Upper Darby Summer Stage Celebrates 50th Season

Upper Darby Summer Stage has announced its 50th Season Gala Weekend, taking place Friday, June 27 and Saturday, June 28 at the Upper Darby Performing Arts Center and Drexelbrook Event Center. This milestone event will kick off the company's summer season with a musical celebration unlike any other.

The weekend will feature two unforgettable events: the Gala Show, taking place on both nights, and the Reunion Celebration on Friday. Together, these gatherings aim to raise vital funds to preserve and propel the legacy of Summer Stage. Join us in celebrating 50 magical seasons — and help ensure the next 50 are just as extraordinary.

More than 175 Summer Stage alumni, representing five decades of performances, will return to the stage to sing, dance, and celebrate the program that helped launch countless careers and lifelong friendships. The 50th Season Gala Celebration will feature beloved numbers from past Mainstage productions including Crazy for You, Newsies, West Side Story, Joseph, Barnum, Titanic, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Hairspray, and SpongeBob SquarePants.

"I've had a lot of jobs in my life but directing children's theater at Upper Darby Summerstage might have been my favorite,” Summer Stage alum Tina Fey said in a statement. “Putting up shows with sixty kids that then would be seen by five hundred little kids every morning – we were really providing something fun and wholesome to the community.”

Summer Stage alumni are some of the most accomplished in the performing arts world, including:

• Tina Fey, writer, actress and producer

• David Corenswet, star of the upcoming Superman film

• Monica Horan, Everybody Loves Raymond

• Terrence J. Nolen and Amy Murphy, co-founders of Arden Theatre Company

• Gianna Yanelli, currently starring in Broadway's Six

• Josh Young, Tony-nominated actor

• Jeremy Morse, Waitress on Broadway

• Alyse Alan Louis, Mamma Mia on Broadway and Teeth (Lucille Lortel Award and Outer Critics Circle nominee)

• Marie Eife (Wicked) and Kait Kerrigan (The Great Gatsby)

David Corenswet said in a statement: “I made many of my closest friends and most cherished performance memories on — and off — the stage at Upper Darby Summer Stage. But more than that I learned a valuable lesson about life and career: dream of the leading role, compete hard for it, then let it go and enjoy the chorus. Dance your feet off in the ensemble. You may have your solo moments center stage in life, but if you're lucky, you'll spend most of your time surrounded by a chorus of friends and family, singing in harmony together. The culture, the leadership, and the people of Summer Stage instilled that truth in us — and continue to remind us, summer after summer.”