The Next Stage, Inc.

08/05/2026

The Next Stage Theatre Company
presents
Maytag Virgin by Audrey Cefaly

Washington Blade reporter Patrick Folliard describes [Audrey Cefaly] as “compassionate and unfailingly thoughtful in tackling big ideas in wholly relatable ways…Cefaly gives a voice to those you don’t always hear. Her work is at once unexpected and familiar.”
directed by Jason Zanitsch
with
Elizabeth Baptista and Michael Waldhier
(both most recently in our Copenhagen and The Importance of Being Earnest)

https://tickets.thestatetheatre.org/s/ABLbGcLr

In the Attic, at The State Theatre
Friday Aug 7th, Saturday Aug. 8th, Sunday Aug. 10th
Friday the 14th, Saturday the 15th, and Sunday the 16th
Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30; Sundays at 3:00
Get tickets soon. Three of our last four shows sold out. Seating is limited.
Note: Please help others by not wearing anything scented to the show. Thanks.

07/31/2026

The Next Stage Theatre Company
presents
Maytag Virgin by Audrey Cefaly
directed by Jason Zanitsch
with
Elizabeth Baptista and Michael Waldhier
(both acted in Copenhagen and The Importance of Being Earnest)

https://tickets.thestatetheatre.org/s/ABLbGcLr
This play has two levels:
On the surface, lovely and sweet, though few love stories have deep character development and fine writing -- or such unwilling subjects…..
Under that surface, though ...
Two new neighbors talk in passing, in fits and starts, over the course of a year. Broken by loss and grief, each has turned inward.
Trust and second chances seem out of reach. So does healing.

In the Attic, at The State Theatre
Friday-Sunday Aug 7th to 9th
Friday -Sunday August 14th to 16th 16th
Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30; Sundays at 3:00
Get tickets soon. Three of our last four shows sold out. Seating is limited.
Important: If you decide to order without using our link, pull down the State’s menu bar’s “Events” and choose “Local Events at The State”, not “The Attic”.
Note: Please help those around you by not wearing a scent to the show. Thanks.

07/22/2026

The Next Stage Theatre Company
presents
Maytag Virgin by Audrey Cefaly
directed by Jason Zanitsch
with
Elizabeth Baptista and Michael Waldhier
(both acted in Copenhagen and The Importance of Being Earnest)

https://tickets.thestatetheatre.org/s/ABLbGcLr
This play has two levels:
On the surface, lovely and sweet, though few love stories have deep character development and fine writing -- or such unwilling subjects…..
Under that surface, though ...
Two new neighbors talk in passing, in fits and starts, over the course of a year. Broken by loss and grief, each has turned inward.
Trust and second chances seem out of reach. So does healing.

In the Attic, at The State Theatre
Friday-Sunday Aug 7th to 9th
Friday -Sunday August 14th to 16th 16th
Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30; Sundays at 3:00
Get tickets soon. Three of our last four shows sold out. Seating is limited.
Important: If you decide to order without using our link, pull down the State’s menu bar’s “Events” and choose “Local Events at The State”, not “The Attic”.

Note: Please help those around you by not wearing a scent to the show. Thanks.

Buy tickets from The State Theatre at vivenu

07/09/2026

The Next Stage Theatre Company presents
Maytag Virgin by Audrey Cefaly
directed by Jason Zanitsch
with
Elizabeth Baptista and Michael Waldhier

https://thestatetheatre.org/events/maytag-virgin/?occurrence=2026-08-07&time=1786131000

Every now and then, I run into a play that just makes me want to shout from the rooftops. This is one of those: the perfect blend of soul-stirring, deep, and witty.
In the Attic, at The State Theatre
Friday Aug 7th, Saturday Aug. 8th, Sunday Aug. 10th
Friday the 14th, Saturday the 15th, and Sunday the 16th
Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30; Sun. at 3:00
Get tickets soon. Three of our last four shows sold out. Seating is limited.
Note: Please help those around you by not wearing a scent to the show. Thanks.

Two complicated people, each trying to breathe again after loss.
Maytag Virgin could work as a romcom, and you can enjoy it on that level. But the quality of the character development and dialogue -- the heart -- will take you way beyond that.
What do we owe others?
When is it OK to move on?
What makes a good life?

Is it the story of two complex people facing loss and fear? Or is it a romantic comedy? -Yes! Independent since it was founded in 1996, The Next Stage produces three plays a year…

06/07/2026

An impressive production of this masterpiece.

You have three more chances to see it: next Thursday, Friday, and Sunday

Go.

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_______________________________________
Jeff Brown
as W***y Loman in
DEATH OF A SALESMAN
by Arthur Miller
at Tempest Studios
part of the Central PA Theatre & Dance Fest

Three more performances: Thurs. June 11th at 7:00, Fri. the 12th at 7:00, and Sun. June 14th at 6:00

“If personal meaning, in this cheerleader society, lies in success, then failure must threaten identity itself.”
– Arthur Miller

Arthur Miller’s towering masterpiece speaks as eloquently and aptly today as it did in 1949. W***y Loman, an aging traveling salesman, blindly persists in his quest for the ruthlessly elusive American Dream. The brutal costs of W***y’s ambition fall not only on him but on his quietly heroic wife, Linda, and his morally hapless sons, Biff and Happy. Denial, deception, betrayal: What are we willing to pay, to ignore? What are we willing to sacrifice? And what happens when we are forced to accept reality?

starring Jeff Brown as W***y Loman
with Felix Baruska, Michael Bérubé, Sam Birkenthal, Rod Egan, Cynthia Mazzant, Drew Pirrone-Brusse, Mary Rose Valentine, Ann Van Kuren, Laura Waldhier, Michael Waldhier

at 140 Kelly Alley, downtown State College (under the Fraser Garage)
$25 General Admission, seating is limited

[email protected]

03/28/2026

UPDATE: 2 MORE TICKETS AVAILABLE FOR THE SUNDAY 3/29 PERFORMANCE

What is a dramatic presentation, anyway, compared to full productions we’ll offer Summer and Fall? It’s rehearsed. It’s fully acted, except the actors don’t walk around the stage and they do carry…

03/28/2026

Two tickets to "A Walk in the Woods" have just become available.

03/27/2026

Thank you for your support!

A Walk in the Woods is SOLD OUT for the Sunday March 29 staged reading.

What is a dramatic presentation, anyway, compared to full productions we’ll offer Summer and Fall? It’s rehearsed. It’s fully acted, except the actors don’t walk around the stage and they do carry…

03/18/2026

The Next Stage Theatre Company offers
a dramatic presentation* of
Lee Blessing’s A Walk in the Woods, finalist for the Pulitzer Prize
dir.: Drew Pirrone-Brusse
with Michael Bérubé and Nate Schierman
A review in The Guardian said this:
“…Blessing’s brilliant two-hander…satisfies the senses and challenges the intellect.”

Sunday, March 29th, at 3:00 p.m., in The Attic at The State Theatre
Note: Only one performance. Only 19 seats left.
Tickets: $16 plus fees. Open seating. Want to be seated together? Come early.
https://thestatetheatre.org/?p=39719&post_type=mec-events&preview=1&_ppp=26dfbc12e7

[*What is a dramatic presentation, anyway, compared to our full productions this Summer and Fall? It’s rehearsed. It’s fully acted, except the actors carry scripts and they don’t walk around the stage.
Patrons tell us they find these dramatic presentations exciting.]

A Walk in the Woods (1987) features a younger American negotiator and his older
Soviet counterpart in Geneva for arms treaty talks.

Honeyman and Botvinnik walk and talk after the day’s work, each trying to pull the
conversation in a different direction.

A very warm and human story, about unexpected friendship and connection.

With Russia once again on the move and global chaos, this Pulitzer Prize finalist speaks
to this moment too.

It’s refreshing, though, to see what recapturing norms and mutual respect might look
like.

02/18/2026

The Next Stage Theatre Company offers
a dramatic presentation* of
Lee Blessing’s A Walk in the Woods, finalist for the Pulitzer Prize

dir.: Drew Pirrone-Brusse with Michael Bérubé and Nate Schierman
Sunday, March 29th, at 3:00 p.m., in The Attic

Note: Only ONE performance, only 45 people get to see it.
Tickets: $16 plus fees. Open seating. Want to be seated together? Come early!
[*What IS a dramatic presentation, anyway, compared to our full productions this Summer and Fall? It’s rehearsed. It’s fully acted, except the actors carry scripts and they don’t walk around the stage.]

Tickets now on sale. ONE performance. Only 45 seats.
Link to The State’s Tickets page:
https://thestatetheatre.org/?p=39719&post_type=mec-events&preview=1&_ppp=26dfbc12e7

“Lee Blessing’s brilliant two-hander… satisfies the senses and challenges the intellect. “

Blessing’s play is chilling now, in this time of global chaos and Russia once again on the move.

“Blessing was examining the lack of diplomacy by the U.S. and its attempts to mitigate the Soviet Union’s influence...pitting a young negotiator, John Honeyman, against the consummate career diplomat, Andrey Botvinnik.” After the negotiating day, they walk and talk. We eavesdrop.

“The genius of the play is that Blessing … simply allows the characters to interact.” Honeyman wants to talk about disarmament. Botvinnik keeps trying to turn to more personal topics. “…Honeyman’s resistance to playing those games creates the story’s dramatic tension.”

Excerpts from a review in The Guardian

Please note:
*If you buy tickets from The State’s website, use the “Events” tab at the top and pull down to “Local Events at The State”, NOT “The Attic”.
*Please avoid wearing any scent to our offerings to protect those with allergies. Thanks.

What is a dramatic presentation, anyway, compared to full productions we’ll offer Summer and Fall? It’s rehearsed. It’s fully acted, except the actors don’t walk around the stage and they do carry…