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INTERVIEW: A ‘Miracle’ returns to Penguin Rep

Photo: Miracle on South Division Street stars Broadway alum Liz McCartney. Photo courtesy of the artist / Provided by the Penguin Rep with permission.


The Penguin Rep Theatre in Stony Point, New York, located approximately one hour north of New York City, is not taking the summer months off. This little-theater-company-that-could is staying busy with new shows, a new transfer and nonstop theatrical entertainment during June, July and August.

Right now, the Penguin Rep is showcasing Miracle on South Division Street, a play by Tom Dudzick, a writer based out of Nyack, New York, and starring Broadway alum Liz McCartney. In fact, the show is returning to the regional theater 16 years after it premiere, so this production is something of a homecoming for Dudzick and the company.

Also, Penguin Rep is gearing up for a New York City transfer of its beloved play Gene & Gilda, which details the relationship between Gene Wilder and Gilda Radner. That show will be presented at 59E59 Theaters in Midtown Manhattan in July.

“We’re entering our season, and I’m excited about it because it spans not only the Penguin Rep barn but also Penguin Rep down at 59E59,” said Joe Brancato, artistic director of Penguin and director for Gene & Gilda and Miracle on South Division Street. “So we have a full season ahead.”

Brancato said 59E59 has been a beautiful home for Penguin shows over the years, and their success in New York City is thanks to Val Day, artistic director of 59E59.

“She understands what Penguin is about as well as other wonderful not-for-profit theaters, and she has helped us become a resident company there,” Brancato said. “When the spirits move us and everything is in order and the ducks are in a row, we’re able to bring our shows to their audience, and their audience seems to be responding continually very favorably to Penguin offerings, from Sabbath Girl: The Musical to After to a number of plays that we’ve down there. So now we are bringing down this summer, opening at the end of July, Gene & Gilda, celebrating those two incredible icons, written by Cary Gitter, who wrote Sabbath Girl: The Musical actually. So we are bringing it down there for a nice run, and we’re really excited about it to see what future it holds.”

Transferring a show to New York City is a difficult proposition, so Brancato and his team need to consider many different factors. The size of the show is definitely front of mind. At Penguin, they generally produce more intimate fare, which fits their theatrical space in Stony Point but also makes a transfer possible.

“But it really does come down to instinct,” he said. “Hopefully I’ve honed in to what an audience craves. We do that as well as pushing the envelope at times, and that delicate balance, that dance, is one that many artistic directors are doing across the country right now. … Like Sabbath Girl: The Musical, when we did it down there, the reason was because now I can take it to other venues in Florida and across the country in subsidiary fashion. Whether it’s licensed or we do our production is to be determined, but it gives it a grander exposure. And so you trust, and you get the support of your board and those who believe in live theater. And you say let’s do this, and you roll the dice.”

Miracle on South Division Street has had one of the most unique journeys of any Penguin show. More than 15 years ago, Dudzick brought a draft of his play to Penguin Rep and introduced himself to Brancato.

“He’s very well known for his Over the Tavern series of plays about Buffalo [New York] families and had tremendous success with those,” the artistic director said. “I looked at the draft, and as is my want, I was candid from my point of view. And I said, ‘I think this needs some work,’ and I gave him some suggestions.”

Brancato added: “Then about 3-4 days later, I get a call from Tom, and he says, ‘Listen, I’ve got some rewrites based on our conversation.’ Well, nothing turns me on more than a playwright who is alive and well and dying to create and write and collaborate, so we presented the premiere of this show I think it was 16 years ago at the Penguin. And then we moved it down to a little theater in town for about 50 performances, and then it went regionally and internationally. It’s had tremendous success in its subsidiary across the country.”

The director felt 2025 was the right time to bring the play back to life. The show follows members of the Nowak family who are turned upside down after a deathbed confession; what results from this confession is both “heartfelt and hilarious,” as press notes indicate.

Penguin Rep’s catch phrase this season is “Family, Faith and the Future,” and Miracle on South Division Street definitely fits this motto.

“It doesn’t only speak to one religion,” Brancato said. “It spans religions, without giving the play away, and it speaks to people. And quite frankly, if I can get people to open their minds and hearts as this play insists you do, and then leave with a smile, I think that’s a great achievement. And that’s what this play does. We were so lucky, too. I wanted Liz McCartney, Broadway vet Liz, to do this role, and we got her. I’m very excited about showcasing her in this role, which is a dynamic role of this family from Buffalo, New York, whose experiences go well beyond this city in terms of its effect on an audience.”

By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com

Miracle on South Division Street continues through June 29 at the Penguin Rep Theatre in Stony Point, New York. Click here for more information and tickets. Gene & Gilda begins in July at 59E59 Theaters in New York City. Click here for more information and tickets.

John Soltes

John Soltes is an award-winning journalist. His writing has appeared in The New York Times, Earth Island Journal, The Hollywood Reporter, New Jersey Monthly and at Time.com, among other publications. E-mail him at john@hollywoodsoapbox.com

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