By Shelina Elyse Much like the president has their vice president, an actor has a castmate they can count on to take their place at a moment’s notice. The role of understudy is not for the faint of heart. Understudies memorize and rehearse as diligently as leads to ensure their performance, if ever they must take…
The Unsinkable Power of Christmas Carol A message from Michael Grady By the time Matthew Wiener asked me to co-author this adaptation of A Christmas Carol, I was already a grizzled Carol veteran. I’d played several Freds, 3rd and 4th Londoner, and the most disturbing Fezziwig dancer you’ll ever see. In all that time,…
Applause! Gala Grand Opening: A celebration of legacy and new beginnings By The Phoenix Theatre Company Supporters, artists, and friends gathered for The Phoenix Theatre Company’s Applause! Gala: Grand Opening, marking the historic debut of the Dr. Stacie J. & Richard J Stephenson Theatre. The evening was a tribute to our past, a celebration of…
By Elizabeth Montgomery Some stories remind us that purpose doesn’t always look the way we imagined. In Looking Over the President’s Shoulder, director Chanel Bragg guides us through the life of Alonzo Fields, a man who set aside his dream of becoming an opera singer to serve four U.S. presidents, and in doing so,…
By Shelina Elyse With all the buzz around the new Dr. Stacie J. and Richard J Stephenson Theatre, The Phoenix Theatre Company was inspired to refresh the Hormel Theatre. Last renovated in 1995 when it was known as “The Mainstage”, we looked to connect past to present. For our Resident Scenic Paint Charge, Rebekah…
How Alonzo Fields took a survival job and turned it into a history-making career. By Theresa Kellar Tonner In the theatre, there is a term that most actors begrudgingly know – survival job. This is the job a performer has that pays the bills between acting contracts. Often, performers will be servers at restaurants,…
By Elizabeth Montgomery When Director and Choreographer Jeff Whiting returned to The Phoenix Theatre Company to helm The Roads to Loch Lomond, he was stepping into something rare: a world still being written, refined, and discovered in real time. With the musical currently lighting up our stage, we sat down with Whiting for a Director’s…
By Elizabeth Montgomery The journey of The Roads to Loch Lomond began with two teenagers scribbling notes in rehearsal rooms at the Boston Conservatory of Music. Sixteen years later, those sketches have grown into a sweeping new musical, one that carries the echoes of history, the weight of love, and the voices of a…
Announcing Les Misérables in the Dr. Stacie J. and Richard J Stephenson Theatre for the 2025/26 Season It is with great pride that we share this landmark announcement: Les Misérables is coming back to The Phoenix Theatre Company! Les Misérables has been one of the most powerful and beloved musicals. With its unforgettable score and its…
By Shelina Elyse Before the curtain rises on The Roads to Loch Lomond, the story begins in a photoshoot where tartan swaths and weathered props hint at the fate that awaits two brothers in a divided Scotland. From a staged reading at our annual 2025 Richard P. Stahl Festival of New American Theatre, this…
Amanda D’Archangelis and Sami Horneff met in the world-renowned BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop. Recent work includes: THE RADIUM GIRLS, co-written with Lisa Mongillo and directed by Tony-Winner Marissa Jaret Winokur, which is eyeing a world premiere production in the 26-27 season (also a 2022 NAMT Finalist, a 2019 Eugene O’Neill NMTC Semi-Finalist, and five-time winner at The 2021 National Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival); SINGLE RIDER (Off-Broadway 2018); COMING ATTRACTION (Wilbury Theatre Group 2019); and THE BREAK (Omaha Creative Institute 2018). Upcoming: BANDIT QUEEN, a new pop-Americana musical about Pearl Hart, the Wild West’s most notorious female bandit, which has been developed through artist residencies at The Legacy Theatre in Branford, CT and Drama Club Camp in Mount Vernon, ME; PANDORA IN BLUE JEANS with book by Adam Morrison, which explores the life of controversial “Peyton Place” author Grace Metalious; and PSYCH, a 90’s spin on the myth of Cupid & Psyche commissioned by Wichita State University. Amanda and Sami’s songs have also been performed at concert venues and educational institutions across the country. They are proud to be 2019 York Theatre Company New/Emerging/Outstanding Writers, 2024 Playbill Songwriter Series Featured Artists, and 2025 Write Out Loud Contest grand prize winners! For more, visit: @darchangelisandhorneff on instagram | www.amandadarchangelis.com and www.samihorneff.com
