Aging is inevitable, and for many, it signals the beginning of a new chapter - one where you cross off bucket list items and live life to the fullest, on your own terms. However, for some women, aging is a horrible prospect, filled with chronic fatigue, irritability, and inability to perform in the bedroom. If you're concerned about life in middle age and beyond, we've got great news: there are easy, proven steps that you can take to help stop the negative effect of aging.
Global Life Rejuvenation was founded to give women a new lease on life - one that includes less body fat, fewer mood swings, and more energy as you age. If you're ready to look and feel younger, it's time to consider HRT (hormone replacement therapy), and growth hormone peptides. These therapies for men and women are effective, safe, and customized to fit your goals, so you can keep loving life as you get older.
HRT, and growth hormone peptide therapies bridge the gap between your old life and the more vibrant, happier version of you. With a simple click or call, you can be well on your way to a brighter future. After all, you deserve to be the one in charge of your wellness and health. Now, you have the tools to do so - backed by science and applied by our team of HRT experts with more than 13 years of experience.
As women age, their hormones begin to go through changes that affect their day-to-day lives. For women, hormone deficiency and imbalance usually occur during menopause and can cause chronic fatigue, hot flashes, and mood swings, among other issues. Hormone replacement therapy helps correct hormone imbalances in women, helping them feel more vibrant and virile as they age.
Often, HRT treatments give patients enhanced quality of life that they didn't think was possible - even in their 60's and beyond.
The benefits for women are numerous and are available today through Global Life Rejuvenation.
As women age, their bodies begin to go through significant changes that affect their quality of life. This change is called menopause and marks the end of a woman's menstrual cycle and reproduction ability. Though there is no specific age when this change occurs, the average age of menopause onset is 51 years old. However, according to doctors, menopause officially starts 12 months after a woman's final period. During the transition to menopause, women's estrogen and other hormones begin to deplete.
As that happens, many women experience severe symptoms. These symptoms include:
The symptoms of hormone deficiency can be concerning and scary for both women and their spouses. However, if you're getting older and notice some of these symptoms, there is reason to be hopeful. Hormone replacement therapy and anti-aging medicine for women can correct imbalances that happen during menopause. These safe, effective treatments leave you feeling younger, healthier, and more vibrant.
The most common reason for menopause is the natural decline in a female's reproductive hormones. However, menopause can also result from the following situations:
Oophorectomy: This surgery, which removes a woman's ovaries, causes immediate menopause. Symptoms and signs of menopause in this situation can be severe, as the hormonal changes happen abruptly.
Chemotherapy: Cancer treatments like chemotherapy can induce menopause quickly, causing symptoms to appear shortly after or even during treatment.
Ovarian Insufficiency: Also called premature ovarian failure, this condition is essentially premature menopause. It happens when a woman's ovaries quit functioning before the age of 40 and can stem from genetic factors and disease. Only 1% of women suffer from premature menopause, but HRT can help protect the heart, brain, and bones.
For many women, menopause is a trying time that can be filled with many hormonal hurdles to jump through. A little knowledge can go a long way, whether you're going through menopause now or are approaching "that" age.
Here are some of the most common issues that women experience during menopause:
If you're a woman going through menopause and find that you have become increasingly depressed, you're not alone. It's estimated that 15% of women experience depression to some degree while going through menopause. What many women don't know is that depression can start during perimenopause, or the years leading up to menopause.
Depression can be hard to diagnose, especially during perimenopause and menopause. However, if you notice the following signs, it might be time to speak with a physician:
Remember, if you're experiencing depression, you're not weak or broken - you're going through a very regular emotional experience. The good news is that with proper treatment from your doctor, depression isn't a death sentence. And with HRT and anti-aging treatment for women, depression could be the catalyst you need to enjoy a new lease on life.
Hot flashes - they're one of the most well-known symptoms of menopause. Hot flashes are intense, sudden feelings of heat across a woman's upper body. Some last second, while others last minutes, making them incredibly inconvenient and uncomfortable for most women.
Symptoms of hot flashes include:
Typically, hot flashes are caused by a lack of estrogen. Low estrogen levels negatively affect a woman's hypothalamus, the part of the brain that controls body temperature and appetite. Low estrogen levels cause the hypothalamus to incorrectly assume the body is too hot, dilating blood vessels to increase blood flow. Luckily, most women don't have to settle for the uncomfortable feelings that hot flashes cause. HRT treatments for women often stabilize hormones, lessening the effects of hot flashes and menopause in general.
Mood swings are common occurrences for most people - quick shifts from happy to angry and back again, triggered by a specific event. And while many people experience mood swings, they are particularly common for women going through menopause. That's because, during menopause, the female's hormones are often imbalanced. Hormone imbalances and mood swings go hand-in-hand, resulting in frequent mood changes and even symptoms like insomnia.
The rate of production of estrogen, a hormone that fluctuates during menopause, largely determines the rate of production the hormone serotonin, which regulates mood, causing mood swings.
Luckily, HRT and anti-aging treatments in Broadway, NJ for women work wonders for mood swings by regulating hormone levels like estrogen. With normal hormone levels, women around the world are now learning that they don't have to settle for mood swings during menopause.
Staying fit and healthy is hard for anyone living in modern America. However, for women with hormone imbalances during perimenopause or menopause, weight gain is even more serious. Luckily, HRT treatments for women coupled with a physician-led diet can help keep weight in check. But which hormones need to be regulated?
Lowered sexual desire - three words most men and women hate to hear. Unfortunately, for many women in perimenopausal and menopausal states, it's just a reality of life. Thankfully, today, HRT and anti-aging treatments Broadway, NJ can help women maintain a normal, healthy sex drive. But what causes low libido in women, especially as they get older?
The hormones responsible for low libido in women are progesterone, estrogen, and testosterone.
Progesterone production decreases during perimenopause, causing low sex drive in women. Lower progesterone production can also cause chronic fatigue, weight gain, and other symptoms. On the other hand, lower estrogen levels during menopause lead to vaginal dryness and even vaginal atrophy or loss of muscle tension.
Lastly, testosterone plays a role in lowered libido. And while testosterone is often grouped as a male hormone, it contributes to important health and regulatory functionality in women. A woman's testosterone serves to heighten sexual responses and enhances orgasms. When the ovaries are unable to produce sufficient levels of testosterone, it often results in a lowered sex drive.
Often uncomfortable and even painful, vaginal dryness is a serious problem for sexually active women. However, like hair loss in males, vaginal dryness is very common - almost 50% of women suffer from it during menopause.
Getting older is just a part of life, but that doesn't mean you have to settle for the side effects. HRT and anti-aging treatments for women correct vaginal dryness by re-balancing estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone. When supplemented with diet and healthy living, your vagina's secretions are normalized, causing discomfort to recede.
Uterine fibroids - they're perhaps the least-known symptom of menopause and hormone imbalances in women. That's because these growths on the uterus are often symptom-free. Unfortunately, these growths can be cancerous, presenting a danger for women as they age.
Many women will have fibroids at some point. Because they're symptomless, they're usually found during routine doctor exams. Some women only get one or two, while others may have large clusters of fibroids. Because fibroids are usually caused by hormone imbalances, hysterectomies have been used as a solution, forcing women into early menopause.
Advances in HRT and anti-aging medicine for women give females a safer, non-surgical option without having to experience menopause early. At Global Life Rejuvenation, our expert physicians will implement a customized HRT program to stabilize your hormones and reduce the risk of cancerous fibroid growth.
Endometriosis symptoms are much like the effects of PMS, and include pelvic pain, fatigue, cramping, and bloating. While doctors aren't entirely sure what causes this painful, uncomfortable condition, most agree that hormones - particularly xenoestrogens - play a factor.
Endometriosis symptoms are much like the effects of PMS and include pelvic pain, fatigue, cramping, and bloating. While doctors aren't entirely sure what causes this painful, uncomfortable condition, most agree that hormones - particularly xenoestrogens - play a factor.
Xenoestrogen is a hormone that is very similar to estrogen. Too much xenoestrogen is thought to stimulate endometrial tissue growth. HRT for women helps balance these hormones and, when used with a custom nutrition program, can provide relief for women across the U.S.
Hormone stability is imperative for a healthy sex drive and for a normal, stress-free life during menopause. HRT and anti-aging treatments for women balance the hormones that your body has altered due to perimenopause or menopause.
HRT for women is a revolutionary step in helping women live their best lives, even as they grow older. However, at Global Life Rejuvenation, we know that no two patients are the same. That's why we specialize in holistic treatments that utilize HRT, combined with healthy nutrition, supplements, and fitness plans that maximize hormone replacement treatments.
If you've been suffering through menopause, is HRT the answer? That's hard to say without an examination by a trusted physician, but one thing's for sure. When a woman balances her hormone levels, she has a much better shot at living a regular life with limited depression, weight gain, mood swings, and hot flashes.
Here are just a few additional benefits of HRT and anti-aging treatments for females:
Hormone imbalance causes a litany of issues. But with anti-aging treatments for women, females can better process calcium, keep their cholesterol levels safe, and maintain a healthy vagina. By replenishing the body's estrogen supply, HRT can relieve symptoms from menopause and protect against osteoporosis. But that's just the start.
Global Life Rejuvenation's patients report many more benefits of HRT and anti-aging medicine for women:
If you're ready to feel better, look better, and recapture the vitality of your youth, it's time to contact Global Life Rejuvenation. It all starts with an in-depth consultation, where we will determine if HRT and anti-aging treatments for women are right for you. After all, every patient's body and hormone levels are different. Since all our treatment options are personalized, we do not have a single threshold for treatment. Instead, we look at our patient's hormone levels and analyze them on a case-by-case basis.
At Global Life Rejuvenation, we help women rediscover their youth with HRT treatment for women. We like to think of ourselves as an anti-aging concierge service, guiding and connecting our patients to the most qualified HRT physicians available. With customized HRT treatment plan for women, our patients experience fewer menopausal symptoms, less perimenopause & menopause depression, and often enjoy a more youth-like appearance.
Growth hormone peptides are an innovative therapy that boosts the natural human growth hormone production in a person's body. These exciting treatment options help slow down the aging process and give you a chance at restoring your youth.
Sermorelin is a synthetic hormone peptide, like GHRH, which triggers the release of growth hormones. When used under the care of a qualified physician, Sermorelin can help you lose weight, increase your energy levels, and help you feel much younger.
Human growth hormone (HGH) therapy has been used for years to treat hormone deficiencies. Unlike HGH, which directly replaces declining human growth hormone levels, Sermorelin addresses the underlying cause of decreased HGH, stimulating the pituitary gland naturally. This approach keeps the mechanisms of growth hormone production active.
Ipamorelin helps to release growth hormones in a person's body by mimicking a peptide called ghrelin. Ghrelin is one of three hormones which work together to regulate the growth hormone levels released by the pituitary gland. Because Ipamorelin stimulates the body to produce growth hormone, your body won't stop its natural growth hormone production, which occurs with synthetic HGH.
Ipamorelin causes growth hormone secretion that resembles natural release patterns rather than being constantly elevated from HGH. Because ipamorelin stimulates the natural production of growth hormone, our patients can use this treatment long-term with fewer health risks.
One of the biggest benefits of Ipamorelin is that it provides significant short and long-term benefits in age management therapies. Ipamorelin can boost a patient's overall health, wellbeing, and outlook on life.
When there is an increased concentration of growth hormone by the pituitary gland, there are positive benefits to the body. Some benefits include:
Whether you are considering our HRT and anti-aging treatments for women in Broadway, NJ, we are here to help. The first step to reclaiming your life begins by contacting Global Life Rejuvenation. Our friendly, knowledgeable HRT experts can help answer your questions and walk you through our procedures. From there, we'll figure out which treatments are right for you. Before you know it, you'll be well on your way to looking and feeling better than you have in years!
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Kimberly Akimbo, a heartfelt new Broadway musical, is putting New Jersey in the spotlight. Not since Jersey Boys has a theatrical production brought so much attention to the Garden State.The musical, set largely in Bergen County, is a frontrunner to win best musical at the Tony Awards on June 11. Nominated for best new musical, it stars Victoria Clark, who plays Kimberly and was nominated for best leading actress in a musical. (Justin Cooley, a 19-year-old actor making his Broadway debut, was nominated for best featu...
Kimberly Akimbo, a heartfelt new Broadway musical, is putting New Jersey in the spotlight. Not since Jersey Boys has a theatrical production brought so much attention to the Garden State.
The musical, set largely in Bergen County, is a frontrunner to win best musical at the Tony Awards on June 11. Nominated for best new musical, it stars Victoria Clark, who plays Kimberly and was nominated for best leading actress in a musical. (Justin Cooley, a 19-year-old actor making his Broadway debut, was nominated for best featured actor in a musical. Bonnie Milligan, who gets a lot of laughs in the play, was nominated for best featured actress in a musical. Jessica Stone was nominated for best direction of a musical, and David Lindsay-Abaire, interviewed below, was nominated for best book of a musical. The musical was also nominated for best original score—music by Jeanine Tesori and lyrics by Lindsay-Abaire—and best orchestrations.)
The show, a real crowd-pleaser, tells the story of a lonely teenage girl from New Jersey named Kimberly Levaco, who has a health condition that causes her to age rapidly, giving her the appearance of a woman in her early 70s. Since the average lifespan for people who suffer from the condition is 16 years, Kimberly is determined to find happiness in a world where time is running out for her.
The musical is based on David Lindsay-Abaire’s 2001 comedy of the same name.
Kimberly Akimbo opens with Kimberly about to celebrate her 16th birthday alone at an ice skating rink in Bergen County. The cast sings about Paramus, Ho-Ho-Kus, West Orange and Bayonne. Kimberly’s family refers to something bad that happened when they lived in Lodi, forcing them to move.
“It’s Friday night in Bergen County, and there are parties everywhere,” the opening number begins.
Eventually, Kimberly makes some friends, including Delia, a girl played by South Jersey native Olivia Elease Hardy, making her Broadway debut. Hardy grew up in Sicklerville in Gloucester Township and is the only cast member from New Jersey.
“Since I’m from down south, I didn’t understand the Bergen County jokes,” says Hardy, 24, with a laugh. “Everybody was like, ‘You know about Lodi, right?’ But I didn’t know anything about it.”
She believes New Jersey works well as a setting for the play because it’s one of the most culturally diverse states in the country, so there’s something for nearly everyone to relate to.
Hardy says it’s fun to hear the reaction of the audience, especially when it’s obvious they come from one of the towns being mentioned. “I guess being from New Jersey, I’m always in on the joke,” she says. “I’ve had the best time. I couldn’t ask for a better cast, creative team, script and story. I think the show is important, especially right now, since conversations about death and loss have been so prevalent. It’s so important to remind people that you have the option to live life the way you want to live.”
Audience member Josie Harris especially enjoyed a scene about a big competition between Kimberly’s school and her own hometown of West Orange. “I found it very entertaining—I went in not knowing what to expect,” she says.
Photo courtesy of Joan Marcus
Lindsay-Abaire received the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2007 for his play Rabbit Hole and has been nominated for several Tony Awards. He also wrote the book for the musicals High Fidelity, Shrek the Musical and Good People.
Lindsay-Abaire, who grew up in South Boston and now lives in Brooklyn with his wife, says the working class Bergen County town in the musical mirrors his own childhood hometown. He spoke with New Jersey Monthly.
How did you come up with the idea for this musical? It was a play 20 years before it was a musical. And the play came about when I asked a friend about his new baby niece, and he said, “She’s amazing. She’s like this little old woman trapped in a baby’s body,” and that was the seed of the play. As I thought about it, the baby protagonist became a teenager, and I thought, What a great a role for an older actress, to play a character who was dealing with typical teen concerns like crushes and a dysfunctional family, while simultaneously contending with her own mortality.
Many years later, the composer Jeanine Tesori and I were working on Shrek the Musical together, and there were so many people involved on that show and so many producers giving notes, and I said to her, “I’d love to write another musical with you, but I wish we could do it the way I write a play, where there’s no one else involved until we’re ready to share it.” And she loved that idea. So Jeanine was the one who pulled Kimberly off a shelf and said, “I think there’s a musical in here.”
I read that you wanted to set it in Boston, but ended up setting it in New Jersey instead. Can you talk about why you set it in New Jersey? Honestly, while the play isn’t strictly autobiographical, there is a lot of personal stuff that I channeled into the play, including bits about my family, and I wanted to distance myself from the material to fool myself (and maybe my family members) into thinking I wasn’t writing about my family.
So instead of setting it in South Boston, where I’m from, I set the play in a working class New Jersey neighborhood that felt like South Boston. My friends from Jersey are so similar to the people I grew up with—they’re honest and funny and often prickly on the surface, but have big hearts and gooey centers, and those are the people I wanted in my story. So Jersey is just Southie in disguise.
New Jersey figures prominently in this play—especially towns in Bergen County. Were you already familiar with those towns? How did you come to use them in the play?Yeah, I have lots of friends and family who are from Jersey or who have lived in Jersey, so I’m pretty familiar with it, especially Bergen County. Plus, we have several Jersey folks on the Kimberly team, both onstage and behind the scenes, who were there to keep me honest if something didn’t feel quite right to them. If I ever had a question, I had several experts on hand. And as a writer, the more specific I could be, the more truthful and authentic the story would feel, so that’s how all the Jersey details got sprinkled in.
Audience members from New Jersey have told Kimberly Akimbo‘s creator, David Lindsay-Abaire, that the show “feels like home.” Photo courtesy of Joan Marcus
Have you had feedback from Jersey residents who attend the play? Were they excited to hear their towns mentioned? One of the most gratifying things to me as a writer on this show is when someone from Jersey tells me that the show feels like home to them. They love the town shout-outs and the various locations mentioned. Although we deliberately don’t mention exactly where in Bergen County Kimberly lives, I’ve had several audience members tell me that they know precisely which ice skating rink is being referenced in the show. Then another audience member will say, “No, it’s another rink,” and they argue with each other. I love that.
Did you think it would be funny to set it in New Jersey?I understand that, to a lot of people, Jersey can be a punchline, but I was never interested in making fun of Jersey or having a laugh at Jersey’s expense. So it’s always surprising to me when people say, “There are so many Jersey jokes in the show!” There actually aren’t.
There are lots of Jersey references and towns mentioned, and sometimes the audience will laugh at that, but I think that’s more because they’ve been conditioned to believe that Jersey [is a] laugh line. But as the writer, I’m not usually trying to get a laugh in those moments; I’m just telling the audience where we are. And sure, some of the teenage characters complain about their town and wanting to escape it, but that’s a universal experience. It’s exactly what I felt growing up in Southie, and what friends of mine felt. Their longing to be somewhere else isn’t about New Jersey; it’s about teenagers dreaming of a different life. Who doesn’t want to escape where they’re from?
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New Jersey Theatre Alliance ("the Alliance") hosted its annual Curtain Call celebration on April 17 at Kean University. This year's focus was on staff, volunteers, and board members of Alliance member theatres, who were instrumental in helping their theatre navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. The night honored John J. Wooten, Producing Artistic Director at Premiere Stages at Kean University with the Star Award and Dr. Stuart Weiss, Founder of Intelligent Crowd...
New Jersey Theatre Alliance ("the Alliance") hosted its annual Curtain Call celebration on April 17 at Kean University. This year's focus was on staff, volunteers, and board members of Alliance member theatres, who were instrumental in helping their theatre navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. The night honored John J. Wooten, Producing Artistic Director at Premiere Stages at Kean University with the Star Award and Dr. Stuart Weiss, Founder of Intelligent Crowd Solutions, with the Beacon Award.
See photos below!
Over 200 guests, representing the Alliance's member theatres, arts supporters, and community partners gathered to celebrate the first in-person Curtain Call celebration since 2019. The event raised $62,000 to support the work of New Jersey Theatre Alliance as they unite, promote, and strengthen professional theatres in the state and region.
"This celebration was a wonderful way to recognize the many individuals who have been leaders and innovators in the survival of our amazing theatre community," says John McEwen, Executive Director of New Jersey Theatre Alliance.
Star Award recipient and Producing Artistic Director at Premiere Stages at Kean University, John J. Wooten says, "Serving on the Board of the Theatre Alliance has been one of the highlights of my career. Being recognized alongside the extraordinary staff of New Jersey theatres, who accomplished incredible feats navigating their companies through the challenges of the past few years, makes this honor particularly special."
Dr. Stuart Weiss, Beacon Award recipient and Founder of Intelligent Crowd Solutions proclaimed in his speech, "It is with humility and pride that I accept this award. I'm glad that I was able to be a beacon to guide you through the pandemic. Not a single theatre closed in the state of New Jersey and we managed to keep the arts and theatre going and kept it a part of our lives to get through the dark times."
Twenty-eight individuals were honored with an Award of Excellence. Awardees, each from a different Alliance member theatre, ranged from staff members, to trustees, to technicians, to performers. "All of us at the theatres have someone we'd like to express our gratitude to, someone who really went the extra mile creatively to sustain us during the months and years we were separated from our audiences and each other. And this event is a beautiful opportunity to publicly thank these special people," says Laura Ekstrand, Chair of the Alliance Board of Trustees and Artistic Director of Vivid Stage
"Curtain Call" is the essential celebration for New Jersey theatre world as we honor outstanding individuals - John J. Wooten and Dr. Weiss. Both gentlemen discovered engaging and innovative ways to navigate the Covid crisis. When most other theatres on the country were focused on streaming during the pandemic, John had Premiere Stages staging shows outside. And Dr. Weiss was the critical element that provided coherent and sound medical advice so our theatres could re-open safely. In addition, each member theatre has selected the person that performed herculean tasks during the Covid-19 period," explains Marshall Jones III, President of the Alliance Board of Trustees and Associate Dean for Equity, Associate Professor - theatre, Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers, the state university of NJ.
The evening of celebration featured performances by actor and singer/songwriter Kena Anae, who's albums are distributed by Universal Music Italy. His theatre credits include Premiere Stages: Certain Aspects of Conflict in the Negro Family. Baltimore Center Stage: Marley the Musical. Film/TV: Begin Again, Lola vs., Kinyarwanda, The View.
Proceeds from Curtain Call will enable the Alliance to continue its work uniting theatres in a collaborative network, and providing a wide range of services and resources to help ensure each of our member theatres is on the path to full recovery.
Photo credit: Ian Alfano
New Jersey Theatre Community celebrates Curtain Call 2023
Connie Alexis-Laona, John J. Wooten, John McEwen, Pat Barksdale
Michael Stotts, Dr. Stuart Weiss, John McEwen
State Theatre New Jersey Presents Dave Mason, June 5
The fully renovated State Theatre New Jersey presents Dave Mason: Endangered Species Tour 2023 on Wednesday, June 7 at 7:30pm. Opening for Dave Mason is Southern rock group, The Georgia Thunderbolts. Tickets range from $29-$79.
Palisades Virtuosi to Present BLUE SKIES - GREEN MEADOWS at the Unitarian Society of Ridgewood
The critically-acclaimed Palisades Virtuosi flute, clarinet and piano trio, 2022 winner of The American Prize - Ernst Bacon Award for their performances of American music, will be in concert on Sunday, June 4 at 3:00 PM, performing Blue Skies - Green Meadows at the Unitarian Society of Ridgewood.
Eden Espinosa, Hiram Delgado & More to Star in TWO SISTERS AND A PIANO at Two River Theater
Two River Theater will conclude their 2022/2023 season with Two Sisters and a Piano, a passionate tale of revolution, art, and dreams written and directed by Pulitzer Prize-winner Nilo Cruz. See who is starring, and learn how to purchase tickets!
State Theatre New Jersey presents Tom Jones
The fully renovated State Theatre New Jersey presents Tom Jones – Ages & Stages Tour on Monday, May 22 at 7:30pm.
3-minute readThe Vanguard Theater may be the best-kept secret in Montclair.Case in point: Their current production, the Tony-award-winning musical "Passing Strange," about a Black musician’s quest for identity, is getting rave reviews.It stars three Broadway actors including veteran Dwayne Clark, who dashes to Vanguard’s stage after rehearsing at the Nederlan...
The Vanguard Theater may be the best-kept secret in Montclair.
Case in point: Their current production, the Tony-award-winning musical "Passing Strange," about a Black musician’s quest for identity, is getting rave reviews.
It stars three Broadway actors including veteran Dwayne Clark, who dashes to Vanguard’s stage after rehearsing at the Nederlander Theater in New York City for "Shucked," opening on the Great White Way on March 8.
“Dwayne has the most ridiculous schedule,” said Vanguard’s founder Janeece Freeman Clark of her husband (they met in the Broadway cast of "Urinetown.") “He’s singing all day. But when the curtain comes down at 11 p.m., he hasn’t missed a beat.”
Another Broadway veteran, Montclair resident Brandi Chavonne Massey, who played the first Black Elphaba on Broadway in "Wicked," has a prominent role, along with Montclair High School graduate and resident Jason Tyler Smith, fresh off the national tour of "Rent."
Ticket prices are $20 to $40, less than the price of transportation into New York City.
Yet in a recent post on a Montclair Facebook page, one attendee, who called the show “amazing,” lamented that there were empty seats in the small theater on the first of only two weekends. ("Passing Strange" closes March 5). Another poster didn’t seem to know Montclair had a theater. “Where is it?” he asked.
Vanguard’s location, in a renovated ballroom dance hall in Montclair’s 4th Ward, the town’s historically Black neighborhood, is slightly off the town’s beaten path. But that’s by design, said Freeman Clark, who founded the company to address a "lack of true diversity in theater” − in casting training, producing, creative teams and audiences.
In the last two years, the company has been putting its principles into practice with productions of "Rent," "Spitfire Grill," "Next to Normal" and "A Portrait of Ray," about Ray Charles, written by Freeman Clark and her husband.
In "Next to Normal," for instance, the lead was played by a Black actor, opening up a conversation about mental health issues specific to the Black community. Community partners, such as Integrated Care Concepts, spoke to audiences on the topic and how to get help. For "Rent," Vanguard partnered with Out Montclair and the AIDS-advocacy nonprofit Hyacinth to discuss issues around HIV AIDs and marginalized communities.
“Color-conscious casting can really change the narrative,” Freeman Clark said.
Previous coverage:Montclair's newest theater company, Vanguard, set to open
Also central to Vanguard’s mission is education, said Freeman Clark, who teaches musical theater at the Manhattan School of Music, is a professor of theater at Seton Hall and formerly directed youth in NJPAC's musical theater program. At a three-week summer stock sleepaway camp in West Milford, kids produce shows and one-act-play festivals and attend workshops on singing, dancing and acting with the guidance of Broadway actors.
The price is a fraction of what other theater camps cost, and Vanguard gives out more than $50,000 in financial aid, Freeman Clark said. “We strongly believe in access to a quality arts education regardless of zip code or what the family’s financial situation is,” she said. “When you bring people of different backgrounds together who have a shared love of theater, the stereotypes and barriers come down.”
Other youth programs at the theater such at VTC Kids and VTC Next have those as young as three working with mentors on all aspects of theater, from writing to costume design to choreography to music; Broadway veterans, and older kids are mentors. A recent performance of "Alice’s Rock and Roll Adventure" featured a band completely comprised of musicians under age 14.
“It doesn’t matter if you’ve ever walked onto a stage before,” Freeman Clark said. “We create a safe space where kids feel free to be themselves unapologetically so they can really create.”
The economics of running a theater in Montclair are daunting. In 1990, the Whole Theater, run by Olympia Dukkakis for 17 years, closed after government budget cuts; the Luna Stage moved to West Orange in 2010 and 12 Miles West moved to Bloomfield in 2015. (It’s now in Rutherford.)
Freeman Clark hopes to beat the odds. So far, government funds have helped. During the pandemic COVID grants from that state helped with HVAC and bathroom upgrades to the old proscenium theater at 180 Bloomfield Ave.
Then and now, Lin Manuel-Miranda's family foundation, TeeRico, has been a big supporter and this month, the Michael Jordan Foundation announced that Vanguard is one of two theater companies in the country receiving a donation from the Jordan Brand’s Community Grant Program, an initiative of its Black Community Commitment supporting grassroots, non-profits that are improving Black lives in their neighborhoods.
And while ticket prices don't come close to covering costs, "getting butts in seats" is crucial, Freeman Clark said. It often leads to individual donations, when people "are blown away and ask how they can help."
"The more notice we get in the community, the better," she said.
To illustrate Vanguard's plight, Freeman Clark referenced a scene in Seussical, where "people living on this little flower in another universe shout out, ‘We are here,'" she said.
"That’s our inside joke. We just need people to know we are here. Because everyone who comes says, ‘Oh my goodness, how did we not know you're here? We will be back.'”
Julia Martin covers Montclair for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
Lin-Manuel Miranda, a long-time Yankees fans, brought his son to the kid’s first baseball game on Sunday — and ducked into the visiting clubhouse — and the Minnesota Twins (understan...
Lin-Manuel Miranda, a long-time Yankees fans, brought his son to the kid’s first baseball game on Sunday — and ducked into the visiting clubhouse — and the Minnesota Twins (understandably) made a song and dance about it.
Miranda, composer of the Broadway musical mega-hit “Hamilton” and other productions, is a cousin of Twins’ infielder Jose Miranda. Ever since Jose Miranda arrived in the big leagues last season, teammates — like reliever Emilio — have been bugging him for an introduction. They got it Sunday. The Mirandas had tried a reunion at Yankee Stadium last year, but the game was rained out.
BUY YANKEES TICKETS:STUBHUB, VIVID SEATS,TICKETMASTER
“I know he was here to see Jose and show his son around, but I had to say hi. I had to,” Pagán told the Star-Tribune. “My older brother Javier is in theater, and he played the Lin-Manuel role in ‘In The Heights’ in a show back home in South Carolina. I told him that, and I told him my daughters absolutely love his movies, ‘Vivo’ and ‘Encanto.’ I said I can’t wait for the next one.”
Jose Miranda chuckled at the star-struck Twins: “Everyone was super excited, like, ‘Wow, he’s here,’” he said. “Some guys took pictures. Yeah, it was fun.”
The Broadway superstar, whose “New York, New York” adaptation opens later this month, said he (and all of the Mirandas) have been proudly watching his cousin’s major-league ascent. After batting .268 with 15 homers and 66 RBIs last season, Miranda is hitting .237 this season with six RBIs.
“It’s been really lovely to watch his rise,” he said. “He’s just so gifted and a lovely, humble guy,” Lin-Manuel Miranda said. “Our whole family is so proud. The entire cousin network is always on high alert when he’s at bat.”
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The extended run of “Funny Girl” is coming to an end this September.Lea Michele will take her final bow as Fanny Brice on the Broadway stage on Sept. 3.“Funny Girl” will then embark on a nationwide tour, where they will stop in more than 30 North American cities.If you want to see the semi-autobiographical stor...
The extended run of “Funny Girl” is coming to an end this September.
Lea Michele will take her final bow as Fanny Brice on the Broadway stage on Sept. 3.
“Funny Girl” will then embark on a nationwide tour, where they will stop in more than 30 North American cities.
If you want to see the semi-autobiographical story of famed comedienne Fanny Brice, there are still several tickets available on StubHub, Vivid Seats, TicketNetwork, TicketCity and Ticketmaster.
At the time of publication, fans of the hit musical can find tickets as low as $74 on StubHub.
Lea Michele officially replaced Beanie Feldstein in the Fanny Brice role on Sept. 6, 2022. According to Variety, critics have applauded Michele for taking ownership of her role and differentiating herself from Barbara Streisand’s version.
A complete calendar of “Funny Girl” shows, including show dates, start times and links to buy tickets are available here.
Other huge musicals on Broadway
There are a variety of musicals and plays that are worth seeing on Broadway this year.
Here are five must-see musicals you won’t want to miss live.
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Nicole Iuzzolino can be reached at nj.com/tips.
