A warm look at cold northern nights

Middlebury College Department of Theater presents John Cariani’s ‘Almost, Maine’

The Midd Kids have been back just about a month, and already the theater students are preparing to open the Middlebury College Department of Theater’s 2026-2027 season with John Cariani’s “Almost, Maine,” Oct. 29-31.

The show, directed by theater professor (and department chair) Alex Draper, is set on a cold, clear, midwinter night, with the northern lights hovering in the star-filled sky above. The residents of Almost, Maine — a place so far north it’s almost in Canada — find themselves falling in love in unexpected, surprising and hilarious ways.

“A fun aspect of this play is the physicality,” said senior theater major and actor Jamie Schwartz. “We’ve done a lot of workshops with Joe Isenberg — who helps us with the fight choreography and stunts. He makes sure that we’re safe and injury-free when we’re doing things like physically falling in love with each other; or when the man who can’t feel pain gets smacked around a little bit…”

Fun fact: “Almost, Maine” was the very first production that Schwartz participated in at Glastonbury High Schoolin Connecticut when she was 14 years old.

“I worked backstage and with the props,” said the now 21-year-old. “It’s definitely different now. I’m more involved with the script, and looking at everything from a more adult perspective.”

The students worked directly with Cariani and adapted and changed things for the Middlebury productions.

“Working with John was an incredible experience because it’s so rare to get to work on something that’s alive and changing in the moment,” Schwartz added. “John actually brought in new material and new edits he was working on and we got to see how he changes things based on feedback.”

For example, Schwartz explained, in the original production there’s a scene of two men falling in love with each other; then in a later version, it changes to two women falling in love with each other. In the upcoming production by the Middlebury College Department of Theater they have adapted the play to include both versions — some shows will have the lovers be men, others will have the lovers be women.

Cariani also opened his educational opportunities to the community in late September with two workshops that he held with Draper.

“I loved getting to do acting and playwriting workshops with a mix of Middlebury students and people from the community,” Cariani shared. “There was a neat intergenerational thing going on and that feels necessary right now.

“As for the students, well, obviously they’re super smart,” he added. “But they don’t flaunt their smarts. They’re humble and open and incredibly kind and curious.”

The playwright noted the importance of recognizing the student actors’ work in this production.

“I love that doing the play counts as a class for the students involved,” he said. “It’s important that the work they’re doing is recognized as a class. It’s hard work, being in a play. Physically. Mentally. It’s demanding. Also — I sat in on a rehearsal and the actors in the production are really impressive.”

That’s no small compliment! Cariani’s beloved play has received more than 6,000 productions worldwide.

Some of that “impressiveness” is because of director Draper.

“Alex is so incredibly talented and wonderful to work with,” Schwartz noted. “He’s also an actor in his own right, so he knows what works well from an actor’s, as well as director’s, perspective.”

ABOUT THE PLAY

“Almost, Maine” is a funny, tender and poignant look at the mysteries of the human heart. As The New York Times put it, “The surreal and the whimsical are never far” from “Almost, Maine.” The New York Post called it “somewhere between Norman Rockwell and ‘Our Town.’ Unabashedly unhip. It’s a welcome breath of fresh air.”

Schwartz encourages the audience to embrace the world of the play. “It’s all about balancing the realness of the characters with the magic around them,” she said. “And everything is rooted in love. Love is what drives every scene and every character in this play.”

Coming through this acting experience and looking ahead at her senior thesis show coming this spring and maybe a life in New York City beyond, Schwartz said she feels “more hopeful.”

“I hope anyone struggling with feeling lonely or looking for a sense of connection knows that you can find it,” she mused. “It is out there.”

The Middlebury College Department of Theater’s production of “Almost, Maine” will be performed Oct. 29, 30 and 31 at 7:30 p.m., with a 2 p.m. matinee on Saturday, Oct. 31, in the Seeler Studio Theatre at the Mahaney Arts Center. Following the Saturday matinee, audiences are invited to stay for a lively post-show talkback and discussion with the company and playwright Cariani.

Tickets cost $15 public; $10 Middlebury ID holders; $8 youth (under 21); $5 Middlebury students; and are available by calling 802-443-6433 or visiting middlebury.edu/college/box-office.