THE POCONO MOUNTAINS MUSIC FESTIVAL is thrilled to welcome stars from Broadway, film and television to the ninth season of the annual two-week arts celebration. This year’s festival, running from July 27th through August 4th, includes Tony Roberts and Drama Desk-nominee Barbara Andres in A.R. Gurney’s “Love Letters,” the award-winning country music celebration “Southern Comfort,” Broadway’s Andrew Keenan-Bolger in a solo evening, and “Century of Song” featuring Nellie McKay, Lisa Howard, John Boswell, Alex Getlin, Nancy Reed and Spencer Reed. The final night of the festival brings Tony Award-winner Debbie Gravitte, Tony Award-nominee Ron Raines, Klea Backhurst and Jason Graae together for “Jerry Herman: The Broadway Legacy Concert” which will feature the debut of the Pocono Pops! conducted by Jonathan Keith Kreamer.
The Pocono Mountains Music Festival also welcomes Scott Coulter as artistic director this year. Coulter says the festival’s focus in 2018 is on the people of the Poconos as well as artists from around the world. “In 2017 the festival changed its named from the Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival to the Pocono Mountains Music Festival. The new name evidences the desire of PMMF to reach the families — and young artists — in the greater Pocono area. To that end we are excited to be celebrating local artists Nancy Reed, Spencer Reed, Erin McClellan and Broadway star Nellie McKay, a Pocono native. And what a thrill to present Savion Glover with the PMMF Lifetime Achievement Award.”
The concerts will take place at several performances sites throughout the Poconos. Details on each concert are listed below.
CENTURY OF SONG
Friday, July 27, 2018, at East Stroudsburg University’s Smith Theater, East Stroudsburg, PA.
It’s been about 100 years since the birth of Leonard Bernstein, Jerome Robbins, Ella Fitzgerald, Lena Horne, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonius Monk, Desi Arnaz and Dean Martin. To celebrate the lasting influence these legendary artists had on American music, the PMMF is proud to present an electrifying evening honoring their incredible legacy. A cast of New York City’s top vocalists will be joined by current and former residents of the Pocono Mountains in a concert that will bring together world-class talent from around the world and our own backyard.
SOUTHERN COMFORT: A COUNTRY MUSIC CELEBRATION
Saturday, July 28, 2018, at East Stroudsburg University’s Smith Theater, East Stroudsburg, PA.
Get ready for some foot-stomping, down-home music featuring the “The Honky-Tonk Tenors” (NY Daily News) performing classic country tunes from the 1940s to the hottest contemporary hits. An award winning vocal trio performs chart-toppers by Glen Campbell, Vince Gill, Patti Loveless, Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, Trisha Yearwood, Randy Travis and many more starring multi-award-winning vocalists Tom Andersen and Tim DiPasqua.
LOVE LETTERS
Sunday, July 29, 2018, at East Stroudsburg University’s Smith Theater, East Stroudsburg, PA.
This is a special presentation of A.R. Gurney’s classic play, Love Letters, a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. The epistolary two-character play centers on Melissa Gardner and Andrew Makepeace Ladd III over their 50-year life story. A favorite of audiences all over the world, we are pleased to bring it to the festival starring Drama Desk nominee and PMMF board member Barbara Andres and film and stage star Tony Roberts. Tony will be recreating the role he performed on Broadway with Carol Burnett and Lucie Arnaz.
CABARET NIGHT with Broadway’s ANDREW KEENAN-BOLGER
Thursday, August 2, 2018 at the Tennis Tea in Buck Hill Falls, PA.
New York fun and sophistication comes to the Tennis Tea with a performance by one of New York’s brightest young stars, Andrew Keenan-Bolger. You’ve seen him on Broadway (Newsies, Tuck Everlasting, Mary Poppins), film (Newsies), television (Nurse Jackie, MTV’s FNMTV) and the internet where he serves as director and editor of the hit web series Submissions Only. Now experience his soaring voice and captivating storytelling in an intimate cabaret setting. This one is for the whole family!
PERFORMING ARTS CAMP SHOWCASE
Friday, August 3, 2018 at Poconos Mountain East High School, East Stroudsburg, PA
The festival is thrilled to present a roof-raising concert featuring the students from the Performing Arts Camp along with their award-winning faculty, including Klea Blackhurst, John Boswell, Vibecke Dahle, and Germaine Goodson.
JERRY HERMAN: THE BROADWAY LEGACY CONCERT Featuring the POCONO POPS!
Saturday, August 4, 2018 at Pocono Mountain East High School, East Stroudsburg, PA
PMMF’s closing event brings together students from the Festival’s Performing Arts Camp and industry professionals, as well as the debut of our own orchestra, the POCONO POPS! Jerry Herman is a legendary composer/lyricist of the American Musical Theater and one of Broadway’s most beloved icons. From Hello, Dolly and Mame to Mack and Mabel and La Cage aux Folles, Jerry Herman’s songs have lit up Broadway for decades with toe-tapping, soul-stirring musical showstoppers. A cast of top Broadway and concert stars, including Tony Award-winner Debbie Gravitte, two-time Tony nominee Ron Raines, Broadway star Jason Graae, Klea Blackhurst and John Boswell celebrate the songs and stories of one of the true giants of the theatre. This concert is a blockbuster way to close our 2018 season.
For more information and to make a tax deductible donation to the Pocono Mountains Music Festival and the Festival’s Performing Arts Camp, please visit our website www.PoconoFest.org or Facebook @PoconoMountainsMusicFestival
MORE ABOUT POCONO MOUNTAINS MUSIC FESTVAL
The mission of the Pocono Mountains Music Festival, together with its performing arts camp, is to engage world class talent from all musical genres to entertain, enrich, and educate.
The Pocono Mountains Music Festival was founded in 2009 as the Buck Hill Skytop Music Festival to offer musical and educational programming as a unique cultural resource for the northeast Pennsylvania region. We are pleased to showcase seasoned and up-and-coming performers in the disciplines including cabaret, jazz, dance, chamber music, pop, country, and musical theater. The intimate performance venues allow audiences unparalleled access to world-renowned musicians. The festival’s notable education program offers local students the opportunity to study and perform with music and theater professionals.
The Buck Hill and Skytop community’s enthusiastic response to a jewel box opera performance in the summer of 2009 inspired Buck Hill Falls homeowner David S. Mazza, M.D., to organize support for the festival. The festival has enhanced its program with new dimensions each season and has enjoyed increasing attendance.
The Festival’s Artistic Director Scott Coulter is a sought after actor, teacher, cabaret artist and director. The artistic board includes Broadway and TV actress Barbara Andres, celebrated cabaret performer Ann Hampton Callaway, award-winning playwright Tony Kushner, Metropolitan Opera star Victoria Livengood, international conductor Peter Mark, Oscar and Emmy Award-winning actress Julianne Moore, contemporary composer Thea Musgrave, and Broadway composer Jimmy Roberts, and prominent Broadway conductor Patrick Vaccariello.
The Pocono Mountains Music Festival is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit charity organization. All donations are tax- deductible to the full extent of the law. The official registration and financial information of the Pocono Mountains Music Festival may be obtained from the Pennsylvania Department of State by calling toll free, within Pennsylvania, 1-800-732-0999. Registration does not imply endorsement.