Nestled on Route 179 in Lambertville, New Jersey, is the Music Mountain Theatre where I had the pleasure of checking out the two-act play, "Hello, Dolly!" A 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Organization, the Music Mountain Theatre is keeping the theatrical arts alive in this bordering town to New Hope, Pennsylvania. They are doing this through their main stage productions, their young audience productions and their theatre school classes. Being my first visit to this theatre, I was very impressed with their entire operation from ticket sales and their concession area right on down to their theatrical presentation. This includes all of those that were working so hard behind the scenes.
My better half actually found this theatre before we made our drive to this area known for its antique shops. Sitting next to me was a young actor who was performing the very next day in her hometown. Having taught a drama class, it was extremely nice to see some of the young people in the audience. The place filled up as people were still buying tickets an hour before showtime.
Based on the Thornton Wilder play, "The Matchmaker," the title of the play actually says a lot about the main character. Dolly Gallagher Levi is a nosy matchmaker setting up certain individuals with possible spouses including herself. Getting right to it, Anna Hentz was fabulous as Dolly, including her vocal prowess on all of her numbers. Jonathan Wierzbicki had great chemistry with Hentz as the difficult to get along with Horace Vandergelder. Patrick Mertz and Alex Klein, who portrayed Cornelius Hackl and Barnaby Tucker respectively, were fun to watch as Vandergelder's disgruntled employees. The ensemble were all fantastic in their respective roles but every time I saw Aimee Miller I couldn't help but think of Bette Midler. Also, I don't know how they found Jackson Manning, but he was an unbelievable dancer and singer.
With the Book being written by Michael Stewart and the Music and Lyrics done by Jerry Herman, "Hello, Dolly!" included a number of well-known songs such as "So Long, Dearie," "Elegance," "It Only Takes A Moment," "Before The Parade Passes By," "Put On Your Sunday Clothes" and of course the title track. This show runs until April 7th, with their next main production, "Murder On The Orient Express," beginning on April 12th. I believe if you are in the area of Lambertville, you will be equally impressed. Check out their website at musicmountaintheatre.org .