(ENGLEWOOD, NJ) -- Bergen Performing Arts Center (bergenPAC)'s Performing Arts School Show Choir will take the stage with MANIA: The ABBA Tribute on October 28 as part of the theater’s grand reopening this Fall.

bergenPAC undertook a major renovation project earlier this year to upgrade its facilities and restore the theater’s historic ornamental elements. The improvements include a larger lobby with additional restrooms and concession stands. Restrooms are also being added to the mezzanine level. Inside the auditorium, patrons will enjoy new comfortable seats and an exciting lineup of bergenPAC favorites and diverse headliners.

Mania: The ABBA Tribute will perform at bergenPAC on October 28, 2022 at 8:00pm. Tickets range from $29-$69 and are available at www.bergenpac.org. MANIA (formerly ABBA MANIA) formed in 1999 and the show has been selling out theatres and concert halls internationally ever since. This show has toured the world in its quest to bring the music of the Swedish ‘Supergroup’ to their millions of fans, old and new!

The Show Choir is part of The Performing Arts School at bergenPAC’s Young Professionals Vocal Academy. Teens can audition to join the group, which offers unique opportunities to share bergenPAC’s Taub Stage with headliners. Past performances have included Foreigner, The Irish Tenors, The Midtown Men, and Kristin Chenoweth. The Choir also sings at a variety of community events.

The Young Professionals Vocal Academy is led by Amelia DeMayo, a renown veteran voice coach. Together with her skilled co-teachers Liliana Sotirova, Gulnara Mitzanova, and Glenn Gordon, the program uses a holistic approach to prepare children aged 5 through college. Both the recreational singer and those on a professional track are mentored and given career guidance to reach their full potential.

Current academy students recently performed in Disney’s The Lion King on Broadway (Vince Ermita as Young Simba) and NBC's Annie Live! (Felice Kakaletris and Sophie Knapp as the orphans Molly and July). DeMayo’s students have also appeared in productions on Broadway, regional theatre and national tours, including Dear Evan Hansen, School of Rock, Kinky Boots, and A Bronx Tale, and the international tour of Les Misérable. Many also do voice-over work for children's animated features, including Pinkalicious and Nella the Princess Knight.

Her students have also been accepted into prestigious pre-college, college and conservatory programs, including NYU's Tisch School of Performing Arts, The Manhattan School of Music, The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Northwestern University, The University of Michigan and Pennsylvania State University's B.F.A. program at State College, PA. 

Founded in 2003, the 1,367-seat Bergen Performing Arts Center, or bergenPAC, is the area’s cultural mecca. Housed in a historic Art Deco-style theater boasting one of the finest acoustic halls in the United States, bergenPAC attracts a stellar roster of world-class entertainment. The jewel in our crown is The Performing Arts School at bergenPAC – the innovative, educational performing arts initiative that, through programs, classes, outreach, school shows, and main theater presented shows, reach more than 30,000 students and community youth annually. The Performing Arts School provides community youth, age 2 months to 21 years, with unique, “hands-on” training in music, dance and theater by industry professionals. It is through the ongoing generosity of sponsors, donors, members, and patrons that the not-for-profit 501 (c)(3) corporation bergenPAC and The Performing Arts School are able to thrive and enrich our community.

PHOTO: Performing Arts School at bergenPAC Show Choir with Kristin Chenoweth in 2019, courtesy of Jeremy Lebled.