The year 2023 was a year of welcome diversity in the Lehigh Valley theater scene.

Pennsylvania Playhouse opened the year with an all-Latino cast in its charming “Our Lady of the Tortilla” and later staged the cross-dressing “Kinky Boots” as its summer musical.

The Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival staged a thrilling and vibrant “In the Heights,” Lin-Mauel Miranda’s rap-filled love letter to the racially-diverse community of Washington Heights.

Northampton Community College added Spanish language to its playful “Much Ado About Nothing.”

The devastating effects of homophobia was a theme in Civic Theatre of Allentown’s profoundly-moving “The Laramie Project.”

Northampton Community College Summer Theatre’s heartfelt musical “The Prom” dealt with the topic of same-sex relationships.

Racism was explored in DeSales University Act I’s heartrending and honest “Intimate Apparel.”

Ebony Pullum brilliantly recreated Billy Holiday in “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill” at The Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival.

MunOpCo Music Theater did a fantastic job with its thrilling production of “Dreamgirls.”

Between the Lines Theater approached diversity from the other side as it looked at the response to portrayals of Native-Americans in “The Thanksgiving Play.”

The year 2023 in Lehigh Valley theater was also a year of beginnings and endings.

Emma Ackerman, who relocated from the area after having been a beloved ensemble member for 15 years at Touchstone Theatre, co-wrote and starred with Chris Egging, the two-person performance Piece, “Games We Play,” as her swan song.

A moving production of the musical, “The Mad Ones,” marked the final show at Moravian University’s Arena Theatre, which will be demolished in January as part of a renovation and expansion of Haupert Union Building.

New to the Lehigh Valley is Reclaimed Performing Arts Company, which was founded by 2023 Cedar Crest College graduate Carter Reichard, who says the goal is to showcase performers who are under-represented. The group kicked off a series of “extreme” takes on Shakespeare’s plays In December with a production of “Much Ado About Nothing.”

Throughout 2023, I saw more than 50 shows. Here is my take on my favorite shows of the year. In some cases, it was hard to pick just one because there was a lot of compelling theater.

Professional musical

The Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival hit it out of the park with “In the Heights,” a buoyant, exuberant and vibrant musical that pulsated with energy.

The show boasted strong performances from its diverse cast, soaring voices, riveting choreography by Michael Anthony Sylvester and kinetic direction by Valeria Cossu.

An immersive multi-level set made audiences feel they were right in the middle of the neighborhood.

Professional play

The Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival’s magical interpretation of William Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” featured a charismatic and dynamic performance as Prospero by Broadway veteran Robert Cuccioli, a captivating take on the flying sprite Ariel by Sarah Gliko and a riveting and physical performance of Caliban by Christopher Patrick Mullen. Added to this was music composed by Johnny Drumgoole, memorable costumes by Lisa Zinni and thoughtful direction by Jason King Jones.

Community musical

The Pennsylvania Playhouse staged an extravagant and high-energy production of the musical “Kinky Boots” that was buoyed by an outstanding performance by Andrew Stewart as the drag queen Lola. Also strong was Joemichael Luciano’s extremely-likable Charlie Price and the “Angels,” an impressively-athletic quartet of drag queens played by Andrew Galindez, Joseph Mowad, Evan Heger and Nate Rosario. Jonathan Cruz’ exciting choreography, Todd Burkel’s jaw-dropping costumes and strong direction by Clair Freeman kept the action humming.

Community play

At times excruciatingly painful, at times surprisingly funny, Civic Theatre of Allentown’s production of “The Laramie Project” was profoundly moving under the deft direction of William Sanders and Rae Labadie. The play centers around the brutal 1998 murder of Matthew Shepard, a young gay man in Laramie, Wyo., and grew from interviews with Laramie residents which are powerfully recreated on stage. The ensemble cast of 11 brought more than 60 characters vividly to life and gave each one a believable depth and agency.

Original play

In the heartwarming and heartbreaking original play, “Games We Play,” written and performed by Touchstone ensemble members Emma Ackerman and Chris Egging, two characters examine their friendship from the unfettered joy of childhood at age 8 to the burden of responsibility in careworn middle age.

Portraying two people with very different personalities who become friends despite those differences, Ackerman and Egging take the audience on a journey back and forth between the present and their characters during ages 8 to 18 as they explore how people remember things, often differently depending on their perspective.

College musical

Intensely emotional and achingly poignant, DeSales University Theatre Act I’s production of “The Hunchback of Notre Dame” featured outstanding performances across the board. Dillon Parish gave Quasimodo a wonderfully varied emotional range. Gabrielle Moseley was tantalizing as the seductive gypsy, Esmeralda. A huge choir of monks and a lush orchestra added depth to the music. The moody recreation of Paris’ gothic cathedral by scenic designer Will Neuert and lighting designer Eric Haugen was eye-catching. Dennis Razze, director, and Anne Lewis, associate director, made the massive musical feel intimate.

College play

Northampton Community College’s Theatre Department’s production of David Mamet’s “American Buffalo” was intense and unsettling theater, driven by strong performances by the three performers, Justin Ferguson, Andy Van Antwerp and Max Weatherhold. Director Bill Mutimer staged the show with the audience on three sides, a first for NCC’s Norman R. Roberts Lab Theatre. The result immersed the audience in the midst of the junk shop for a very effective result. Likewise, the actors had to navigate through junk and interact with it.

Memorable performances

Katie Semon channeled Disney’s mermaid princess Ariel so well, she seems to have literally leapt out of the film onto the stage in Civic Theatre of Allentown‘s production of “The Little Mermaid,” helping make the giddy, colorful cartoon come to life. Her big belty voice satisfied on familiar songs and she threw herself whole-heartedly into every scene.

Also larger than life was Richie Warmkessel as the sea witch Ursula. Warmkessel was wickedly wonderful as the evil diva who loves to be bad and gleefully lures the naive Ariel into Ursula’s clutches. Warmkessel delivered an over-the-top performance and perfected the villainous laugh.

Memorable ensemble

The Nun Ensemble stole the show in Civic Theatre of Allentown’s “Sister Act.” The joyously-jubilant performance was greatly enhanced by the Nuns with their exuberant group numbers in which they harmonized, danced, swayed and clapped on gospel-inspired songs. The nuns were anchored by Tracy Ceschin, outstanding as the stern Mother Superior; Nina Elias, sweetly appealing as the young postulate, and Melissa Klausner, bubbling over with joy as an eternally-upbeat Nun.

Honorable mention

Hilarious performances made Cedar Crest College’s Department of Performing Arts’ “Ruthless! The Musical” a riotously uproarious evening of theater. Southern Lehigh junior Jenna Seasholtz was perfectly-cast as Tina Denmark, the 8-year-old protagonist who is uber-talented and relentlessly ambitious. Giovanni Marini commanded the stage every time they made an entrance as Tina’s ambitious manager, Sylvia St. Croix, who was deliciously over the top. Noel Cruz gave an inspired performance as Tina’s mother Judy Denmark, who goes from wide-eyed June Cleaver-style domesticity to selfish and demanding diva. JoAnn Wilchek Basist provided deft direction and perfect pacing for this rollicking comedy.

“Curtain Rises” is a column about the theater, stage shows, the actors in them and the directors and artists who make them happen. To request coverage, email: Paul Willistein, Focus editor, pwillistein@tnonline.com