It’s a surreal experience— being in a crowd of enthusiastic, energetic, theatre people after over a year of being isolated from that crazy, amazing, loving bunch of people who have so much to offer to the performing arts community in Frederick. But in minutes of being amid the Maryland Ensemble Theatre 24^th season launch gala, it felt as if no time had passed at all, as if just last season this exact thing had happened. Smiles, hugs, lively chatter, and an indescribably buoyant energy filled the “Al Fresco @ MET” staging area for the season announcement. There was a sound mix of company members, both seasoned and brand new, all eager to express their feelings about moving forward now that the state of Maryland and the local ordinances governing the city of Frederick have declared indoor spaces— such as live theatres— safe for fully reopening at capacity.

The season might look a tiny bit different this year, Maryland Ensemble Theatre who has traditionally produced six full shows during their main-stage season will be producing five this year, with at least one show that was carried over from the incomplete season forced to a grinding halt because of the Covid-19 global pandemic. But the enthusiasm and eager willingness to share the experiences of how grateful they all are to be back and how excited they are to keep carrying on were in a great abundance. Before the evening officially got underway, someone took the microphone on the outdoor stage and announced that things would be getting started in about ten minutes, to which a staggered echoing cry of “Thank you, Ten!” could be heard throughout the group. Company members J.D. Sivert and Jeremy Meyers started laughing about how they had forgotten about and missed “Thank you, Ten” so very much.

The evening was then kicked off with a few remarks from Co-Founder and Artistic Director Tad Janes as well as the company’s managing director, Kathryn Vicere, with both thanking everyone in attendance for their continued support of the MET during this globally difficult time. All five of the upcoming season’s main-stage shows received “flash previews”, which included a quick read of a scene from company members.

Hearing about all of the exciting shows planned for the 24^th season was only half of the joy and thrill of the evening’s events. Getting to speak one-on-one with company members, seasoned and brand-new alike, was the true highlight. The MET welcomed three new company members this year— Mikayla Domingo, Shayden Jamison, Tori Weaver— and a new person, Cody James in the role of Master Carpenter & Electrician/Technical Director. Three of these four new members were in attendance and were excited to talk about their hopes and experiences thus far with Maryland Ensemble Theatre. When asked about what was most exciting for them this upcoming season, Master Carpenter & Electrician Cody James said, “…just working in a space that I haven’t worked in before! Everyone I’ve met at MET has been really lovely. I think it’ll be really great to see what everyone comes up with.”

As the MET is unanimously referred to as a family (where the most common confusion in questions asked of company members is “when did you become an official company member” because most of the time individuals have been a part of the MET family or working with MET for years before they’re officially a company member) it was no surprise to hear that the two of the newest company members similar stories. When asked “how did you fall into/find the Maryland Ensemble Theatre” Mikayla Domingo said, “…when I got into college I took an intro to theatre class with Tad (MET’s artistic director and co-founder, Tad Janes) and one of the very first shows he told me about was The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged). I ended up seeing that show three times, I loved it so much! I thought it was just so amazing that I had to plant myself here. Tad told me about the internship…I became an apprentice…started working shows…and then I became a company member!” When asked what she was looking forward to most this season, she said “…being around like-minded people who are creative, who are producing so much art. That was what I really missed during {the pandemic}; the warmth of the family and being with those people in person. {MET} is a company, but it’s really a family.” Shayden Jamison also had an apprenticeship through FCC (Frederick Community College) in 2019 and starting working on shows at the MET before becoming a company member one year later. When asked what he was most looking forward to in regard to being a company member, he said “…being involved in the pre-production, seeing what shows are picked, and feeling that community of being part of the ensemble.” Jamison is primarily involved with stage management but has expressed interest in doing more production design work.

New company members weren’t the only ones weighing in with things they were looking forward to and what they missed out on the most while MET (and the rest of the live theatre world) had to pause during the pandemic. Below are a series of quick-quotes in responses to those self-same questions from an assortment of MET ensemble company members about what they missed, what they’re looking forward to, and what it’s been like.

James McGarvey

• Company member for ~11-12 years (been hanging around way longer than that)
• What does it mean to be live back in person on a stage with live people? “I’m an extrovert! So I can’t survive without the energy of people! Doing the whole thing online? Grrr. Let me repeat. Grrrrr.”
• What are you looking forward to most this season? “Being around people! Being live! Seeing live stuff in person! Feeling that energy— there’s just that energy. I love being an audience member and I love being on stage.

 

Rona Mensah

• Company member since MET’s very first production in 1997
• What did you miss most about live theatre? “You know what’s funny? I didn’t miss performing. What I like most is the audience and the interacting with the audience. So tonight when I got a chance to see people I hadn’t seen in a year, it was like ‘Hi! You’re a real person!’ And we’ve been keeping in touch {the company members} doing Zoom meetings and rehearsals, and it’s great to see people in 3D again. But I didn’t doubt I’d never see the rest of the ensemble. I was overjoyed to see people from our audience live in person again.
• What are you most looking forward to this season? “What I like about this season is that we’re picking up where we were going to leave off last time. And we’ve added something else to it. We’re taking it and raising it a little and I’m really excited that we’re welcoming new people, new faces, and we’re going to keep striving for new things.”

 

Julie Herber

• Company member for ~20 years. Not a founder, but darn close!
• What’s the most exciting thing about being able to return live to the theatre? “Just exactly that! Hearing that live Being in the same room, working with my actors, taking the time to really work and play together. We’ve been doing that throughout the year virtually, but it’s not the same as being in the room and feeling that energy, especially with ensemble work. You can feel the energy in the room. You can get physical, and I’ve missed that so much!
• What show are you most looking forward to this season? “We were prepared to present The Legend of George McBride last season, and then we shut down for the pandemic, so I’m excited to get a chance to finally direct that this year. I just love the show. It makes you feel so good. It is so full of joy and acceptance. I can’t wait for the audiences to get that gift.

 

Tabetha White

• Company member for at least five years, but working with MET since college
• What did you miss the most about live theatre? “Being together with my company! We’ve been doing really great digital content, so we’ve been able to still work together but it’s not the same. It’s not the same as working in the physical space together.
• What are you directing? “I’m directing No, Virginia, which is our Christmas show. It was written by another company member, J.D. Sivert, It’s an exciting piece that we workshopped through MET-Lab (the cultivation & development wing of MET. More on MET-Lab here.) Now it’s ready for the main stage! We thought about doing it virtually last season, but we decided we would rather wait and do it justice with a live audience.

 

Gené Fouché & Tad Janes

• Co-Founding Company Members. 1997 and for all 24 seasons.
• What are you looking forward to most this season? GF- “The first show of the season! {Lauren Gunderson’s The Revolutionists} I will be directing it and it is about some badass women who take on society. I think it’s going to be a good show to come back with because it’s raucous and funny!” TJ- “The first night with people back in the audience. Human beings in the theatre space and having it feel like real, live theatre again.”
• What was it like getting to do live theatre again? GF- “We just did Midsummer {Midsummer: A Most Rare Vision) up in Catoctin Mountains, and the first night that we did it, we got everybody together in that circle and I couldn’t sing— I burst out into tears. I was just sobbing. Everybody was finally back together.” TJ- “It was a lot of uncertainty for a long time…to do something that you’ve been doing consistently since you were 16? I’ve done multiple shows a year sine I was 16 and then to all of a sudden not have that platform anymore… finally getting back with the Midsummer project, having a live audience that actually has a reaction for the first time in over a year, and human beings in the same space together— there’s nothing like it. We really need to collectively be able to be together as human beings.”

 

Karli Cole & Jennifer Pagano

• Company members since 2016 & 2018, respectively. Been with MET longer than that.
• What is most exciting for you for this season? KC- “Just the fact that we’re back in person is exciting! That’s just thrilling! I’m just glad we’re doing shows!” JP- “That’s my answer! Being back!”
• What are you most looking forward to? JP- “Just having people’s energy in the room. Live theatre, there’s nothing like everybody’s spirits taking in live emotion and real things happening right before our eyes. Everyone in a room physically enjoying the drama, each second at a time, we’re just pumped to give that to people again, to fill their hearts with what they’ve been lacking, which is real, physical, emotional interaction happening right before their eyes!”
• What show are you most excited for? KC- “The Revolutionists. It’s just a fun, female-power show. It’s a funny show!” JP- “Same! It sounded funny. I loved the read from that tonight. The characters were so funny. You could tell the audience was so pumped up to hear real theatre so I’m extra glad that {The Revolutionists} was read-out first. And who doesn’t want to see a bunch of historical women just acting fantastical and being hilarious with one another?

 

Jeremy Meyers & J.D. Sivert

• Company members since 2017 & 2016 respectively.
• What is the thing you’ve missed most about being live with the MET family? JDS- “How do you say everything? Everything. Laughing with people. Crying with people. Being intentionally nervous about going on stage with people. I miss all of it. Just seeing faces not behind a screen has been more disorienting than I had thought. It’s almost like meeting people anew!”
• What are you most looking forward to now that the world has returned to ‘live theatre’ mode? JM- “Sharing the space. Sharing that energy. Storytelling in person. Sharing all of that together.”

 

Steve Custer & Doug Grove

• Company members for seven years (Steve) and 11 seasons (Doug.)
• How excited are you to be bringing live theatre back to Frederick? SC- “Very. It’s been a minute, both to be on stage as well as feeling like theatre is being produced. It feels good to be a part of that.” DG- “I’m super excited. The thing that I think sets theatre apart from movies, tv, and other art is the performers and the audience being in the same space and sharing that same space. We’ve done a lot of great stuff this last season virtually, but to have everyone breathing the same air again is what it’s really all about.”

 

Caitlyn Joy, Katie Rattigan, & Tim Seltzer

• Company members since 2010 (Caitlyn), 2014 (Katie) and… {directly quoted from Tim} “I don’t know? 2011? 2012? A really long time.
• What does it mean to bring theatre back after this pandemic? CJ- “That’s hard to answer because it’s so much of not just what we do but who we are. To be missing a part of yourself and knowing that a part of your community has been missing for so long…it’s kind of like rebuilding yourself while trying to bring something back to the town.”
• What did you miss the most? KR- “PROPS!!! No one held anything because everything was germy. So we didn’t get to make any cool, new props. I couldn’t wrap my head around it.”
• What are you looking forward to now that live theatre has returned? TS- “Audiences. I love audiences! I love their reactions— thinking, feeling, laughing, crying— that’s such a part of everything that we do, everything that we are. I cannot wait to get in front of an audience again. It’s so much fun.”

All across the board the answers were similar— everyone could not be more elated to be back “in the room where it’s happening” sharing energies and emotions, and existing together in the same space. The season launch party was considering a roaring success, if the emotional experience is any gauge for the evening. Pertinent details about the upcoming season can be found below, and tickets for season subscriptions start Monday July 5, 2021.

Season 24 (2021-2022)

Season 24 will launch on September 17, 2021 with Lauren Gunderson’s The Revolutionists, directed by company member and Co-Founder Gené Fouché. “…Olympe d Gourges, Charlotte Corday, Marie Antionette, and Marianne Angelle are losing their heads! While the men engage in hypocritical rhetoric, these badass women plot to take down the extremists in this comedy set during the French Revolution’s reign of terror.” The production is listed as being for mature audiences only and individual tickets for the show will go on sale starting August 1, 2021.  Production dates are September 17, 2021 through October 17, 2021.

The MET will roll into the Christmas spirit, immediately following the mainstage seasonal opener, with a MET original play, written by company member J.D. Sivert. No, Virginia is a holiday farce which will be directed by company member Tabetha White, running from December 3, 2021 through December 26, 2021. “…Santa Claus is coming to town! Or rather, Tiffany hopes she can get a Santa to come to the Christmas party she’s throwing for her daughter, all while juggling a meddling mother, an irritating ex-husband, an ardent ex-boyfriend, and a potential blizzard!” The production is recommended for mature audiences only and is the last main stage production of the 2021 calendar year.

Detroit 67’, by Dominique Morriseau, will start off the 2022 calendar year in the middle of the 24^th season for MET’s main stage. Directed by Ray Hatch, the show takes place in 1967, where “…Mowtown is the soul of Detroit’s party scene. A brother and sister, who have turned their basement into an after-hours joint, find conflict as they both have different ideas about what to do with their inheritance. A mysterious woman finds her way into their lives and brings the family business to the brink.” The show offers an unflinching look at race-relations during the turbulent Civil Rights Movement and is recommended for mature audiences only. The production runs February 4, 2022 through March 6, 2022.

The penultimate mainstage show of the 24^th season will be a comedy by Steve Martin. Meteor Shower, being directed by Artistic Director Tad Janes, is an absurdist comedy recommended for mature audiences only. “…On a warm summer night, Norm and Corky invite another couple to their home to watch a once-in-a-lifetime meteor shower. The new friends turn Corky and Norm’s lives upside-down in this wildly unpredictable play that bends the nature of time and reality to create something surprising and unforgettable.” The production runs from March 25, 2022 through April 24, 2022.

Closing out the 24^th season, company member Julie Herber is ecstatic to bring The Legend of George McBride (originally slated for the previous season) by Matthew Lopez to the MET mainstage in May of 2022. “…Casey is barely making ends meet as an Elvis impersonator at a Florida bar when management fires him and replaces him with a drag show. With rent (and a baby!) due, he must let go of “The King” and find his inner “Queen”… The Philadelphia Inquirer was quoted saying {it’s a} ‘stomp-your-feet-, snap-your-fingers, clap-your-hands, sing-a-long joy.’ The comedy is filled with one-liners, touching family moments and killer dance moves.” The production is recommended for mature audiences only and runs May 13, 2022 through June 12, 2022.

Season tickets for the 2021-2022 Main Stage Season with the Maryland Ensemble Theatre go on sale starting July 5, 2021. For more information, visit their website.

To learn more about the upcoming MET FunCompany season, click here.