host Auditions for "Curious George: The Golden Meatball" on August 12th
(EDISON, NJ) -- Middlesex County's Plays-in-the-Park is holding auditions for its fall 2026 children's production of Curious George: The Golden Meatball on Wednesday, August 12, at 6:00pm at the Stephen J. Capestro Theatre located inside Roosevelt Park in Edison. Everyone's favorite mischievous monkey and his friend in the yellow hat sing and dance up a storm in this adventure-filled musical.
Music Mountain Theatre presents "Alice By Heart"
(LAMBERTVILLE, NJ) -- Music Mountain Theatre presents Alice By Heart with three performances from August 12-13, 2026. From the Tony and Grammy Award-winning creators of Spring Awakening (Steven Sater and Duncan Sheik) and co-written by Jessie Nelson (Waitress) this is a touching musical inspired by Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
Chimera Productions presents "Job" at Paul Robeson Center for the Arts
(PRINCETON, NJ) -- New Jersey-based theater company Chimera Productions will present its 17th production, Job by Max Wolf Friedlich, from August 13-15, 2026 at 8:00pm each night. The play, presented in the intimate 60-seat theater inside Princeton's Paul Robeson Center for the Arts, is a psychological thriller that offers a sharp, darkly funny, and unsettling examination of our addiction to work, the internet, the cost of modern life, and what we're willing to sacrifice to belong.
Masquerade Theatre presents "Myths, Legends & Folklore Showcase"
(RIVERSIDE, NJ) -- Masquerade Theatre presents Myths, Legends & Folklore Showcase with performances on Friday, August 14 and Saturday, August 15, 2026 at 8:00pm each night.
Algonquin Arts Theatre presents "Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical"
(MANASQUAN, NJ) -- Algonquin Arts Theatre presents Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical across two weekends from August 8-16, 2026. Bold, revolutionary, and electrifying, Hair captures the spirit of a generation and stands as the ultimate celebration of the 1960s.
Asbury Park Theater Company to Hold Open Auditions for "The Wolves" by Sarah DeLappe
(ASBURY PARK, NJ) -- Asbury Park Theater Company (APTCo) has announced that its first mainstage production under newly appointed Producing Artistic Director Nate Patten will be The Wolves, Sarah DeLappe's Pulitzer Prize finalist play that has captivated audiences across the country with its sharp wit, emotional honesty, and unforgettable portrait of young women finding their voices.
Ferrell Studios Community Theatre presents "Merrily We Roll Along"
(METUCHEN, NJ) -- Ferrell Studios Community Theatre, a nonprofit theatre organization serving Central New Jersey, announces its upcoming production of Merrily We Roll Along, with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by George Furth. The production will close the company's 2025-26 season, themed "Our Time," with five performances at St. Luke's Episcopal Church Auditorium in Metuchen, NJ from August 20-23, 2026.
FEATURED EVENTS
