Category Archives: Press Releases

September 17, 2026 · 3:11 pm

“Practically Perfect” Nanny Takes Flight at the Emery Theater

Disney and Cameron Mackintosh’s MARY POPPINS JR. 

CINCINNATI – The Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati (TCT) opens its 107th MainStage season with Disney and Cameron Mackintosh’s Mary Poppins JR., playing October 9-25, 2026, at the Emery Theater. Tickets start at $12 and are on sale now at thechildrenstheatre.com.

This delightful adaptation of the Broadway and West End hit brings the unforgettable Banks family and the magic of Cherry Tree Lane to the stage. With colorful characters, an irresistible score, high-flying theatrical effects, and the Emery Theater’s immersive stage technology, this production offers an incredible crowd-pleasing experience for all ages. The musical includes favorite Sherman Brothers songs such as “A Spoonful of Sugar,” “Feed the Birds,” “Step in Time,” and “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious,” along with new songs by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe.

Kim Kern, President and CEO of The Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati, said: “Mary Poppins is a story generations know and love, and the Emery Theater gives us the opportunity to tell it with an entirely new sense of scale and wonder. From the moment Mary flies into Cherry Tree Lane, audiences will be surrounded by the music, movement, and theatrical magic that make this show so special. It is a practically-perfect way to open our 107th season, and we cannot wait to welcome families back to the Emery!”

Public Showtimes include:

  • Friday, October 9, 2026: 7 PM – OPENING NIGHT
  • Saturday, October 10, 2026: 2 PM and 5 PM
  • Sunday, October 11, 2026: 2 PM
  • Saturday, October 17, 2026: 11 AM and 2 PM (ASL and Audio Described Performance)
  • Sunday, October 18, 2026: 2 PM
  • Saturday, October 24, 2026: 2 PM and 5 PM
  • Sunday, October 25, 2026: 2 PM

Important information for opening-weekend patrons: BLINK Cincinnati will take place Thursday, October 8 through Sunday, October 11, from 7 to 11 PM throughout downtown Cincinnati, Over-the-Rhine, and Northern Kentucky. Because the free light and art festival is expected to draw large crowds and will affect traffic, street access, and parking near the Emery Theater, patrons attending performances October 9–11 should plan to arrive early and allow extra travel time. Public transportation is encouraged. Visit blinkcincinnati.com for current maps, road closures, parking, and transportation information. Pre-paid guaranteed parking passes for TCT patrons are available now at thechildrenstheatre.com.

Good to know: This production uses theatrical fog and haze, and actors will be flying on stage. This production runs approximately 70 minutes without intermission. Ideal for ages 4+.

Disney and Cameron Mackintosh’s Mary Poppins JR. is based on the stories of P.L. Travers and the Walt Disney film. Original Music and Lyrics by Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman. Book by Julian Fellowes. New Songs and Additional Music and Lyrics by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe. Co-Created by Cameron Mackintosh. Adapted by iTheatrics under the supervision of Timothy Allen McDonald.

Original London and Broadway Production Credits

Produced by Cameron Mackintosh and Thomas Schumacher. Co-Choreography by Stephen Mear. Lighting Design by Howard Harrison. Scenic and Costume Design by Bob Crowley. Co-Direction and Choreography by Matthew Bourne. Directed by Richard Eyre.

The Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati Production Credits

Stage Direction by TCT Artistic Director, Roderick Justice. Choreography by TCT Associate Artistic Director, Maddie Jones. Music Direction, Jacob Priddy. Scenic Design, Seth Howard. Lighting Design, Yelena Babinskaya. Resident Costume Designer, Alix Frisch. Original Costume Design, Noelle Wedig-Johnson. Sound Design, Daniel Massey. Video/Projection Design, Lightborne. Flying Effects, ZFX. Technical Direction, Maggie Foley & Andrew Nunley, Properties Master, Adam Borchers. Director of Production, Dani Lobello. Production Stage Manager, Jadi Davis.

Presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI. www.MTIShows.com Any video and/or audio recording of this production is strictly prohibited.

Disney & Cameron Mackintosh’s Mary Poppins JR. is made possible by Season Sponsors The Charles H. Dater Foundation and H.B., E.W. & F.R. Luther Charitable Foundation, Fifth Third Bank, N.A., Trustee. Production Sponsor The P&G Fund of Greater Cincinnati Foundation. PNC Foundation provides additional funding for MainStage Ticket Subsidies. Dress Run Sponsor TriHealth. Additional Sponsors include The Sutphin Family Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, and The Shubert Foundation INC. And Media Sponsors 12 WKRC-TV and Q102.

This production is made possible in part by an investment of public funds from the Ohio Arts Council (OAC). The OAC is a state agency that funds and supports quality arts experiences to strengthen Ohio communities culturally, educationally, and economically.

The Children’s Theatre of Cincinnati is supported by the generosity of tens of thousands of contributors to the annual ArtsWave Campaign, the region’s primary source for arts funding. 

Disney & Cameron Mackintosh’s Mary Poppins JR. will be performed in the beautifully renovated and reimagined Emery Theater, 1112 Walnut Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202. Tickets start at $12. Visit thechildrenstheatre.com anytime or call the TCT Box Office at 513.569.8080 x10, Monday – Friday from 9 AM to 5 PM to purchase tickets. 

CAST:

  • KATIE BAUER:  Ensemble
  • AMY S. BAUMANN:  Miss Andrew
  • * LEVI BAUM:  Michael
  • PHOENIX BILLS:  Northbrook/Ensemble
  • TROIAN BUTLER:  Ensemble
  • CAMMI CALDWELL:  Katie Nanna/Mrs. Smythe/Ensemble
  • MAIYA CALDWELL:  Ensemble
  • *HAILEY CHANG:  Ensemble
  • *CELIA D’ASCENZO: Jane
  • COLIN DECH:  Ensemble
  • EDRICO EVANS-PRITCHETT:  Ensemble
  • EMMA HACKWORTH:  Neleus/Ensemble
  • * JAVIN HILL:  Robertson Ay
  • *DEZ FLYNN HUTCHENS:  Ensemble
  • KYNDRA D. JEFFERIES:  Mrs. Corry
  • JAMES JONES: Bert
  • EVAN KOONS:  George Banks
  • *PATRICK LYTLE:  Ensemble
  • AARON MARSHALL:  Von Hussler/ Ensemble
  • SEAN MOSS:  Chairman
  • AMY OBLINGER:  Mrs. Brill
  • ZACHARY PETRIE:  Ensemble
  • ALEXIS PINTO:  Ensemble
  • EMMA RILEY:  Mary Poppins
  • COLTON SLADE:  Ensemble
  • * KEYA VADIVELU:  Ensemble
  • MARY VOSSEBERG:  Bird Woman
  • MICHELLE WELLS:  Winifred Banks
  • PORTER WILLS:  Ensemble

* Denotes TCT’s Young Artists Company

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September 16, 2026 · 5:05 pm

Sunset Players Presents their Season Opener, STEEL MAGNOLIAS, Beginning Sept. 19th

Sunset Players is giving Steel Magnolias some iron-clad talent.

Featuring the incredible talents of Rachel Brzezinski, Melissa Roth, Becky Cole, Sheccid Donatt, Virginia Venegas and Angela Klocke Forbes. This show is directed by Trey Reeves, produced by Dennis Murphy, and stage managed by Wendy Williams.

Steel Magnolias centers on the lives of six women in a Louisiana beauty salon, and focuses on their friendship, humor, and resilience as they navigate life’s joys and tragedies, including a wedding, a pregnancy, and a death. Written as a tribute to the playwright’s sister, the play is known for its witty dialogue and its poignant exploration of community and strength in the face of loss.

Steel Magnolias opens Friday, September 19, 2026 and runs through September 26, 2026 at Sunset Players located at the Dunham Arts Center.

For more details, please visit: https://sunsetplayers.org/product/steel-magnolias/

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September 16, 2026 · 5:04 pm

Sinclair Presents LITTLE WOMEN

Dayton, Ohio – September 15 – Sinclair Theatre is proud to present Little Women, a refreshing take on Lousia May Alcott’s literary classic, live on stage from October 9 – 17 in the Black Box Theatre, Building 2, on Sinclair’s downtown Dayton campus. Tickets are $10 and are available online at www.sinclair.edu/tickets. Groups of 20 or more ordering online save all ticketing fees. 

Against the backdrop of the Civil War, the March sisters find themselves at the intersection of authenticity and the pressures they face to be accepted in a war-torn society. Get ready for a production tackling what it takes to grow up, facing a world defined by gender, classism, and personal tragedy. This modern take on Alcott’s classic is fit to burst with humor, emotion, and soul. 

“This cast has been an absolute joy to work with. They are incredibly dedicated to the work, but they also bring so much playfulness, humor, and genuine fun into the rehearsal room,” says director Kimberly Borst. “Little Women asks these actors to bring a lot of heart, energy, and vulnerability to the stage, and they’ve embraced every bit of it. They challenge each other, support each other, and, most importantly, they make each other laugh. I think audiences are going to fall in love with this wonderfully talented, hilarious, and wholehearted group of actors.” 

The cast consists of Ryan Ford, Zella Younce, Allison Byron, Alida Ohrman, Isaiah Autajay, Tiffany Higgins, Debra Strauss, Adalia Gaynier, Ryan Hester, and Derikson Meng. 

LITTLE WOMEN is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals on behalf of Dramatists Play Service. www.concordtheatricals.com 

Where: Sinclair Community College, Black Box Theatre (Building 2), 444 W. Third St., Dayton  

Ticket Information: $10 plus $2 service fee. No at-the-door ticket sales. All tickets must be purchased online at: www.sinclair.edu/tickets  

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September 10, 2026 · 4:25 pm

Mason Players to Present DECISION HEIGHT

Don’t miss Mason Players’ final production of 2026, as we honor the 250th Anniversary of the nation. DECISION HEIGHT will be presented October 2, 3, 8, 9, and 10 at 8pm and October 4 at 2pm at the Mason Community Playhouse, 5529 Mason Road in Mason.

DECISION HEIGHT tells the story of the Women Air Force Service Pilots (WASP) who served in World War II, assisting the men who were fighting. It features a nine-member, all-female cast.
 
It is a historical drama written by Meredith Dayna Levy, which premiered at the Hollins Theatre Main Stage in the fall of 2012. It won the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF) New Play Award and the National Partners of the American Theatre Playwriting Award in 2013. Since then, Decision Height has been produced at high schools, colleges, and community theatres around the country.
 
Through triumphs and tragedies, this play explores the WASP experiences, the deep bonds they form, and the sacrifices they make while highlighting an under-recognized group of American heroes. These young women grew as a group with a shared goal of doing their part to support the war effort and making the most of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Tickets are available at MasonPlayers.org. Secure your seats now!

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September 10, 2026 · 4:10 pm

The Academy Award Winning Film, NETWORK comes to Cincy Shakes’ Stage

Brent Vimtrup, Patrick Earl Phillips, Geoffrey Warren Barnes II, Hayley Guthrie, and Jasimine Bouldin. Photo by Phil Armstrong.

A sensation on Broadway and in London, the immersive and relevant “Network” receives its Regional Premiere here in Cincinnati 

Cincinnati, September 9, 2026 – Cincinnati Shakespeare Company is proud to present the Regional Premiere of Network, adapted for the stage by Lee Hall, based on the Academy Award winning film by Paddy Chayefsky. The production is directed by Cincinnati Shakespeare Company Producing Artistic Director and CEO Brian Isaac Phillips. The Ensemble is generously sponsored by Macie and Jim Kinney joined with the Production Support Sponsor is Brave Berlin.

“I’m mad as hell, and I’m not going to take it anymore!” erupts across the airwaves in this immersive stage adaptation of the Academy Award winning film. Set in 1970s America, as television tightens its grip on American culture, veteran anchorman Howard Beale unravels live on air. What begins as a breakdown becomes a broadcast phenomenon. Soaring ratings transform him into an unlikely prophet for a network hungry for spectacle, in a world where outrage sells and attention is the ultimate currency. A sensation on Broadway and in London, Network blurs the line between news and entertainment with explosive consequences.

Network features an incredible ensemble of 16 actors, including many familiar faces. Jim Hopkins stars as Howard Beale, whose public unraveling becomes the center of the story. When Beale’s breakdown turns into a broadcast sensation, Max Schumacher, played by Barry Mulholland, finds himself battling network executives Frank Hackett and Diana Christensen, played by Brent Vimtrup and Hayley Guthrie, over the future of the network. Rounding out the cast is a talented ensemble featuring Geoffrey Warren Barnes II, Jasimine Bouldin, Eva Olivia Catanzariti, Montez Jenkins Copeland, Cary Davenport, Giles Davies, Phil Fiorini, Candice Handy, Kelly Mengelkoch, Connan Morrissey, Patrick Earl Phillips, and Robert Carlton Stimmel.

Bringing this iconic film to the stage is our design team, directed by Brian Isaac Phillips. Jon Savage’s scenic design brings the audience into a 1970s newsroom, with vintage cameras and TV screens. Costumes designed by Erin Reed Carter and wigs by Kayla Cieslinski further establish the 1970s setting with subtle nods to the original film. Zack Bennett’s sound design and Robert Carlton Stimmel’s media design bring the world of television news to life, incorporating real news clips from the 1970s. Alicia Rodis serves as fight and intimacy director. Network is stage managed by Danitza Piper with Tessa Killen as Assistant Stage Manager.

Please note: This production includes gunshots and other loud noises, strong language, discussions of suicide, simulated sexual activity, theatrical haze, and flashing lights. Patrons with questions should reach out to the Box Office at 513-381-2273.

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Network runs September 11 through 26, 2026. Performances are Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 7:30pm. Saturday matinees take place on September 19 and 26, with a Sunday matinee on September 20 all at 2:00pm. A special Media Night has been added for Wednesday Sep. 23 at 7:30pm.

Cincinnati Shakespeare Company also offers these performances with accessibility resources: Live Audio Description will be available on Friday September 11, and an American Sign Language-interpreted performance will take place on September 26 at 2:00pm.

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Tickets are on sale now. Discounts are available for students, seniors, local residents, and community partners. Each performance also includes a limited number of $14 “Access” tickets, available in advance online or by calling the Box Office. Beginning one hour before each performance, any remaining unreserved seats may become available as $12 Rush Tickets for anyone, not just students. Rush Tickets may be located anywhere in the theater depending on that evening’s availability, cannot be reserved in advance, and must be purchased in person at the Box Office.

All major credit cards are accepted. Ticketing fees apply. To purchase tickets or learn more, contact the Cincinnati Shakespeare Company Box Office at 513.381.BARD (2273) ext. 1 or visit the website online at cincyshakes.com.

Cincinnati Shakespeare Company is located at The Otto M. Budig Theater at 1195 Elm Street in OTR, adjacent to Washington Park.  Many parking spaces are available on the street and in nearby lots and garages- for more information, visit online here.

CSC has coordinated a prepaid self-parking option right next door to the theater for a hassle‐free, guaranteed spot. A limited number of reserved spaces are available starting 1.5 hours before performances and lasting through the end of the show. The 3CDC parking attendant will have your name on the list with advance purchase, guaranteeing your spot and price. Visit www.cincyshakes.com/parking to reserve self-parking.

This is the second production in Cincinnati Shakespeare Company’s 2026-2027 Season which is generously presented by our Operating Support Partners: The Carol Ann and Ralph V. Haile, Jr. Foundation; The Linnemann Family Foundation; The Ohio Arts Council; The Robert and Adele Schiff Family Foundation; The National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest; The Shubert Foundation; Maureen and John Bridgeland, Cindy Bridgeland Crilley, and Debby and Jim Mason in honor of Jim Bridgeland; Lightborne, and the tens of thousands of people who give generously to the ArtsWave Community Campaign.

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About Cincinnati Shakespeare Company:
Cincinnati Shakespeare Company is a professional theatre company dedicated to bringing Shakespeare and the classics to life for all.  In the summer of 2017, the theater relocated to the Otto M. Budig Theater, a brand new facility in the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood of Cincinnati. CSC’s repertoire is composed of the works of William Shakespeare, literary adaptations, world premieres, and contemporary classics. CSC performs on a Small Professional Theatre contract with the Actors’ Equity Association. Cincinnati Shakespeare is a member of Theater Communications Group and Shakespeare Theatre Association. Each year, Cincinnati Shakespeare Company’s Education and Outreach Programs reach more than 50,000 young people and community members by meeting audiences where they are. This includes sharing programming in schools, parks, community centers and hosting educational matinees of mainstage productions. In 2015, CSC was proud to become one of the first five theaters in the United States to “Complete the Canon” by producing all 38 plays by William Shakespeare. CSC is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, and all donations are tax-deductible.  Cincinnati Shakespeare Company is proud to be Cincinnati’s stage for the Classics!

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