MTC Returns Inside With 'Disney's Moana, Jr.' This Weekend

MOORESTOWN, NJ — The first show the Moorestown Theater Company (MTC) had to abandon when the coronavirus pandemic resulted in a statewide shutdown early last year was “Disney’s Moana, Jr.”

“We were supposed to do this show in April 2020,” MTC Artistic Director Mark Morgan said. “We put it on hold. We didn’t cancel it, we didn’t forget about it.”

For many of MTC’s productions, the show still went on. They just had to do so outside, which is not something that can easily be done with a show that includes boat travel between islands.

With a 22-month gap between the first auditions and the eventual showtime, now is the time for “Disney’s Moana, Jr.” to go on. Four performances of the show are set for this weekend at Our Lady Of Perpetual Help Catholic Church, 236 East Main Street in Maple Shade.

The church is just outside Moorestown, resulting in a rare performance for MTC outside its hometown. Morgan said they prefer to perform in Moorestown, but will take the show wherever they need to.

It is the first time MTC has performed in Maple Shade, although it has previously taken the show on the road to Cinnaminson and Mount Laurel when it had to.

With the performance of this show, MTC will now have followed through with every show it had planned before the pandemic hit. Getting to this point had its hurdles.

Some of the actors that were originally set to perform in the all-children’s show have either moved or have other commitments that prevent them from performing. This includes the two girls who were to play the title role in the double-cast show.

So MTC went back out to audition some of the roles that became available. The new leads include 13-year-old Ari Hong and 10-year-old Charley Benedict.

Hong is a professional actress who appeared in the season premiere of “The Blacklist” Thursday night on NBC. She plays the lead for the “Gold” cast, which performs at 2 p.m. Saturday and 7 p.m. Sunday.

Benedict plays the lead in the “Black” cast, which performs at 8 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday. Every actor appears in every performance, and the leads will be part of the chorus in the shows in which they don’t take center stage.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help will have mass at 5 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday, and MTC planned its schedule around those two services. It may also perform its upcoming “All Together Now” and “Elf” productions there, but no final decision has been made yet, Morgan said.

Those who attend the show must wear masks and either present a vaccination card or a copy of a recent negative coronavirus test. MTC asks that residents review their vaccination policy before purchasing tickets.