One of the most successful musicals in history, Hello, Dolly! has starred everyone from Carol Channing to Pearl Bailey to Bette Midler. In a new version, now playing at Olney Theatre Center, Nova Y. Payton steps into the historic role. Payton’s Dolly is a true icon — a charismatic Black woman in control of her own destiny. As a stage presence, her star power is palpable; as a vocalist, sublime. But it is the empathy behind Payton’s triumphant façade that makes her truly irresistible.
The Olney creative team of Director Kevin S. McAllister, Choreographer Eamon Foley, Music Director Christopher Youstra, and their virtuoso cast and creative team bring us a Dolly! that is strikingly melodic and superbly well-acted — a celebration of the ways we are all different, and the ways we are all the same.
Most people are familiar with the story. It is New York in the 1890s. The vivacious widow Dolly hopes — no, plans — to wed cranky half-millionaire Horace Vandergelder (a swaggering Moses Villarama), who has — or thinks he has — everything. Meanwhile, Dolly works as a slyly opportunistic matchmaker, a single woman making a living by solving problems, be they commercial, romantic, cosmetic, or gastronomic.
Payton’s skill as Dolly is something to watch as she snags Horace (snags being the appropriate word in this love-conquers-all show). She introduces herself with aplomb in her opening number, “I Put My Hand In.” She cheerfully vanquishes her rivals, unites lovers, and convinces Horace she wants nothing to do with him, which (of course) causes him to fall madly in love with her.
The story alternates between New York City and Yonkers, where Horace runs a feed store and tyrannizes his downtrodden assistants, Cornelius Hackl (Michael Perrie Jr.), and Barnaby Tucker (Ricky Devon Hall). He refuses to give his chronically weepy niece Ermengarde (Anna Maria C. Ferrari) permission to marry her lover Ambrose Kemper (Wood Van Meter) because Kemper is (horrors!) an artist. When Horace travels to New York in search of a wife, Barnaby and Cornelius take advantage of his absence to plan their own city adventure. As is the way with well-crafted musical comedies, mayhem ensues and plans go awry when Horace and his assistants both show up at the hat shop of the vulnerable yet charming Mrs. Malloy (Caitlin Brooke) and her assistant Minnie Fay (Alex De Bard).
Each of these leads has a standout moment. Brooke’s vocal talents are showcased in her solo “Ribbons Down My Back,” while Perrie’s love song “It Only Takes a Moment” is one of the highlights of the show. But the talent doesn’t stop there. In the iconic restaurant scene featuring the show’s title song, Montel B. Butler as Rudolf Reisenweber, the debonair major domo, leads the “Waiter’s Gallop,” a dance extravaganza, with a sequence of precision maneuvers featuring trays, entrees, napkins, and even tablecloths. Karen Vincent shines in this scene as the eccentric “heiress” Ernestina.
Hats off to the multitalented Ensemble, Quadry Brown, Patrick Leonardo Casimir, Eve Dillingham, Delaney Jackson, Matthew Millin, Robert Mintz, Nico Nazal, Eli Schulman, Taryn Smithson, Alyssa Enita Stanford, Jailyn Wilkerson, and Ava Wilson.
Hello, Dolly! was the longest-running show on Broadway when it premiered in 1964, running for over five years. Director McAllister accentuates some historical aspects of the show while bringing the musical’s emotional center into the here and now. Horace’s number “It Takes a Woman,” describing the many fascinating activities of a wife (such as cleaning up messes and washing dishes), is given a refreshingly ironic tone.
Inside the plot is a kind of reverse Taming of the Shrew — it is Horace who is tamed, and, predictably, he has no idea what hit him.
Jerry Herman’s magnificent songs “Before the Parade Passes By,” “Put On Your Sunday Clothes,” and, of course, “Hello, Dolly!” are a pleasure to hear all over again. Foley’s classic choreography is a joy to watch. Dolly looks stunning in her many colorful costumes that vary in style and inspiration, by Co-Costume Designers Paris Francesca and Julie Cray Leong.
Scenic Designer Ravi “Riw” Rakkulchon excels in one of the show’s “wow” moments, when a train glides across the stage transporting the characters from Yonkers to New York. Christina Watanabe’s lighting design and Matthew Rowe’s sound design create a visual and aural Dolly! that is a glorious paean to diversity and love. Happy Holidays to all, from Olney!
Running Time: Approximately two and a half hours with one 15-minute intermission.
Hello, Dolly! plays through January 4, 2026, in the Roberts Mainstage at Olney Theatre Center, 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road, Olney, MD. Performances are Wednesday through Saturday evenings at 7:00 pm; Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday matinees at 1:00 pm; and select Sunday evenings at 7:00 pm. Additional performances will take place around Thanksgiving and Winter Break. Tickets ($42–$133, service fees inclusive) are available online, by calling the box office at 301-924-3400, or through TodayTix. Discounts for teachers, active military, and first responders are available at olneytheatre.org/discounts.
The program for Hello Dolly! is online here.
Hello, Dolly!
Book by Michael Stewart
Music and Lyrics by Jerry Herman
Based on the play The Matchmaker by Thornton Wilder
Original Production Directed and Choreographed by Gower Champion
Produced for the Broadway Stage by David Merrick and Champion Five, Inc.
CAST
Mrs. Dolly Gallagher Levi: Nova Y. Payton
Ernestina: Karen Vincent
Ambrose Kemper: Wood Van Meter
Horace Vandergelder: Moses Villarama
Ermengarde: Anna Maria C. Ferrari
Cornelius Hackl: Michael Perrie Jr.
Barnaby Tucker: Ricky Devon Hall
Minnie Fay: Alex De Bard
Irene Molloy: Caitlin Brooke
Rudolf Reisenweber: Montel B. Butler
Ensemble: Quadry Brown, Patrick Leonardo Casimir, Eve Dillingham, Delaney Jackson, Matthew Millin, Robert Mintz, Nico Nazal, Eli Schulman, Taryn Smithson, Alyssa Enita Stanford, Jailyn Wilkerson, Ava Wilson
UNDERSTUDIES
Dolly Levi: Karen Vincent, Irene Molloy: Anna Maria C. Ferrari, Ernestina: Delaney Jackson, Ermengarde: Taryn Smithson, Barnaby Tucker: Quadry Brown, Cornelius: Wood Van Meter, Rudolf/Horace: Robert Mintz, Ambrose: Nico Nazal, Minnie: Jailyn Wilkerson
Onstage Swings: Ava Wilson, Eli Schulman
Swings: Emmy J. Lane, James B. Mernin
CREATIVE TEAM
Director: Kevin S. McAllister
Music Director/Additional Orchestrations: Christopher Youstra
Choreographer: Eamon Foley
Scenic Designer: Ravi “Riw” Rakkulchon
Co-Costume Designers: Paris Francesca, Julie Cray Leong
Wig Designer: Rueben D. Echoles
Lighting Designer: Christina Watanabe
Sound Designer: Matthew Rowe
New York Casting: TBD Casting
Stage Manager: Ben Walsh
Assistant Stage Managers: Fior Tat, Kate Kilbane
Director of Music Theatre: Christopher Youstra
Director of Production: Jerid Fox
LIVE ORCHESTRA
All music is performed live.
Piano/Conductor: Christopher Youstra
Keyboard/Associate Conductor: Walter “Bobby” McCoy
Flute, Clarinet, Alto Sax: Andy Axelrod
Clarinet, Bass Clarinet, Tenor Sax: Rogelio Garza
Trumpet/Flugelhorn: Brent Madsen
Trombone: Christopher Steele
Bass, Tuba: Yusuf Chisholm
Percussion: Carroll “CV” Dashiell III
SEE ALSO:
Nova Y. Payton and Moses Villarama to star in ‘Hello, Dolly!’ at Olney Theatre Center (news story, October 7, 2025)
