Thursday, October 1, 2026
The South Shore Theatricals, a local musical theater troupe, will be performing four shows at Freeport’s Sparkle on Stage entitled “Good Times Are Here to Stay.” Tickets are on sale on Sparkle on Stage’s website for the performances on July 18, 19, 25 and 26.
The cast of the South Shore Theatricals come from all across Long Island, with some participants from Queens. Oceanside resident Bruce Bider, the group’s founder and the show’s producer, has assembled a dedicated cast and crew of 29 people, both children and adults, that share his lifelong love of musical theater.
“My background in musical theater goes all the way back to when my parents used to take me to see shows at Jones Beach and (the) Westbury Music Fair,” Bider explained. “When I saw my first Broadway show at age 8, “No, No, Nanette,” I knew that was what I wanted to do with the rest of my life.”
While attending Hofstra University, Bider realized that he also had a passion for teaching music and working with youth, which eventually led to the formation of the South Shore Theatricals where he does exactly that.
Two of Bider’s talented cast members, fellow Oceanside residents Jordana Brewer and Marissa Auerbach, both 13, expressed that their love for musical theater also began when they were younger and have only grown since joining the South Shore Theatricals.
“I did the plays in my elementary school, and then when I was in sixth grade, I got one of the leads,” Brewer said. “So then I became more interested in musical theater, and I decided to continue.”
“I started musical theater when I was really young, and I’ve done four other plays, not including this one,” Auerbach told the Herald. “I’ve just really loved expressing myself emotionally and getting to become connected with all my teammates.”
This is the second year the South Shore Theatricals will be performing at Sparkle on Stage. Last year the group performed “Blame It on the Movies,” a musical revue that features a compilation of songs from various motion pictures. This year’s revue has an intentionally positive and uplifting theme across all of its music. Robyn Workman, the owner of Sparkle on Stage who is also co-producing “Good Times Are Here to Stay,” described the show’s values and theme as “what we need right now,” on Earth.
“The world’s a little on fire, and this (show) is bringing a feel good moment,” Workman said. All attendees will hopefully be uplifted by the show’s positivity.
Bider added, “When I see the cast up there, and even when we have numbers where the little kids are in, (or the) few seniors (we have) in the show, the age disappears, and they all become one unit. …It’s really quite wonderful to see.”
Tickets for all four shows are available online at sparkleonstage.org and will also be sold at the door the night of each performance.
