Millburn-Short Hills Magazine Back to School 2020 | Page 36

neighbors
Following his graduation from
Freehold Borough High School,
Hoebee studied acting and dance
at Northwestern University, and
pursued a career as a performer. He
spent 10 years dancing on Broadway
and with national tours, working
with acclaimed choreographers like
Bob Fosse and Jerome Robbins.
He was later the youngest graduate
to be inducted into the Freehold
Borough High School’s Alumni Hall
of Fame, and his photo hangs alongside
Bruce Springsteen’s.
HIS PRODUCTION OF DREAM GIRLS
LED TO AJOB AT THE PAPER MILL
PLAYHOUSE
As Hoebee performed and danced
in shows, he says his career naturally
began to evolve over time, first as a
choreographer and then as a director
in Chicago, where he lived and
worked for many years. Producers
at the Paper Mill Playhouse saw his
production of Dream Girls at The
Marriott Theater in Lincolnshire,
Illinois.
“They invited me to Paper Mill
with my collaborator Kenny Ingram
to direct a production on their stage,”
Hoebee says. “And that’s what
launched mycareer asadirector and
choreographer in the New York area
and nationally.”
After directing a few national
tours, Hoebee and Elardo started
their family, adopting a son. Hoebee
wanted to stop jumping around
the country and had been interviewing
to be an associate chair at
Northwestern, but he also received
an offer to join the artistic staff at
Paper Mill. He became Paper Mill’s
associate director in 2000 and rose
through their ranks. He has served
as the playhouse’s producing artistic
director for the past 10 years.
THE PAPER MILL WAS IN FINANCIAL
TROUBLE WHEN HOEBEE TOOK
OVER
The 2008 financial crisis struck
right before Hoebee “took the reins
of the organization,” he says. The
Paper Mill Playhouse was $4 million
“WEARE AN ORGANIZATIONTHATSERVESTHE PUBLIC.
WE BRINGENTERTAINMENT AND ARTS EDUCATION TO
THECOMMUNITY, AND THEYVALUE WHAT WE DO.”
MARK S. HOEBEE
in debt, only had about $6,000 in the
bank and had lost its subscription
base.
“A group of board members and
townspeople rallied and came to an
incredible deal with the township of
Millburn to save the organization,”
Hoebee says.
HOEBEE HELPEDPAPER MILL
BOUNCE BACK
The theater was built back up—
starting with Hoebee’s production of
Happy Days: A New Musical — and
has presented four shows that moved
to Broadway, including ABronx
Tale and Bandstand. The playhouse
has worked with British theatrical
producer Cameron Mackintosh and
has hosted a number of national
tours. In 2016, it received The
Regional Theatre Tony Award.
Of his many shows, Hoebee says
Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre
Dame was “one of the best theatrical
productions” he’s ever been a
part of, and that it was the only time
composers Alan Menken and Stephen
Schwartz worked together on a theatrical
presentation.
LIKE BROADWAY,HE SAYS, PAPER
MILL IS SUFFERING BECAUSE OF
THE PANDEMIC
Hoebee says Paper Mill shut down
on March 13 and canceled the last
two shows they had in the season’s
line-up — The Wanderer, which was
moved to the 2021 season, and Sister
Act. “We lost about $4 million in
ticket income, and we had to cancel
our gala and furlough 30 percent of
our staff,” Hoebee says. “We’re all
playing the waiting game.”
IT’S NOT EASY TO TELEVISE
THEATER PRODUCTIONS,HE SAYS
A theater production is difficult
to do without an audience to bring
in revenue, Hoebee says. Sporting
events without crowds can still be
monetized because they’re on television,
but the theatrical experience
doesn’t translate well. And filming or
streaming a theatrical production is
not an easy task, Hoebee says.
“Theater does not easily translate
to the digital screen,” he says. “It’s
not made for that. Many of my colleagues
and institutions regionally
and on Broadway aren’t prepared to
make that jump, and there are people
who doitbetter than wedo. They’re
called film and TV people.”
HE SAYS SOCIAL DISTANCING MAKES
PUTTING PRODUCTIONS TOGETHER
DIFFICULT
Hoebee says plans have been made
for the upcoming season, scheduled
at present to open in October,
but that this is looking unlikely.
Productions have been put on
hold because they can’t happen under
social distancing guidelines. “One of
two things has to happen,” Hoebee
says. “We have to alter our producing
selections, or the guidelines have to
ease to allow us to bring audiences
back into the theater.”
He says they have not made any
announcements about what programming
will be for next year but are
“fearlessly making contingency plans”
to provide entertainment for individual
ticket-buyers, subscribers and
donors.
HE SAYS THAT SOME ASPECTSOF
HIS THEATER ARE THRIVING
While most of Paper Mill’s operations
are suspended, they have had
great success in transferring their
education programs and the summer
conservatory program online.
“It’s doing very well,” Hoebee says.
34 BACK TOSCHOOL 2020 MILLBURN &SHORT HILLS MAGAZINE