Douglas McLaughlin as Georg Nowak and Sarah Adams as Amalia Balash. Photo by Abigail Acolia Photography
(WEST WINDSOR, NJ) -- Kick off the new year with a charming musical version of the play that inspired multiple iconic films when Mercer County Community College's Kelsey Theatre and Off-Centre Stages present She Loves Me, from January 2-11, 2026 on MCCC's West Windsor campus.
This warm, gentle musical comedy, set in 1937 Budapest, Hungary, follows the tangled tale of parfumerie employees Georg Horvath and Amalia. As coworkers, the pair dislike each other from the beginning—he thinks she's stuck up; she thinks he's arrogant. Meanwhile, both rapturously write to their lonely-hearts pen pal when the work day is done, and it doesn't take long for the audience to see that they're in love without realizing it. Inevitably, through some of the most iconic songs in the musical theatre canon ("Vanilla Ice Cream," "She Loves Me," "Will He Like Me?"), Georg and Amalia also discover the truth and rejoice in their love for each other at the story's delightful conclusion.
She Loves Me is based on the play Parfunerie, which has served as source material for three movies: The Shop Around the Corner (1940), starring Jimmy Stewart and Margaret Sullavan; In the Good Old Summertime (1949), starring Judy Garland and Van Johnson; and You've Got Mail (1998), starring Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. "She Loves Me" debuted on Broadway in 1963 and ran for 301 performances. The original production of She Loves Me, along with the subsequent revivals in 1993 and 2016, collected 22 Tony Award nominations.
Performances take place Friday, January 2 and January 9; Saturday, January 3 and January 10 at 8:00pm, with matinee performances Saturday, January 3 and January 10 at 2:00pm; and Sunday, January 4 and January 11 at 2:00pm. Performances are at the Kelsey Theatre on Mercer County Community College's West Windsor Campus, 1200 Old Trenton Road.
Tickets are $26 for adults and $24 for seniors and students and are available for purchase online or by calling the Kelsey Box Office Monday through Thursday, 9:00am to noon, at (609) 570-3333.
The cast features Sarah Adams of Lawrenceville, N.J., as Amalia; Douglas McLaughlin of Hillsborough, N.J., as Georg; Maria Aromando of Bedminster, N.J., as Ilona; J. Ryan Harmer of Robbinsville, N.J., as Steven; Patrick Andrae of Jamesburg, N.J., as Sipos; David Laraus of Pennington, N.J., as Arpad; Ed Forsthoffer of Hamilton, N.J., as Mr. Maraczek; John Garvey of Robbinsville as The Detective; Mark Shifton of Lawrenceville, N.J., as The Waiter; Joey Wilson of Hamilton as Bus Boy; Cecelia Tepping of Princeton Junction, N.J., as Shopper 3; Chantae Cvoliga of Joint Base MDL, N.J., as Shopper 2; and Gillian Velmer of Flemington, N.J., as Shopper 1. Rounding out the cast as members of the ensemble include Bianca Torres of North Brunswick, N.J.; Michaelle Fabius of Lawrence Township, N.J.; Jordan Schonberger of Princeton, N.J.; and James Murray of Hamilton.
Kelsey Theatre is wheelchair accessible, with free parking next to the Theatre. For a complete listing of adult and children's events, visit the Kelsey website or call the box office for a brochure.
