Joy at The Playhouse

The Sharon Playhouse honors Bobbie Olsen at its annual Spotlight Gala.

Justin Boccitto

Joy at The Playhouse

The Annual Sharon Playhouse Spotlight Gala cast their theater light upon a worthy honoree this year: Bobbie Olsen, Bobbie Olsen, former president of The Playhouse board and namesake of a well-known location, The Bobbie Olsen Theatre, where residents pack the seats each summer to see the mainstage production plays and musicals. Held on Saturday, June 1, the dinner, cocktail, and musical review at the Olsen Theatre was a celebration of all she has contributed to keeping live theater active and alive in Sharon, even in the darkest days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Bobbie Olsen is an incredible supporter of not just this theater, but this community,” said Sharon Playhouse Artistic Director Carl Andress. “She supports the Sharon Playhouse in her leadership, and in the beauty of her person-hood. We’re just so grateful that she’s been in our lives and that she continues to be such a good friend to the theater, Sharon Playhouse, and the theater in general.”


Tricia DeSario, Molly Model, and Michelle Lemon performed at the Sharon Playhouse Spotlight Gala live show.Justin Boccitto

The musical tribute opened — and true theater fans will know what follows — none other than a “Company,” the title song from Stephen Sondheim’s 1970 musical that begins with the chant of “Bobby, Bobby, Bobby, Bobby!” With lyrics adapted/parodied by Michael Kevin Baldwin’s husband a Playhouse performer Will Nash Broyles, The Bobbie Olsen tribute medley was sung by “Bobbie’s Angels” a group of six made up of Ricky Oliver, Michael Siktberg, Jeff Raab, Tricia DeSario, Molly Model, and Michelle Lemon. The Angels also performed Broyles-penned versions of songs from “Kiss Me Kate” and “Rent.”

“We wanted to honor Bobbie by recreating numbers or creating new numbers from titles that had been on the main stage when she was president of the board,” Andress said.

The evening also included stand-out performances from talents like Danny Drewes, who will return to the mainstage this summer after last year’s “Something Rotten!” to star in “Rock of Ages” and “The Prom,” as well as Julia Murney (“Wicked” on Broadway and the U.S. national tour), a powerhouse vocalist who will take the director’s chair for “You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown” and two-time Tony Award and four-time Drama Desk Award nominee Kate Baldwin who will also star in “The Prom.”

As Andress described the upcoming summer at The Playhouse “It’s a season of joy.”

The Playhouse’s creative team, Carl Andress, Michael Kevin Baldwin, and Rod Christensen paid tribute to gala honoree Bobbie Olsen.Justin Boccitto

Latest News

Wake Robin developers reapply with P&Z
Wake Robin Inn is located on Sharon Road in Lakeville.
Photo by John Coston

LAKEVILLE — ARADEV LLC, the developer behind the proposed redesign of Wake Robin Inn, returned before Salisbury’s Planning and Zoning Commission at its May 5 regular meeting with a 644-page plan that it says scales back the project.

ARADEV withdrew its previous application last December after a six-round public hearing in which neighbors along Wells Hill Road and Sharon Road rallied against the proposal as detrimental to the neighborhood.

Keep ReadingShow less
Housatonic lax wins 18-6 versus Lakeview
Chloe Hill, left, scored once in the game against Lakeview High School Tuesday, May 7.
Photo by Riley Klein

FALLS VILLAGE — Housatonic Valley Regional High School girls lacrosse kept rolling Tuesday, May 6, with a decisive 18-6 win over Lakeview High School.

Eight different players scored for Housatonic in the Northwest Corner rivalry matchup. Sophomore Georgie Clayton led the team with five goals.

Keep ReadingShow less
Troutbeck Symposium 2025: the latest chapter in continuing a vital legacy

Participating students and teachers gathered for the traditional photo at the 2025 Troutbeck Symposium on Thursday, May 1.

Leila Hawken

Students and educators from throughout the region converged at Troutbeck in Amenia for a three-day conference to present historical research projects undertaken collaboratively by students with a common focus on original research into their chosen topics. Area independent schools and public schools participated in the conference that extended from Wednesday, April 30 to Friday, May 2.

The symposium continues the Troutbeck legacy as a decades-old gathering place for pioneers in social justice and reform. Today it is a destination luxury country inn, but Troutbeck remains conscious of its significant place in history.

Keep ReadingShow less
Roaring Oaks Florist launches self-serve flower market

Terence S. Miller, owner of Roaring Oaks Florist in the new self-serve area of the shop.

Natalia Zukerman

Just in time for Mother’s Day, Roaring Oaks Florist in Lakeville has launched a new self-serve flower station next to its Main Street shop, offering high-quality, grab-and-go bouquets from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week — including Sundays when the main store is closed.

Owner Terence S. Miller, who bought the shop 24 years ago at just 20 years old, calls the new feature “a modern twist on an old-school honor system,” with some high-tech updates.

Keep ReadingShow less