The Gateway Playhouse Offers a Full Slate of Musicals and More

It is a big year for the Gateway Playhouse in Somers Point as they near their 10th Anniversary Season, but as they brace for that landmark next summer, they are offering a plethora of opportunities to their community and hopefully to you in the meanwhile.

In years past, the Gateway has split its season among straight plays and comedies with musicals. This year marks the first time that Gateway Playhouse has presented a full season made up entirely of musicals. Next on the marquee will be “Jesus Christ Super Star” followed by “Guys and Dolls” and then “9 to 5: The Musical.”

They are offering a lot more than just their main stage musicals but we’ll let today’s guests introduce themselves and then we can jump into everything the Gateway’s got to offer.

Thanks for listening!

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Transcript

Welcome And Season Tease

Gina Marie Rodriguez 0:02

This is Gina Marie Rodriguez, and you're listening to the Jersey Arts podcast. It's a big year for the Gateway Playhouse in Summers Point as they near their 10th anniversary season. But as they brace for that landmark next summer, they're offering a plethora of opportunity to their community, and hopefully to you in the meanwhile. In years past, the Gateway has split its season among straight plays and comedies with musicals. This year marks the first time the Gateway Playhouse has presented a full season made up entirely of musicals. Next on the marquee will be Jesus Christ Superstar, followed by Guys and Dolls, and then 9 to 5 The Musical. Now they're offering a lot more than just their main stage musicals, but I think I'll let today's guests introduce themselves, and then we can jump into everything the Gateway's got to offer. And there's a lot. Stay tuned.

Meet Gateway’s Leaders

Phil Pallitto 0:52

My name is Phil Palito. I am the artistic director and the education director, and I am directing Guys and Dolls and Nine to Five on the Main Stage and the two kids' productions of Crazy For You and Newsies Jr.

Chip Garrison 1:07

I'm Chip Garrison, and I am currently directing Jesus Christ Superstar at Gateway. And I guess I'm a guest director, visiting director, or sometime director, and retired teacher.

Katie Calvi 1:19

Hi, my name is Katie Calvi, and I am the chairman of the board here at the Gateway Playhouse. I get the best job where I get to oversee all things operations as well as artistic and support the amazing team that we have here.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 1:32

I'm so excited to have you all on the podcast today. Thank you for taking the time. I can't wait to learn more about Gateway because I know this is a milestone season for you. So can you explain why to our audience?

Why An All-Musical Season

Phil Pallitto 1:44

Yeah, sure. So this year, our season is full of friends, faith, fortune, and fun. So it's really a milestone season because this is our third year of fully the Gateway Playhouse fully producing our own shows. And this is our first year of doing full, fully staged musicals with live music, with full elaborate sets, costumes, and kind of the whole shebang. And really our we listened to what our audiences were saying, and our idea was to give audiences a broad range of musical theater experiences that resonate emotionally from laughter and nostalgia to the powerful storytelling and classic Broadway song and dance. And then intertwined in our season, which consisted of we opened with your good man Charlie Brown. We're currently in rehearsals for Jesus Christ Superstar. We're getting ready to audition for Guys and Dolls, and we end our season with nine to five the musical in the fall. Um we also added something called a community spotlight. And what that is, is that really um allows our artists to make art and is really in an intimate setting um to uh celebrate storytelling. So we're starting with plays that shape and illustrate our shared human experiences. And um, those plays include Neil Simon's London Suite, The Vagina Monologues, and Harvey. So we have a jam-packed year in addition to our children's programming, which has been very successful. We're in year eight of our summer Gateway to the Arts program, um, which sold out within 20 minutes of being live. So we are very excited for everything we have to offer for our community.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 3:31

Wow. Selling out within 20 minutes of being live is amazing. Congrats on that, guys. Obviously, you have a lot going on. Can you tell me how you came up with the selection of shows? I know you wanted to do a full season of musicals, but why you're a good man, Charlie Brown? Why nine to five? How did you end how did you end up with these shows in particular?

Phil Pallitto 3:54

So um, in choosing the shows, we always really focus. We want to have each show have a message. So we want our audiences to leave with a specific message and a specific purpose. We also want to, you know, musical theater is great because you have a hundred years of storytelling and you have musicals from all different genres and all different realms. So we wanted to really showcase something different in each four of our shows and allow there to be something for everyone, both on stage and in the audiences. So we're really excited for the stories and the messages that these shows tell and for, you know, the way that these shows bring our community together, both on and off stage.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 4:36

Well, I think that's exciting. I'm trying to think if I've seen any of these shows myself. And I think I've only ever seen Guys and Dolls the movie. So I'm really out of the loop here. I've never seen You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, which it feels a little bit crazy because I think I should have. I still haven't seen Jesus Christ Superstar. And I think they did that on what was it, ABC a while back too. I don't know how I missed these things, but I I love that you guys are working on it. And I would, of course, like to talk to Chip about Jesus Christ Superstar and what you've got going on with that show

Jesus Christ Superstar Preview

Gina Marie Rodriguez 5:09

as well. What can we look forward to with Jesus Christ Superstar?

Chip Garrison 5:12

Well, the first of all, the cast is just absolutely fantastic. Some really fantastic talent uh are the two people playing Jesus have both been in the pro in a production of Jesus Christ Superstar before. The person playing one of the people playing uh Judas has been in Jesus Christ Superstar before, and uh it is an it is really an amazing cast. Um the set is designed by a gentleman named Peter Vagliano, who's a professional set designer. Uh he also does our lighting for our shows, and uh it's just a dynamic look at an interesting story and way of looking at the life of Jesus Christ, but also through the eyes of Judas Iscariot. And it's uh it at the time when it came out, it was very controversial in the early 1970s. But it's now become part of the canon of musical theater, but it's also become a spiritual event for many uh who flock to these kind of performances, especially at this time of year during Lent and getting ready for the Easter season. So it's an exciting story with a it's a rock opera and the music's fantastic, but it's also got such a meaningful story, and again, in a in a kind of an interesting perspective of looking at the life of both Jesus and Judas intertwined with one another as the events that lead up to his crucifixion.

Casting Judas As A Woman

Gina Marie Rodriguez 6:35

Now, I'm saying this as someone who hasn't seen it before, but I feel like there's something unique about your Judas is who would you like to talk about that?

Chip Garrison 6:43

Well, yes, um, and I'm not the first person to have done this. Um, we we cast uh two women to play the part of Judas's carriot. And the reason there's a several reasons. One, uh representation. The Hollywood Bowl presentation of Jesus Christ Superstar uh at the end of last year had Cynthia Arrivo, who we all know from Wicked, and she played the title role, Jesus Christ. So that's a that's a positive thing to do right there. Second, the music is written in such a way that it's it's very high for most male singers to sing. So we felt an alto-level singer is able to get those notes, and it made sense that we would have a woman play the part of Judas. And finally, I think it really adds to the dynamic of the relationship between the three principal characters. You've got Jesus, Judas, and Mary Magdalene. And the if you know the play, the the the play is told through Judas's perspective. He is upset about the direction that Jesus has taken the group of apostles in what's happening to them. And he's upset also because he's accepted Mary Magdalene in the group, who was previously someone who was not doing such good things, but he forgave her. Here we have a situation now where Judas is a little bit jealous of the attention that Mary is getting from Jesus. So I thought, well, okay, having that having that part as a woman then adds that dynamic of some kind of feeling of jealousy between them. Not saying it's a relationship, but just maybe in terms of attention. So that's the third reason why we decided to do it. I think all three reasons make it for a very uh compelling storytelling arc. And and I've done the production before. I did it this way before, also, where I had uh young lady play the part, and it really, really is very a very successful way of doing it.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 8:54

I mean, it sounds good to me. You're essentially heightening the stakes there, which is always important in a narrative. So I'm looking forward to that.

Volunteer Nonprofit And Affordable Tickets

Gina Marie Rodriguez 9:03

But you guys are offering so much, and I'd like to understand a little bit more about what what does this season mean for the community and and for local audiences? Obviously, you have a dedicated audience, you guys sell out almost immediately. So talk to me about what this means for them.

Katie Calvi 9:21

Well, I'll let Phil and Chip speak to that as the artistic side, but I first would like to just make sure um and share with you that we are registered 501c3 nonprofit. And when you come to Summers Point, New Jersey, it's uh it's a real historic area here on Bay Avenue. There's so many beautiful restaurants and the gorgeous bay. Um, and what's really important and special about our building and the people that are here, we're all volunteers. When you walk, there's no, so every dollar that comes into the building goes right back into the production. So you don't have any executive overhead when it comes to salaries. We have one paid employee that runs concessions, but the second you walk into this building, you're in a community space. The ushers are all volunteers, the lady at the box office is volunteers, everybody greeting you and welcoming you is here because they love the place. Um, and that goes for the actors and our full board that is all incredibly active. So from the second you walk in, it's a feeling of community and shared space. Um, and then there's the added bonus of when you'll when you hear about the artistic direction that Phil's taking with with this season.

Phil Pallitto 10:35

And I think it's really important that you know the building and the gateway really serves as a hub for the arts in South Jersey. So our mission is to bring popular and accessible theater and affordable theater to our community. Um, but through being intentional in our show choices, we also bring diverse audiences. So families, longtime theater goers and newcomers alike. Like one of my favorite moments in the past couple of years was we did South Pacific, which was set during World War II, and every night our audience was full of veterans from all over. And it really brought this, you know, in the beginning, we honored our veterans, and it really brought this whole new community awareness to the work that we're doing through the shared experience of theater and the fact that we were able to honor the veterans in such a in such a monumental and powerful way, and that they all came to hear the story. And then we disclosed Charlie Brown, which had an audience full of kids, you know. So I to me, it's just so great to see such a diverse representation in our community. And as a proud community member myself, it's great to see just so many people from all different walks of life. You know, the theater isn't a stuffy theater that, you know, you travel to. It's anyone comes, anyone's on stage. We have people, it's their first time on stage, and people, this is, you know, their 80th show on stage with us. So it really is a community hub. And not to mention all of our, in addition to our Gateway Produce programming, we also are housing um like a vocal recital is coming up. We're also housing some outside vendors as well that use our space as a way to bring our community together as well, which I think is a really great, powerful way.

Katie Calvi 12:33

And Phil touched on something that's really near and dear to both of our hearts. Um, when Phil and I were basically given the reins three years ago, and historically this space was four walls that outside producers could come and rent. And Phil and I don't have our own production companies, and we looked at each other and said, well, it's time that the Gateway Playhouse now produces their own shows. And our first order of business was to drastically um change the price of our tickets. Uh, tickets usually were around $35 or $40, but our mission statement is to provide affordable theater to the community. So our tickets are $15 to $25, and you are getting a show that's better than Broadway. But that is not only are we picking um amazing shows and the talent is phenomenal, but when you have a price point of $25, these shows are accessible to the community and they can make a night out of it and come and be blown away by what they're getting. The value is out of this world.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 13:33

That's amazing because it really is expensive to afford theater nowadays. So that's so important to let everyone know.

Katie Calvi 13:39

And so I I spend my time um fundraising, and we have such great community sponsors, so many local businesses that when you come to our shows, you get a, you know, not only are you seeing real live musicians and amazing artists on stage, you get a real playbill, like back in the day. There's nothing digital, and all of our um sponsors

Gateway History And 2027 Plans

Katie Calvi 14:00

are well noted in there, and we are so grateful for their support.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 14:04

I love that this is a community theater run by love. Essentially, that's that's all this is a bunch of people who really adore what they do and want to bring, you know, art and education really to audiences. So thank you guys for all that you do. It is important, and I know when you're a volunteer, sometimes you don't feel the love. And I hope that you do, but I just want to make sure to take a second and say that uh we appreciate all that you do because I know it's a lot of work.

Katie Calvi 14:33

No, I I appreciate you saying that, Gina, because it really is a labor of love. And I consistently um, from a leadership perspective, talk about our currency of kindness and love and passion for the arts. We all show up and we all absolutely love to be here. Um, and it shows and uh yeah.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 14:51

The theater had been, I don't even want to say dark is the right word. Like it was initially built, well, God, in the early 1900s, if we're really going back, right? But there was a time where in 2006, I think you guys shut down. And when you reopened in 2017, have you been with the organization since 2017? Or Katie, Phil, are you relatively Phil?

Katie Calvi 15:15

And I have been here since the beginning, since before the doors reopened. Yeah.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 15:19

Oh wow.

Katie Calvi 15:21

There was an amazing group of people that spearheaded um all the fundraising to refurbish and rehab the building. And just recently they both like two couples retired and and and basically were like, okay, Katie and Phil, you've been with us for 10 years. It's it's time, and now they are patrons and um and supporting us in the wings.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 15:43

I love that history. Thank you. Thank you for sharing. Uh and that said, gosh, it's a decade. So yeah, 2027. What do you have lined up for 2027? I'm assuming you're already planning.

Katie Calvi 15:57

Yeah, I mean, it's no pressure at all. But um, this place has been near and dear to my heart since I was a toddler. Um, my grandfather ran the Gateway Playhouse in the late 70s, 80s, and 90s. Um, and so I have been playing in this building since I was a little girl. And, you know, getting the doors opening was the was just the beginning. And now that we are thriving and successful and packed and loved by the community, the 10-year anniversary, which will be not this upcoming August, but August of 2027, is gonna be amazing. Um, so we're we're starting to plan that right now. But you know, our focus is definitely the main stage and community spotlight, and and the kids are coming. So, Gina, in the summer, um, the children take over the Gateway Playhouse, and um, we have three different sets of group of kids that come in, and Phil has three different productions. Um, and so we usually just brace ourselves for that high energy and amazing jam-pack. The theater is quiet right now, but when it comes to the summer, this place is buzzing Monday through Friday. And then um, yeah, so we're we're planning, but first we want to we want to focus on the kids because they're coming for us this summer.

Kids Program And Broadway Masterclasses

Gina Marie Rodriguez 17:14

I think that's so cool. Yeah, talk to me more about uh the children's programming and what you have available because I know you have a lot to offer.

Phil Pallitto 17:21

Yeah, so um I too actually grew up at the gateway as a kid myself on stage when I was, you know, six or seven, and I've kind of never left and been here ever since. Um but with that, you know, we really wanted to provide a safe space for kids to be themselves and to explore the arts in a fashion that they may not have access to either at their schools or through their community. So we've built what we call Gateway to the Arts. Um and it's really hands-on learning. So we put on three full-scale, fully staged productions with live music, full costumes sets, props the whole shebang. Um, and we are teaching kids in the moment with full, you know, professionals and educators. Um, and we have been so lucky over the years to be able to bring in um some Broadway professionals to do some masterclasses. Like last year we did Rent, um, and we brought in Anthony Rapp, who was the original mark in Rent. Um, when we did a course line, we brought in Baylor Glee, who was in the original production and kind of carried on the legacy of the show. So um we really, you know, focus on the art as an outlet, as a way to explore, as a way to be yourself, and as a and the gateway as a safe space for kids to be able to know that they're seen, they're heard, and that they're validated. And now that we've been open so long, we're seeing our kids in college, they're coming back and helping, and they're in the mainstage shows. And it's so great to see the kids kind of grow up in front of our eyes. And, you know, there's nothing more than watching them grow through the program and kind of starting out as a musical munchkin when they're um eight years old. And now, you know, some of them are some of our first musical munchkins are now ending their final year with us in Crazy For You. And it's really just looking at their journey and where they grew and watching their growth and development is just amazing. And the fact that we've had a role to play in that is so powerful.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 19:26

Okay, sometimes you gotta get bitten by the bug really early.

Phil Pallitto 19:31

Yeah, no, you know, absolutely. And like I said, I think what's so great about the gateway is that we do provide, you know, fully staged, fully we give them, we're doing it, we're doing the shows. It's you know, it's not just a little track or it's not, it's not abridged, it's the full, it's the full shebang. And I think that that's a really powerful learning experience for them. And in choosing those shows, we really try to curate shows that help them build a vast array or a vast resume of theatrical experiences. So, like our kids were in Rent, which is a modern show, and this year we're doing Crazy For You, which is more of a classic show. And a couple of years ago, we did Funny Girl, which is a real, you know, a real classic, and we did Oklahoma. And, you know, so I think it's really important for kids to learn that it's not just, you know, all these Disney spectaculars in terms of what's on Broadway, but really have this vast array and this big resume behind them in order to succeed, whether they choose to pursue the industry or whether they just had some great summers with their friends.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 20:41

I think that's so important. And as a a Disney lover, I do have to say that I'm a little tired of all of the Disney productions.

Phil Pallitto 20:48

I'm a Disney lover as well. Don't get don't get me wrong. But you know newsies this summer. We still are doing newsies this summer, but I do think I do think it's important that they under that kids understand that there's so much more to musical theater than you know the handful of shows that are recycled in high schools.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 21:08

Absolutely. I fully agree. And I'll give you a passive.

Phil Pallitto 21:10

I'm a high school theater director myself, so you know.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 21:13

So you're still a high school theater director, you said?

Phil Pallitto 21:16

Yes.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 21:16

I I love that. Yeah, I mean, and Chip, did you mention that you you were a teacher or you are a teacher?

Chip Garrison 21:22

I I retired after 35 years of uh running a drama program at a high school about a half hour north.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 21:28

I I think it's actually really important that people who have a background in education are stepping into directing roles because uh teachers are essentially directors anyway. So it's important that you guys have that ability and the innate understanding of how to work with children or even adults, you know. Sometimes you just need to treat adults.

Chip Garrison 21:47

They're just they're just older children.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 21:48

It's really I I was just saying to my friends the other day, I'm essentially a toddler, you know, in my 30s, but I'm I'm a toddler. That said, did you mention you said that there were. Three shows that you're doing for the kids? Did I get the right child or two?

Age Groups And Summer Shows

Phil Pallitto 22:05

Oh, I'm sorry. So we have three different age groups. We have our musical munchkins, um, which I and I don't know the age. I've always forget the seven to nine. Seven to nine, because if I say a wrong age, um, there's ages seven to nine, and they um really it's the first introduction to theater. They do a musical review, which this year is Disney through the years. Um, and then our middle schoolers are doing newsies junior and our high schoolers are doing crazy for you.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 22:31

Okay, I think that's important. That was gonna be my next question. What are the ages that you're working with?

Katie Calvi 22:35

Because and as a mom myself, like I have a I have a current gr musical munching graduate, and he is in he's ready to be part of newsies this year because he spent the past three summers coming here two days a week and really warming up to the idea of, you know, the place is beautiful. Like we have, you know, red velvet seats, a full, you know, concessions bar, like all the big lights, and it's dark in here compared to your high school or your middle school cafeteria. So the Musical Munchkins program is a great way to warm these kids up to the big show. And they come prepared once they're 10 years old. They're at 10 to 13 year olds are doing newsies this summer. And then our 14 to 18-year-olds are our high school group, and a lot of them are, you know, ready to go to college. And and and most a lot of them spend their time either post-college here at the gateway, you know, they they always want to stay connected.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 23:33

That must be so exciting for a child to perform in a real theater for the first time. I mean, even for an adult to perform in a real theater for the first time, it's huge once once those lights go down. That there's no better feeling, in my opinion.

Katie Calvi 23:47

It's beautiful. And we have, sorry, Phil, I just wanted to say, like, we are, it is the real deal, but it's also intimate. We have 220 seats, so it's not super intimidating, like a thousand seats.

Phil Pallitto 23:58

And even for our musical munchkin show, we still give live musicians, which I know a lot of kids have never worked with live musicians before. They still have little costumes. They still, you know, we still make it each production as real and as authentic as possible. Um, and it's great because our our commun going back to our community, our community is so supportive. They're coming because they love newsies or they love Crazy for You and they just want to see the show, not necessarily because they have a kid in the show. So those tickets are really hard to get, but but it's it's so great that they have that our community is so supportive of our kids as much as they are of our mainstage shows as well.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 24:41

That's so good to

Tickets And How To Visit

Gina Marie Rodriguez 24:42

hear. And I I do want to clarify since we're talking about your upcoming season, are there tickets still available? You guys sell out so fast, I don't even know if you have tickets available.

Phil Pallitto 24:52

Yes, so tickets for Jesus Christ Superstar are selling really quickly. So the best thing to do is go to our website. I say book your tickets for everything now. Everything is on our website except for our um kids shows. They are released on July 1st. But I would book your tickets now because we tend to sell out for everything. And once we're sold, we're sold.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 25:13

So yeah, well, you heard them, guys. I guess you should be heading to that website right now and buying your tickets, and they're very affordable, so you can buy in bulk.

Phil Pallitto 25:21

And our um our matinee or our last matinee of Jesus Christ Superstar is already sold out.

Katie Calvi 25:27

Uh yeah, and that opens in three weeks. Yes. No pressure, no pressure chip.

Chip Garrison 25:32

No pressure at all.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 25:34

I have to say, I'm so impressed by everything the gateway is doing, and you obviously have so much to offer your community, and it's wonderful that your community is receiving it and is grateful for it. I'm I gotta get to Summer's Point, obviously. Yes.

Katie Calvi 25:48

Summers point Summers Point is a really special town that a lot of people, you know, the word got out a couple years ago, I feel like during COVID, when people were coming down the shore to find, you know, towns. But you know, we've got Ocean City right over the bridge. Like we can see Ocean City when you look out our window, and then you can see Atlantic City the other way if you look north. Um, so Summers Point is this perfect little gem right on the bay with great restaurants and our theater. So we are we're a secret that's getting out, that's for sure.

Phil Pallitto 26:21

And it's great because we do have like a lot of summer residents, so we do have people from all over that are in our shows, and we have people that drive an hour to an hour and a half to come and be in our shows and attend our shows. So it really is a hub, a theater hub.

Chip Garrison 26:38

It's a very special place. It really, really is. I mean, I've worked at a number of different theaters in throughout Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and this is a this is a little gem that that's just now really beginning to be known for doing really quality work. And and the reputation of the theater is growing by leaps and bounds. And again, as Phil said, all these actors that are now coming to us from Camden and from Cherry Hill and from Pennsylvania to be in our shows shows that our reputation is really gaining a foothold in South Jersey, but also in a in a much larger sense, the area all Philadelphia Southern area.

Gina Marie Rodriguez 27:20

That's very clear. And I'm so happy to be able to help you shop this secret from the rooftops because more people need to know about how amazing it is down at Summers Point and at the Gateway Playhouse. I'm so grateful that you guys took the time to speak with me today. Thank you so much. Thank you. The upcoming production of Jesus Christ Superstar at the Gateway Playhouse in Summers Point will run April 9th through the 16th. For tickets and more information about this show and about the Gateway Playhouse, be sure to visit gatewaybythebay.org. You can also follow them on Facebook or Instagram at Gateway by the Bay. If you liked this episode, be sure to review, subscribe, and tell your friends. A transcript of this podcast, links relevant to the story, and more about the arts in New Jersey can be found at jerseyarts.com. The JerseyArts Podcast is presented by Art Pride New Jersey, advancing a state of creativity since 1986. The show was co-founded by and currently supported by funds from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. This episode was hosted, edited, and produced by me, Gina Marie Rodriguez. Executive producers are Jim Atkinson and Isaac Cernadiaz. And my thanks, of course, to Phil Palito, Chip Garrison, and Katie Calvi for speaking with me today. I'm Gina Marie Rodriguez for the Jersey Arts Podcast. Thanks for listening.