New Jersey Stage Issue 61 | Page 70

2016 Some of the highlights of 2016 include the news of Paper Mill Play- house becoming the third New Jersey theatre to ever win the Region- al Theatre Tony Award; talking about the art of busking with Bobby Strange; and looking back at the Jersey history and influence behind the music of Brian Fallon of the Gaslight Anthem. We spoke with Kelly McCarthy about The King of Jabip - the first World Premiere to be presented by The Eagle Theatre in Hammonton; gathered the members of Days Awake to talk about a reunion show that we never expected to see; and spoke with comedian George Lo- pez about his largely autobiographical television show. Rutgers alum Ben Rosenfeld helped us understand what it’s like to be a Russian-American Jewish comic with a double major in Philosophy and Economics; Bobby Bandiera took us a ride throughout his legend- ary career; and a dozen artists let us know about the Bruce Springsteen songs that best represents their own lives. One of our favorite stories was how a New Jersey company found a print of the 1984 film Ninja Busters in a storage room in the Mojave desert. The only print to the film was lost when the distributor went to prison. Douglas Taurel spoke with us about his one-man show, The American Soldier and how emotional it is for him to perform across the country. We spoke with filmmaker Kevin McLaughlin about Riot, his film detail- ing the Newark riots of 1967. And singer-songwriter Arlan Feiles told us the story behind the song that literally changed his life. For a detailed list of articles in 2016, click here. NJ STAGE - ISSUE 61 INDEX NEXT ARTICLE 70