CINDY WILLIAMS (Hostess) is most recognized for her role as ‘Shirley Feeney’ in the TV comedy series Laverne And Shirley. Born in Van Nuys, Calif., Cindy first became interested in acting during high school. After graduation she attended L. A. City College where she majored in Theatre Arts. After leaving college, she landed her first television roles on Room 222, Nanny and the Professor and Love, American Style. Some guest-starring roles include Law And Order: SVU, Seventh Heaven and 8 Simple Rules, The Odd Couple for CBS, A Dream Of Christmas for Hallmark Channel and Sam And Cat for Nickelodeon. Cindy’s stage credits include, the National Tour of Grease playing Miss Lynch, the National Tour of Deathtrap with Elliot Gould, The Female Odd Couple with Jo Anne Worley, Steel Magnolias as Ouiser Boudreaux. She made her Broadway debut in the role of Mrs. Tottendale in the award-winning musical The Drowsy Chaperone in 2007. Her first film was for Roger Corman in GAS-S-S-S with Talia Shire and Ben Vereen. She appeared in Travels With My Aunt with Maggie Smith, directed by George Cukor, and The Conversation with Gene Hackman, directed by Francis Ford Coppola. Next she co-starred with Ron Howard, Richard Dreyfuss and Harrison Ford in American Graffiti directed by George Lucas, a low-budget film that went on to become a box office smash and film classic. She has been honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame; a TV Land Award for Fan Favorite as well as winning Best Actress at the L. A. Comedy Film Festival for the Indy film Stealing Roses. Cindy also garnered a BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) nomination for best supporting actress in American Graffiti. Unfortunately, she was beat out by Ingrid Bergman. Cindy still wonders how the heck that happened. Her book ‘Shirley, I Jest!: A Storied Life’ was released to much critical acclaim and is now available in paperback.

ANISE RITCHIE (Professional Woman) is excited to make her debut at Ogunquit Playhouse. Anise has been with Menopause The Musical® for over 10 years starting in San Francisco, San Diego and is now touring around the U.S. with MTM. Regional credits: Rock Of Ages as Justice Charlier, Little Night Music as Madame Armfeldt. She is also the original cast/recording Disney’s production member of The Hunchback of Notre Dame (La Jolla Playhouse, Paper Mill Playhouse).Other credits: Big Fish, Violet and Tommy, The Life Story of Sammy Davis Jr, How The Grinch Stole Christmas, Leap of Faith, Nightmare Alley, Once on This Island, Caroline Or Change, Sparks, A Grand Night for Singing, Smokey Joe's Cafe, Beehive-The 60’s Musical, Showboat, and Little Shop of Horrors. She has toured Europe singing opera and gospel and just recently returned from Marseille, France. Her voice can be heard on many voice-overs and television commercials. Proud member of Actorsí Equity.

MELANIE SOUZA (Earth Mother) is excited to make her Ogunquit Playhouse debut. National Tour: Menopause The Musical® (Earth Mother). Favorite Regional: In the Heights (Abuela Claudia, American Stage), The Bikinis (Karla, The Hippodrome Theatre), Mamma Mia! (Rosie, NBFT), Breaking Up is Hard to Do (Esther Simowitz, Ivoryton Playhouse), Sister Act (Sr. Mary Lazarus, Lake Dillion Theatre Co.), 9 to 5 the Musical (Roz, Theatre by the Sea), The Addams Family (Grandma Addams, Alhambra Theatre), Social Security with Barbara Eden (Trudy Hayman, Alhambra Theatre), and Stepping Out with Donna Mckechnie (Dorothy, Theatrezone). Love to M&D, John and Carlo for all their love and support.

www.melaniesouza.com

KATHY ST. GEORGE (Soap Star) is very pleased to make her debut at the Ogunquit Playhouse. Broadway: Two productions of Fiddler On The Roof, (Tony Award for "Best Revival", Grandma Tzeitel, Shprintze), NY State Theatre, Gershwin Theatre, directed by Jerome Robbins. Off-Broadway: I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change (Woman #2), Westside Theatre. Regional: 9 to 5 the Musical (Roz), Peter Pan (Mrs. Darling, Grown Up Wendy), North Shore Music Theatre. The Divine Sister (Elliot Norton Award), Once, Violet, Xanadu, Ruthless!, SpeakEasy Stage Co. Mame, Dear Miss Garland, The Addams Family, 42nd Street, Pete 'N Keely, Greater Boston Stage Company. Gypsy, Follies, Light Up The Sky, Lyric Stage Company of Boston. And Now Ladies and Gentlemen, Miss Judy Garland (IRNE Award), Das Barbecu (IRNE Award), Closer Than Ever, New Repertory Theatre. Peter Pan, The Producers, Carousel, Brigadoon, Damn Yankees, Riverside Theatre, FL. and more. www.kathystgeorge.com

ROBERTA B. WALL (Iowa Housewife/Dance Captain) Original Broadway Casts: Sister Act, Leap of Faith. First National Tours: Sister Act (SM Lazarus), Beauty and the Beast (Mrs. Potts). Ms. Wall has been performing in Menopause The Musical® since 2003 as both Iowa Housewife and Earth Mother in cities across the country. Other Regional roles include: Sadie in I Love a Piano (Lawrence Welk Theatre), Jo in Swingtime Canteen (La Mirada CLO), Frieda in Sunday in the Park with George (Long Beach CLO), Tisbe in Cinderella (Falcon Theatre), Clementina in Desert Song (Pasadena Civic), Housekeeper in Man of La Mancha with Robert Goulet. She can be heard on the Roxbury Records Gershwin cast recordings of "Oh, Kay!", "Pardon My English" and "Lady Be Good".

GFOUR PRODUCTIONS (Producer) Proud producers of Menopause The Musical®, now in its 18th year, and 14th as the longest-running musical in Las Vegas history. It can be seen nightly at Harrah’s Hotel and Casino on the Las Vegas strip as well as on tour around the U.S. and internationally in Australia, Brazil, South Korea, Slovenia, and the U.K. Other recent productions include The Play That Goes Wrong on Broadway, winner of London’s Olivier Award for Best Comedy, now also on tour in the U.S.; the Tony Award-nominated production of Fiddler On The Roof also on tour in the U.S.; American Son starring Kerry Washington, soon to be released on Netflix; and the premiere of David Mamet’s Bitter Wheat, starring John Malkovich. Other selected highlights include winning the 2013 Tony Award for their 50th anniversary production of Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf; Co-financing the five-time Tony Award, five-time Drama Desk Award, and seven-time Olivier Award winner for Best Musical, Matilda The Musical; and producing the popular 9 to 5 the Musical with music by Dolly Parton, and Ring Of Fire, the Johnny Cash Musical Show. They began producing in 1981 with Nine, winning the Tony Award that year for Best Musical. Among their favorite past Broadway productions are My One And Only starring Tommy Tune, Zorba The Greek starring Anthony Quinn, The Rink starring Liza Minnelli, Baby, Grand Hotel, Grind, Big, True West, the original and the revival of La Cage Aux Folles which won them Tony Awards for Best Musical in 1983 and Best Revival in 2004. Their combined shows have been nominated for 121 Tony Awards, winning 44 and 110 Drama Desk Awards, winning 56. For more information, please visit

www.GFourProductions.com.

SETH GREENLEAF (Director) A Tony Award winner for his work on the 50th Anniversary production of Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf, Seth would be the first to tell you that he’s lived a theatrical life. A graduate of UCLA’s School of Theatre, Film and Television, he was bitten early by the entertainment bug and has worked in theatre and film ever since. Some of his favorite highlights include producing 9 to 5 the Musical on Broadway with Dolly Parton, co-financing the Tony Award and Olivier Award-winning musicals The Book Of Mormon and Matilda The Musical, and directing the award-winning documentary F(L)AG Football (FlagFootballTheMovie.com). He currently has The Play That Goes Wrong and The Book Of Mormon running on Broadway, Tina The Musical, and SIX running in London; and Fiddler On The Roof and The Play That Goes Wrong on National Tour in the U.S., with some exciting new productions opening this summer on Broadway and in the West End. Seth is also a founding member of the Broadway Green Alliance, helping to green the Great White Way, for more information on that effort please visit

www.BroadwayGreen.com.

CATHERINE STORNETTA (Music Director) has performed Forbidden Broadway, Forbidden Hollywood, and Forbidden Christmas in all but three states, in five different countries, on cruise ships circumnavigating the globe, and once, after being bitten by a dog, with only her right hand and left thumb. She has orchestrated both Forbidden Broadway and Forbidden Christmas and as a result has conducted the Detroit, Hartford, Winnipeg, North Carolina, Rochester, Syracuse, Ft. Wayne, UNLV, and Adelaide (Australia) Symphonies. She composed the score for the Cable ACE-award winning documentary for A&E’s Biography series: Christa McAuliffe, Teacher in Space, and she has written and arranged music for several shows: Intriguing People (for People Magazine), 12 Angry Reindeer, All-of-a-Kind Family, Reindeer Games, and Seasons. She has worked at multiple theatres in and around Boston where she lives. In her salad days, she was a student of Darius Milhaud and an occasional soloist with the Boston Pops.

ALAN J. PLADO (Music Supervisor & Additional Arrangements) is currently the conductor on the National Tour of Beautiful. Other Broadway National Tours: Jersey Boys, Dirty Dancing, Legally Blonde, Mamma Mia, Elf The Musical, Memphis, Disney's Beauty and the Beast. Off-Broadway/NYC: We’re Still Hot, Just a Matter of Time, Shooting Star, The Last Word (NYMF). Many regional theaters including Alabama Shakespeare, Laguna Playhouse, Phoenix Theater, Milwaukee Rep. Alan has been with Menopause The Musical® since 2004, and internationally, was the music director/arranger for the show on the West End (Shaw Theater) and in Dublin, Ireland.

KIM VANBIESBROUCK (Associate Director) has had the great pleasure of performing Soap Star in, Menopause The Musical®, in theatre’s across the country. Her first production was in her hometown of Detroit, where, Menopause The Musical®, was awarded the honor of longest running musical in the city’s history and Best Ensemble Cast. Currently she resides in Chicago, where some of her other credits include, Motherhood The Musical, Judy Garland in, Beyond The Rainbow, Forbidden Broadway, Sweet Charity, Always, Patsy Cline, A Chorus Line, and Cat On A Hot Tin Roof. Kimberly is also a certified Yoga, Barre and Kickboxing instructor. She feels extremely blessed and would like to take this opportunity to thank GFour Productions for bringing her back into the, Menopause The Musical, family. Kimberly would also like to send all her love and appreciation to the best production she ever created...her beautiful daughter, Isobel. The theatre world is yours to conquer, my girl!

JEANIE LINDERS (Creator) is a passionate voice for a generation of women facing more than hot flashes. Presented with the Veteran Feminist Medal of Honor by Gloria Steinem, she has funded women’s education, housing and programs from New Orleans to Kenya and National Ovarian Cancer Coalition among others. Ms. Linders’s work in entertainment and producing spans three decades including theatre, music festivals and celebrity-driven events. She works as a marketing consultant for playwrights and theatres nationally.

NATE BERTONE (Additional Scenic Elements) is a New York City based theatrical storyteller. Nate works primarily as a Director/Designer and writer. Some of his recent design work includes: Google CreativeLab, Broadway Sacramento at Music Circus: Singin’ in the Rain, Disney’s Newsies, and Mamma Mia!. Arizona Broadway Theatre: Titanic and The Addams Family. North Shore Music Theatre: Shrek, and Sister Act. Engeman Theatre NY: Gypsy, Once, Elf, Gentleman’s Guide. With Beowulf Boritt, he has been the Associate for Murder on the Orient Express (Ogunquit Playhouse), Superhero (Second Stage), 20th Century Blues (Signature), Crazy for You (Lincoln Center), and assisted on Freestyle Love Supreme and A Bronx Tale on Broadway. Nate has recently directed Into The Woods (Cap21/Molloy), Entangled (Salem Theatre Company), Polkadots (Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati) and his new play with music, Letters From War, at North Shore Music Theatre. He is a proud faculty member at Manhattan School of Music and alumni of Carnegie Mellon Univ. and Central Saint Martins of London. www.natebertone.com

RICHARD LATTA (Lighting Design) Playhouse 2019: Jersey Boys, 42nd Street, Cabaret. He designed last seasons' Oklahoma!, An American in Paris (IRNE Award Nomination), Grumpy Old Men the Musical and Jersey Boys. He is currently the longest serving employee of the Ogunquit Playhouse; beginning as a crew member in 1985 and as a Lighting Designer since 1987. In that time he's designed hundreds of shows and watched in amazement as the Playhouse evolved from its humble Summer Stock beginnings to a producing entity that presents musical classics, re-inventions of more recent musicals and gives life to brand new shows. For that he thanks the many Electricians, Programmers, Associates and Follow Spot Operators who participate in making the Playhouse great.

MATT KRAUS (Sound Design) Broadway: Liza’s at the Palace, Kristin Chenoweth: My Love Letter to Broadway, Kathy Griffin Wants a Tony. Off Broadway: Caucasian Chalk Circle, 50 Shades! The Musical Parody, Forbidden Broadway, Voca People, Forever Dusty. Regional: Paper Mill Playhouse, St. Louis Rep, Cincinnati Playhouse, Walnut Street, PA Shakespeare, Bucks County Playhouse. Audio coordinator for remote shoots at The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Matt has also played the world’s most prestigious venues: Hollywood Bowl, Hampton Court Palace, Olympia in Paris, Montreux Jazz Festival, Sydney Opera House, Monte Carlo Sporting Club, and Vienna State Opera House and Jazz at the White House. Matt won a Daytime Emmy for his work on Disney’s Broadway Hits at Royal Albert Hall.

EMMA POWER (Production Stage Manager) is thrilled to be back at the Ogunquit Playhouse for her 9th year! Previous shows include Heartbreak Hotel and Million Dollar Quartet. Other credits include Off-Broadway: You Mean To Do Me Harm (Vineyard Theater), Peer Gynt (Classic Stage Company). Regional: Grand Hotel (Finger Lakes Musical Theatre Festival) Spamalot, The Elephant Man (Studio Tenn), Evita (Studio Tenn & TPAC), Peter Pan and Tinker Bell: A Pirates Christmas (Lythgoe Family Panto & TPAC). National Tours: Peter And The Starcatcher (2nd National), I Love Lucy Live On Stage (1st National). BA from The University of Maine.

BEN DANIELSON (Assistant Stage Manager) is pleased to return to the Ogunquit Playhouse after helping the stage management teams of Cabaret and Murder on the Orient Express earlier this season. Other OP credits include stage crew for From Here to Eternity, Heartbreak Hotel, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, and Priscilla Queen of the Desert. Ben has also worked at Bucks County Playhouse, Cleveland Play House, and Cain Park, among other theatres. He thanks the Playhouse for this opportunity and you, our audience, for your support of the performing arts. Enjoy!

GEOF DOLAN (Technical Director) is returning for his 13th season as the Technical Director and Scenic Coordinator. Immediately prior to Ogunquit, he served as Technical Director for Worcester Foothills Theatre. He has done supplemental design work for several shows. He is also the Technical Supervisor for the Children's Theatre program. Geof began his technical career working backstage for both of his parents who are theatre directors and began his professional career at Sierra Repertory Theatre in California. For five years, he split his seasons between Maine and Florida, working the same technical areas for the Orlando Shakespeare, but now stays with the Playhouse year-round. His wife Cheryl (Scenic Charge Artist at the Playhouse for 12 seasons) has designed award-winning parade floats and designs many of the Children’s Theatre shows. Their daughter Ash is an aspiring writer and artist.

CHERYL DOLAN (Resident Scenic Charge) has returned to the Ogunquit Playhouse for her 12th season. After taking over as Resident Scenic Charge nine years ago, she has designed several Children's Theatre sets, as well as adding her artistic eye to many of the main stage productions. Since falling in love with the Ogunquit Playhouse, Cheryl, her husband Geof Dolan (the Ogunquit Playhouse Technical Director) and their daughter Ash, who is a budding writer, have made the Seacoast their home year-round. Cheryl considers the staff at OP her family and hopes that her love and passion for theater is translated through the productions to all of you.

AMANDA WOODWARD (Production Manager) is elated to be joining the Ogunquit Playhouse family after ending her touring career with FELD Entertainment. Amanda has worked over 20 years in the industry wearing many hats, but most recently spent 6 years with Norwegian Cruise Line as Entertainment Production Manager/ Project Manager overseeing new shows and installing entertainment on new ships and new shows during operations on older ships; all while she was a freelance TD for Boone High School (Orlando, FL) and lived/worked in NYC for 13 years as a PSM, LD, Programmer, Entertainer, and had her own organization business. Other Companies Amanda has worked with include The Imagination House (Double Dare Live!) American Family Theater (8 Tours), The Santa Fe Opera, The Cumberland County Playhouse, The Brick Theater, Orlando Reparatory Theater and various Off-Broadway theaters.

BRIAN J. SWASEY (Associate Producer) Originally from South Portland, ME and a graduate of the University of New Hampshire. After moving to NYC in 1995 and focusing on pursuing a career as an actor, he changed focus and became the Founding Artistic Director of The Astoria Performing Arts Center, followed by the Associate Producer position at Queens Theatre in the Park in Flushing, NY. There he was involved in producing the 20th Anniversary Revival of Closer Than Ever starring Sally Mayes and Lynne Winterstellar. Prior to coming to Ogunquit, he was the Managing Director for The New York Theatre Barn. NYC developmental projects have included: the rock musical The 12 and a new holiday musical entitled Tim and Scrooge. As a Director/Choreographer, Brian has had the pleasure of directing such shows as Pump Boys and Dinettes, Hairspray, Chicago, A New Brain, and Altar Boyz. He was the Assistant Director for the NYC Revival of Die, Mommie, Die! starring Charles Busch. At the Playhouse, Brian directed the TYA productions of The Berenstain Bears and The Cat In The Hat. In addition, Brian has been involved with booking cabaret entertainment at The Triad in NYC, as well as bringing such artists as Christina Bianco and Bruce Vilanch to MaineStreet in Ogunquit, ME.

KENT BRIDGES (Managing Director) is a seasoned business leader with 30 years of experience in business administration, finance and strategic planning both in the private sector and as an independent consultant. He joined Ogunquit Playhouse in the fall of 2017. Working with the Board of Directors, the Executive Artistic Director, dedicated managers and staff, the community, and the organizationís business partners, Kentís focus is to strengthen the theatreís financial position, guide its long-term future, and ensure its rich and well-respected legacy is firmly secured. A native of Presque Isle, Maine, Kent returned to the state in late 2014 after a successful career in the Washington, D.C. metro area. He is excited to be back in Maine and to call Ogunquit his home

BRADFORD T. KENNEY (Executive Artistic Director) is an artistic director, producer, stage and film director, and artist. Since joining the Ogunquit Playhouse in 2005, the Playhouse has tripled its audience growing from a single season summer stock theatre into one of the America's pre-eminent regional theatres with a three-season performance schedule and year round operation. During his stewardship, the Playhouse has garnered a number of awards and honors including the Moss Hart Trophy, Regional Theatre Award for Outstanding Achievement in the American Theatre from the New England Theatre Conference, multiple IRNE Awards and a number of BroadwayWorld Awards including Best Musical and others. Mr. Kenney is also noted for his work at Carnegie Hall including directing the holiday special The Christmas Rose starring Jane Seymour and producing An American Christmas Carol with Tim Janis. Mr. Kenneyís film work includes the upcoming movie musical ìButtonsî starring Dick Van Dyke, Jane Seymour, and Charles Shaughnessy. In New England, Mr. Kenney has been proud to be associated with a number of different theatre companies. He was also formerly the Artistic Director of the Foothills Theatre and Wachusett Theatre Companies in Massachusetts. He is a fourth generation plein air landscape artist, having studied with Beth Ellis and at Rhode Island School of Design, Heartwood College of Art, and Maine College of Art.

Menopause The Musical® to Open at Ogunquit Playhouse

Ogunquit, ME – It’s time to grab your best gal pals and head to Ogunquit Playhouse for the hilarious musical comedy Menopause The Musical®, on stage September 4 through September 14. A raucous celebration of womanhood created by Jeanie Linders and inspired by a hot flash and a bottle of wine, Menopause The Musical® applauds women who are on the brink of, in the middle of, or have survived “The Change.” The show is produced by special license from GFour Productions, the producers of MENOPAUSE THE MUSICAL®, now in its 18th year, and 14th as the longest-running musical in Las Vegas history. The director of the Ogunquit Playhouse production is Tony Award®-winner Seth Greenleaf. This joyful parody of 25 re-lyricized classic hits from the ‘60s, ‘70s, and ‘80s features chart-toppers including “I Heard it Through the Grapevine that You No Longer See 39,” and the disco favorite “Stayin’ Awake, Stayin’ Awake!”

Joining the cast of the Ogunquit Playhouse production are Anise Ritchie as Professional Woman, Kathy St. George as Soap Star, Melanie Souza as Earth Mother and Roberta B. Wall as Iowa Housewife. They will be joined by television star Cindy Williams as Hostess.

Anise Ritchie has been with Menopause The Musical® for over 10 years starting in San Francisco and is now touring around the U.S. with the show. She has also performed in many regional theatres throughout the U.S. in such shows as A Little Night Music, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Big Fish, Smokey Joe's Café, Showboat, and Little Shop of Horrors. Kathy St. George appeared on Broadway in two productions of Fiddler on the Roof including the Tony Award®-winning revival. Her many Off-Broadway and regional theatre credits include I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change, 9 to 5 the Musical, Peter Pan, The Divine Sister, Once, and Gypsy. Melanie Souza recently performed in the National Tour of Menopause The Musical®. She has also performed in many regional theatre productions including In the Heights, Bikinis, Mamma Mia!, Breaking Up is Hard to Do and Sister Act. Roberta B. Wall was part of the original Broadway cast of Sister Act, and Leap of Faith. Her First National Tours include Sister Act, and Beauty and the Beast as Mrs. Potts. Ms. Wall has been performing in Menopause The Musical® since 2003 in cities across the country as both Iowa Housewife and Earth Mother.

Joining the cast as Hostess is Cindy Williams who is most recognized for her role as “Shirley Feeney” in the TV comedy series Laverne and Shirley. She landed her first television roles on Room 222, Nanny and the Professor and Love, American Style. Her many guest-starring roles include Law And Order: SVU, Seventh Heaven and 8 Simple Rules, The Odd Couple for CBS, A Dream Of Christmas for Hallmark Channel and Sam And Cat for Nickelodeon. Cindy’s stage credits include, the National Tour of Grease playing Miss Lynch, the National Tour of Deathtrap with Elliot Gould, The Female Odd Couple with Jo Anne Worley, Steel Magnolias as Ouiser Boudreaux. She made her Broadway debut in the role of Mrs. Tottendale in the award-winning musical The Drowsy Chaperone in 2007. Her many films include GAS-S-S-S with Talia Shire and Ben Vereen, Travels With My Aunt with Maggie Smith, directed by George Cukor, and The Conversation with Gene Hackman, directed by Francis Ford Coppola and American Graffiti co-starring with Ron Howard, Richard Dreyfuss and Harrison Ford, directed by George Lucas.

The director for the Ogunquit production of Menopause The Musical® is Seth Greenleaf. He won the Tony Award® for his work on the 50th anniversary production of Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf. A graduate of UCLA’s School of Theatre, Film and Television, his many credits include producing 9 to 5 the Musical on Broadway with Dolly Parton, co-financing the Tony Award® and Olivier Award-winning musicals The Book Of Mormon and Matilda The Musical, and directing the award-winning documentary F(L)AG Football. He currently has The Play That Goes Wrong and The Book Of Mormon running on Broadway; Tina The Musical, Bitter Wheat and SIX running in London; and Fiddler On The Roof and The Play That Goes Wrong on National Tour in the U.S. Three of his productions are currently Broadway bound: The Inheritance begins previews September 27, Tina The Musical begins previews October 12, and SIX begins previews February 13, 2020.

Music Supervisor for the show is Alan J. Plado. As conductor, his credits include the Broadway National Tours of Jersey Boys, Dirty Dancing, Legally Blonde, Elf The Musical, Memphis, and Disney’s Beauty and the Beast. His work Off-Broadway includes We’re Still Hot, Just A Matter Of Time, Shooting Star, and The Last Word. He has worked in many regional theaters including Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Laguna Playhouse, Phoenix Theater, and Milwaukee Rep. Alan has been with Menopause The Musical® since 2004, and internationally was the music director/arranger for the show on the West End at the Shaw Theater and in Dublin, Ireland.

Creating additional scenic elements for the Ogunquit production is Nate Bertone. He is a New York City based theatrical storyteller and works primarily as a Director/Designer and writer. His recent design work for regional theatres across the country include the Arizona Broadway Theatre productions of Titanic and The Addams Family; North Shore Music Theatre’s Shrek and Sister Act; Engeman Theatre NY’s Gypsy, Once, Elf, and Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder. He has been the Associate Designer with Tony®-winner Beowulf Boritt for the Ogunquit Playhouse production of Murder on the Orient Express, Superhero at Second Stage, 20th Century Blues at Signature Theatre, Crazy for You at Lincoln Center, and on Freestyle Love Supreme and A Bronx Tale on Broadway.

Lighting Design for Menopause The Musical® is by Richard Latta. Mr. Latta is the resident lighting designer for Ogunquit Playhouse and recently was nominated for an IRNE Award for Best Lighting Design for his work on the 2018 production of An American in Paris. Matt Kraus joins the creative team as Sound Designer. Matt’s work on Broadway includes Liza’s at the Palace…, My Love Letter to Broadway with Kristin Chenoweth and Kathy Griffin Wants a Tony. Off-Broadway his design work includes Caucasian Chalk Circle, 50 Shades! The Musical Parody, Forbidden Broadway, and Forever Dusty. Ogunquit Playhouse Production Stage Manager is Emma Power.

Individual tickets are on sale now. Preview performances start at $36 and economy seats start at $51 each. For tickets visit www.ogunquitplayhouse.org or call the Ogunquit Playhouse Box Office at 207-646-5511.

The Ogunquit Playhouse season continues with the Tony Award®-winning, smash hit musical Kinky Boots, September 18 through October 27. The family musical, Annie featuring Sally Struthers runs through the holiday season November 27 through December 22 at The Music Hall in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

I’ll get this out of the way up front: if you looked around the audience and guessed who the director might be, you wouldn’t pick me. In fact, I would likely be the last person anyone would suspect. I was more of an accidental choice after the author, Jeanie C. Linders had worked with a couple of different directors before me. I was producing the show at the time, and what I was always drawn to was the connection it created, and the healing alchemy of the laughter.

Then, about 7 years ago, the director we were using had a conflict and couldn’t make a scheduled production. I volunteered to direct that one production, with a cast who had done the show before. My original training was as a director so I felt I could fake my way through one staging. Jeanie, the author, happened to come by when that production was running. She decided afterwards that no one else was allowed to direct the show, and despite my resistance, I had to keep the playwright happy. I was suddenly the national director of Menopause The Musical®, as a 30-something-year-old man.

It makes for a fun story, and even funnier company photos, but the truth is, the show is about people, women in this case, celebrating their achievements, not their losses. It’s also about knowing that you’re not alone, which is a vital component for healing. Jeanie and I had the same vision for the show, and the rest—the humor, the sass, the personal understanding of menopause—was already in the script.

When my company began producing Menopause The Musical® years ago, some places didn’t even want the title on the marquee. Fenway Park, in fact, wouldn’t put the name on the Jumbotron when our actors sang the National Anthem there for the first time. Seeing how the world reacted to the word alone, you can imagine the inner shame women were carrying. The show has transformed hundreds of thousands of women, one performance at a time, from believing they were alone with a shameful sentencing, to knowing they were part of a sisterhood. A sisterhood of brave, accomplished women who were now free from any responsibility nature had put on them, and ready to take their acquired wisdoms and strengths and apply them to anything they wanted in life. Most importantly, themselves.

Menopause is a rebirth. It is something to be celebrated and honored. A rite of passage for reaching this point in life, something our ancestors rarely did. And the gift is a return to self. What do women want to do in the second act of their lives? This healing pill is wonderfully disguised in the form of laugher and music, which “helps the medicine go down,” and the journey rightly ends in celebration. A woman’s reproductive abilities are the magic that created us all, but it is only part of the magic they bring to our lives.

Our team at GFour Productions is so happy to be returning to the beautiful Ogunquit Playhouse to premiere this upgraded version of the show, and I’m personally thrilled to finally work with Bradford Kenny and his top-notch team after years of admiring their productions. We certainly hope you enjoy “The Change” as much as we do.

Seth Greenleaf, Director