Behind the Curtain with Selina Hsu

Behind the Curtain with Selina Hsu

We sat down with Selina Hsu, who is part of "the nuns ensemble" in SBMT's production of The Sound of Music. In this short interview, she tells us there are no puppets in the stage version of this iconic musical—but "The Lonely Goatherd" still makes an appearance, with "Uncle Max" playing an expanded role. She also reveals why she auditioned for the show.  Watch the video (runtime 2:43), or read the transcript below.   My name is Selina and I'm a part of the Nuns Ensemble. What does the Nuns Ensemble do in the show? The Nuns set the scene [...]

By |2025-10-04T11:00:59-07:00October 4th, 2025|2025-2026 Season, Behind The Scenes, Meet The Cast, Video Link|

Protect Yourself from Ticket Scams

Buy Smart, Buy Direct by Michael Hirsch, Executive Director At South Bay Musical Theatre, we want every part of your theatre-going experience to be joyful from the moment you buy your tickets until the final curtain call. Unfortunately, some third-party ticket resellers try to insert themselves into the process, showing up very high in search results and charging far more than the actual ticket price. With The Sound of Music almost completely sold out, these scarce tickets make good targets for scammers. These unauthorized sellers can cause a number of problems: Inflated Prices: Tickets listed on third-party sites may cost [...]

By |2025-10-01T14:51:25-07:00October 1st, 2025|Announcements, Blog-erviews!, Opinion|

Behind the Curtain with Janet Miller

We sat down with Janet Miller, who plays Baroness Elberfeld and one of the nuns in SBMT's production of The Sound of Music. In this interview, she tells us how the stage musical differs from the Julie Andrews movie, how history repeating itself brings renewed relevance to the story, and what brought her back to the stage for the first time since before the pandemic. Watch the four minute video, or read the transcript below. My name is Janet Miller and I'm a nun and I am the Baroness Elberfeld in this production. Is this show any different than the [...]

By |2025-09-29T10:25:53-07:00September 29th, 2025|Behind The Scenes, Blog-erviews!, Meet The Cast, Video Link|

Behind the Curtain with Maura Goetzke

We sat down with Maura Goetzke, who plays the Louisa in SBMT's production of The Sound of Music. In this interview, she radiates excitement as she describes all the fun she's having. She tells us why she auditioned, what she's learning in rehearsal from choreographer Francesca Cipponeri and vocal director Rachel Michelberg, what it's like being part of a double cast of children, how she got started in theatre—and what she aspires to, and offers advice for anyone else who shares the dream of being a performer. Watch the five minute video, or read the transcript below.  Hi, my name [...]

By |2025-09-24T14:32:07-07:00September 24th, 2025|Behind The Scenes, Blog-erviews!, Meet The Cast, Video Link|

Fresh Faces, Fleeting Seating

By Doug Hughes, Director of Marketing One of the joys of community theatre is discovering new talent, and South Bay Musical Theatre’s current production of The Sound of Music demonstrates that in abundance. Of the 40 cast members bringing this beloved story to life, an impressive 30 are making their SBMT debut. That includes our Captain von Trapp, played by Brad Satterwhite, who has graced stages all over the Bay Area and recently wrapped up a powerful run in A Few Good Men at Woodminster. All 13 of the young actors who play the von Trapp children (across two alternating [...]

By |2025-09-22T13:40:27-07:00September 22nd, 2025|2025-2026 Season, Blog-erviews!, Opinion|

Behind the Curtain with Mohamed Ismail

We sat down with Mohamed Ismail, who plays the role of Max Detweiler in our upcoming production of The Sound of Music, to talk about the expanded role Max has in the stage play (with two songs that are not sung in the movie), where we've seen him most recently, how he got started, and how he and his real-life wife Jessica Whittemore are looking forward to playing opposite one another in this outing. He tells us why he doesn't look like his headshot, introduces us to the large cast, and makes an urgent plea to each of us to [...]

By |2025-09-19T11:30:24-07:00September 19th, 2025|2025-2026 Season, Behind The Scenes, Blog-erviews!, Meet The Cast|

Announcing our spring show for 2026

by Doug Hughes, Director of Marketing On a sweltering summer day in New York City, music spills from the corner bodega, laughter echoes from the fire escapes, and every block seems to hold a story. That’s the world of In the Heights, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Tony Award-winning love letter to his neighborhood. Long before Hamilton took the world by storm, Miranda introduced audiences to a vibrant community full of dreams, traditions, and tough choices. This spring, South Bay Musical Theatre invites you to step into that neighborhood and feel the heartbeat of Washington Heights right here in Saratoga. Set over the [...]

By |2025-09-15T09:15:10-07:00September 15th, 2025|2025-2026 Season, Announcements, Blog-erviews!|

Concert auditions now open

South Bay Musical Theatre announces two audition opportunities! Let It Show: A Broadway Holiday Celebration A cabaret evening of songs for the season! Created and Directed by Walter M. Mayes and Bob Sunshine Performances: December 20 & 21, 2025 and On the 20th Century: In Concert Book and Lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green Music by Cy Coleman Based on a play by Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur and also a play by Bruce Milholland Directed by Lee Ann Payne Music Direction by D. Asa Stern Vocal Direction by Anita Hsuing Carey Performances: April 18 & 19, 2026 Video auditions for [...]

By |2025-09-10T14:40:12-07:00September 10th, 2025|2025-2026 Season, Auditions|

Behind the Curtain with Lauren D’Ambrosio

We sat down with Lauren D’Ambrosio, who plays the lead character in our upcoming production of The Sound of Music, to talk about her character, the show's current relevance six decades after its debut, and how the stage musical is significantly different from the Oscar-winning film adaptation. We learn about Lauren's start as a musician before she ever started acting—and she names a couple of shows where you may have last seen her. She describes her favorite songs in the show and encourages you to come see it from Sept. 27 - Oct. 18, 2025. Tickets are available at SouthBayMT.com [...]

By |2025-09-08T16:28:40-07:00September 8th, 2025|2025-2026 Season, Behind The Scenes, Meet The Cast|

Children and Art

The arts just make better humans. by Michael Paul Hirsch, Executive Director "Children and art… children and art…” Several recent events in my personal life have inspired me to do something that I‘ve been putting off for over 10 years: updating my will. Big changes like sending my children away to college, becoming empty-nesters (or “free-birds” as my wife likes to call it), purchasing an electric vehicle, and making a major career change, are just a few things that have happened since last I updated my will. Life goes by so fast that as a meditative and deliberate person, I [...]

By |2025-09-05T11:12:47-07:00September 5th, 2025|Blog-erviews!, Opinion|
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