Here's a look at the top 15 most read articles published on New Jersey Stage from January 18-24, 2026. Each week we publish at least 70 articles, including original columns and features, promoting events and covering arts news taking place throughout the state and nearby areas like Philadelphia and New York City. This week's top 15 includes articles from 7 counties (Atlantic, Camden, Hudson, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, and Sussex).
1) Ocean Casino Resort Celebrated Grand Opening of Ocean's 18 Mini Golf & Bar with "Shooter McGavin" actor - (ATLANTIC CITY, NJ) -- Ocean's 18 Mini Golf & Bar officially opened its doors at Ocean Casino Resort in Atlantic City on January 17, 2026 following a grand opening celebration with a special appearance by actor Christopher McDonald, aka "Shooter McGavin" in Happy Gilmore, and also known for his role on HBO Max's Hacks.
2) Asbury Park Theater Company moves Remember Jones' 20-Piece Mad Dogs & Englishmen Celebration to Count Basie Center - (RED BANK, NJ) -- Join Asbury Park Theater Company as they celebrate Joe Cocker's groundbreaking live album and tour, Mad Dogs & Englishmen, on Saturday, February 14, 2026 on the Hackensack Meridian Health Theatre stage at the Count Basie Center for the Arts. The show, previously announced as a two-night event at Ocean Grove's Jersey Shore Arts Center, makes a sudden surprise move to the Basie due to special demand and limitations for audience and production at the OG venue. An exciting move for the growing and evolving theater company, this is the first time Remember Jones will bring this show to the Basie stage.
3) New Jersey Film Festival Video Interview with Filmmaker Louis Cacchione - Al Nigrin, Executive Director & Curator of the New Jersey Film Festival, sits down with Louis Cacchione, director of the short documentary Arrested at Delaney Hall, for a filmmaker interview. Arrested at Delaney Hall will be screened on January 24, 2026.
4) Songwriters By The Sea: Musical Storytellers Take Listeners On A Journey - If you've ever been to a Light of Day Winterfest event in mid-January, you know what a movable, musical feast it is—eclectic live performances in storied venues all over Asbury Park and beyond. And all to benefit the Light of Day Foundation (LOD) in its quest to end Parkinson's Disease and other related neuro-degenerative diseases within our lifetime.
5) Events This Week in New Jersey from January 20-26, 2026 - Here is a look at upcoming events taking place from January 20-26, 2026 along with our featured listings. New Jersey Stage offers previews of events throughout the Garden State as well as select shows in New York City and Philadelphia areas.
6) The Eye-opening Documentary B.F. Skinner Plays Himself Opens the 2026 New Jersey Film Festival on Friday, January 23! - What led you to this article? A love for film? B.F. Skinner believed this wasn’t a choice but the result of psychologically programmed behavior. Skinner stands alongside Ivan Pavlov as a father of modern behaviorism. Yet, Skinner was interested in topics far beyond science. He wrote on the philosophical impacts of his discoveries, questioned free will, and became one of the most enigmatic academics of the 20th century.
7) A Day in the Life of a Monk Documentary Screens at the 2026 New Jersey Film Festival! - Portrait of a Monastery is a documentary by John Decker that follows the life of monks in the Order of the Holy Cross. They mainly rely on the teachings of the Rule of St. Benedict, focusing on peace, prayer, and work. This documentary differs from others by choosing to omit interviews. This gives it a very unique feel, as Decker instead chooses to highlight the beauty in and around the Holy Cross Monastery in West Park, New York. Scenes tend to jump from nature to the monks singing or partaking in regular activities. Everything is captured very gorgeously and makes use of the sounds that are present, rather than adding music in post-production, leading to birds heard chirping or the beautiful songs of the monks. Decker’s cinematography makes you feel as if you are there witnessing this in real time, and the use of the sounds that are naturally occurring adds to this. The outside shots tend to be very still, and there is a serene quality to these that encapsulates the way the monks must feel.
8) Saddlehill Winery in Voorhees Wins "Best of Class" for Red Blend at 2026 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition - (VOORHEES, NJ) -- /PRNewswire/ -- Saddlehill, one of New Jersey's premier estate wineries, has achieved a significant milestone at the 2026 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition, the largest competition of North American wines in the world. In a year that saw over 5,500 total entries evaluated across all varieties, Saddlehill secured a distinguished lineup of medals, led by the prestigious Best of Class honor for its 2023 Renegade in the red blend category.
9) New Release Review - "Hamnet" - Remember that time when Batman and Superman stopped fighting because they realised they had both been raised by women named Martha? Chloé Zhao's Hamnet, adapted from the 2020 novel by Maggie O'Farrell, is centred on an equally silly contrivance. Just as Zack Snyder noted the aforementioned tenuous link between Bruce Wayne and Clark Kent, O'Farrell twigged that William Shakespeare had a short-lived son named Hamnet and also wrote a play titled 'Hamlet'. Could the two be linked? Err, no. 'Hamlet' was based on the Danish legend of Amleth and doesn't feature so much as a single dead son. But in O'Farrell's eyes Willy the Shake wrote the tragedy as a coping mechanism for the grief he felt over the loss of his boy, which is odd given how the bard penned a couple of comedies in the immediate aftermath of his kid's death.
10) McCarter Theatre and Woo Ri Mart Partner to Foster Community Engagement Around "Kim's Convenience" - the Play That Inspired the Hit Netflix Series - (PRINCETON, NJ) -- McCarter Theatre is partnering with Woo Ri Mart, a beloved family-owned grocery store based in West Windsor, to deepen community engagement and celebrate Korean culture in conjunction with the production of Kim's Convenience, running January 23 through February 15, 2026 at McCarter’s Berlind Theatre.
11) Howell Middle School South Players presents Disney's "The Lion King JR." - (HOWELL, NJ) -- Howell Middle School South Players presents Disney's The Lion King JR. from March 20-21, 2026 at the high school. Based on the landmark Broadway musical directed by Julie Taymor and Disney's beloved animated classic, this abridged version captures the heart, spirit, and spectacle of the world’s most successful stage show.
12) Mountain Creek Resort to Celebrate 60th Anniversary with a Festival this Weekend - (VERNON, NJ) -- Mountain Creek Resort, the New York Metro Area's premier four-season mountain adventure destination, presents a weekend celebration honoring its 60-year legacy in Vernon. On Saturday, January 24, and Sunday, January 25, 2026, guests are encouraged to visit the mountain for its 60th Anniversary Festival, a two-day event featuring retro-themed discounted lift tickets, a terrain-park competition, and après-style fun and live entertainment at both the resort's South Base and Vernon Base.
13) Emily Mann to Receive Inaugural Roger S. Berlind Award at McCarter Theatre Center Gala - (PRINCETON, NJ) -- McCarter Theatre Center has announced that former Artistic Director and Resident Playwright Emily Mann will receive the inaugural Roger S. Berlind Award at its annual gala on June 12, 2026.
14) Tesla comes to Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena with Special Guest Sebastian Bach - (ATLANTIC CITY, NJ) -- Tesla are hitting the road with their Still Keepin’ It Real Tour, and they're bringing along special guest Sebastian Bach for an unforgettable night at Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena in Atlantic City on Saturday, January 24. Showtime is 8:00pm.
15) The Curtain presents a new adaptation of Shakespeare's "Richard III" - (JERSEY CITY, NJ)-- The Curtain, Jersey City's premier classical theatre, will present an all-new adaptation of William Shakespeare's Richard III this March at Nimbus Arts Center weekends from March 5-29, 2026. Directed and adapted by Sean Hagerty, this morbidly comic, blood-soaked classic charts the ruthless rise of Shakespeare's most notorious king.
Following decades of experience in public relations and writing for the arts, New Jersey Stage was created to serve as the state’s arts newswire and provide affordable advertising for the arts (from $50-$100 per month). The site has been redesigned around its Event Calendar and event preview articles. The vast majority of these articles come from a monthly schedule that lets us cover every arts genre and region of the state on a regular basis with original coverage. These event preview articles get noticed when we first publish them and then get noticed again the week the event takes place. Our articles and event calendar pages are picked up by search engines and resources like Google News. We also accept press releases sent to [email protected]
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