‘Footloose’ begins July 21

Based on the hit movie starring Kevin Bacon, "Footloose" will mark the second musical of the season for Middlesex County’s summer theater program, Plays-in-the-Park.

The musical will begin Wednesday, July 21 and end Saturday, July 31, with no Sunday performances. The 10 performances begin at 8:30 p.m. each night with the box office opening at 5:30 p.m. on the day of the performance. Audience members must bring a low-back lawn chair, which they can place on the lawn area immediately after purchasing a ticket.

Admission is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, 60 years of age and older. Children 12 and under are admitted free to the show, which is performed at the Stephen J. Capestro Theater off Route 1 south in Roosevelt Park in Edison.

Paul Russell, new to Plays-in-the-Park, will direct the show, and Bernadette Baron is choreographer.

The "Footloose" cast features Billy Piscopo of Staten Island, N.Y., playing Ren, the role originated by Kevin Bacon, the young man transported from Chicago to the small town of Bomont. Piscopo stars each winter in Plays-in-the-Park’s production of "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat." Nancy Jean McBride of Rahway plays Ren’s mother, Ethel, who supports her son while he is living in a strange town. The role of Reverend Shaw Moore, who has successfully banned dancing in the small town of Bomont, is played by Bruce Anthony Clough of Hightstown. Susan Doherty of Edison plays Vi Moore, the Reverend’s stalwart wife. Samantha Hahn of Metuchen plays the role of Ariel, the Reverend’s daughter and love interest for Ren. Willard, the country bumpkin who befriends Ren, is played by Succasunna’s Adam Arnold.