The final mainstage production of the Ogunquit Playhouse’s 2026 season is almost here, and it’s bringing the music of one of America’s most recognizable singer-songwriters to Maine for a world premiere.
Small Town: A John Mellencamp Musical begins performances October 1 and runs through November 1, 2026, transforming songs from John Mellencamp’s five-decade career into a new theatrical story about love, community, struggle, and holding onto hope when the future feels uncertain.
For Mellencamp fans, the premise alone should sound intriguing. The production features 24 songs from his catalog, including favorites like “Small Town,” “Hurts So Good,” “Lonely Ol’ Night” and, of course, “Jack & Diane.” But rather than simply presenting a greatest-hits concert, Small Town uses those songs to tell a new multigenerational story centered on the characters whose names Mellencamp made famous more than four decades ago.
A Little Ditty About Jack and Diane, With a Whole New Story
At the center of Small Town are Jack and Diane, two young lovers living in a community described by the Playhouse as being “in free-fall.”
The pair are trying to hold onto their relationship and youthful optimism while the people around them confront difficult choices about their lives and futures. Their story unfolds alongside that of other community members, creating a larger portrait of people trying to make their way through changing circumstances.
It’s fitting material for Mellencamp’s music. Throughout his career, his songwriting has repeatedly returned to small-town America, working-class lives, young love, disappointment, resilience, and the complicated relationship people have with the places they call home.
Now those themes are getting new life on stage in Ogunquit.
John Mellencamp’s Music Takes Center Stage
John Mellencamp has spent five decades building one of the most recognizable catalogs in American rock music. A member of both the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Songwriters Hall of Fame, Mellencamp has built his career around songs that often find their biggest stories in ordinary American lives.
That makes Small Town particularly interesting. Songs audiences have known independently for decades are being placed within one larger narrative, allowing familiar lyrics to take on new meaning as part of Jack and Diane’s story and the lives of the people around them.
There’s also a direct Mellencamp connection behind the scenes. Andy York, who has played guitar with the John Mellencamp Band for approximately 30 years, serves as the production’s music supervisor and co-orchestrator. Jason Hart is music director, arranger, and co-orchestrator.
One important note for anyone buying tickets specifically because Mellencamp’s name is above the title: John Mellencamp himself is not performing in the show. This is a theatrical production built around his music and lyrics, rather than a Mellencamp concert.
Meet Jack and Diane
Leading the cast are Dillon Klena as Jack and Morgan Higgins as Diane, with both performers making their Ogunquit Playhouse debuts.
Klena comes to Ogunquit after appearing on the national tour of Jagged Little Pill, along with regional productions of Next to Normal, Dear Evan Hansen, RENT, Newsies, Spring Awakening and The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
Higgins brings an interesting connection to Mellencamp himself. Her credits include Broadway’s Bad Cinderella, television appearances on Elsbeth and Orange Is the New Black, and the film Mr. Harrigan’s Phone. She has also previously performed at Farm Aid with John Mellencamp.
Together, they’ll bring Jack and Diane off the radio and onto the stage as fully realized characters at the heart of this new musical.
A Cast Packed With Broadway and Screen Veterans
Surrounding Klena and Higgins is a cast with an impressive collection of Broadway, touring, television, and film credits.
Ron Bohmer plays Sean. His extensive Broadway résumé includes Ragtime, The Scarlet Pimpernel, The Woman in White, A Little Night Music, and Les Misérables, while his touring credits include playing the Phantom in The Phantom of the Opera.
Annie Golden takes on the role of Lou. Golden began her career as lead singer of the punk band The Shirts before building a long stage and screen career. Broadway audiences may recognize her from Into the Woods, The Full Monty, On the Town, and Xanadu, while television viewers will know her from shows including Orange Is the New Black.
Matt Saldívar plays Sergio, bringing Broadway credits that include The Great Gatsby, Peter and the Starcatcher, Act One, Grease, and The Wedding Singer.
Luna Lauren Velez plays Maria. Her stage credits include Broadway’s Into the Woods and the national tour of Dreamgirls, while television audiences may recognize her from Dexter, Oz, Ugly Betty, How to Get Away with Murder, and New York Undercover.
The current cast also includes Kathy Fitzgerald as Box, whose Broadway résumé includes Wicked, The Producers, 9 to 5, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
The company is rounded out by Angela Chatelain Avila, Mayelah Barrera, Zach Cossman, Mollie Diaz, Louis Jannuzzi III, Noah Lapook, Victoria Lourdes, Kaitlyn O’Leary, Sam O’Neill, Alex Paez, Kendall Rivera, Lionna Romans, Deandre Sevon and Ariana Valdes.
An Accomplished Creative Team Behind the Premiere
Mellencamp supplies the music and lyrics, but Small Town is also bringing together an accomplished theatrical creative team to build the story around them.
The book is by award-winning playwright Naomi Wallace, whose honors include a MacArthur Fellowship, Obie Award, Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, and Windham-Campbell Prize for Drama.
The production is directed by Lisa Peterson, whose credits include Broadway’s Good Night, Oscar, and numerous acclaimed Off-Broadway and regional productions. Peterson is also no stranger to Wallace’s writing, having previously directed Wallace’s The Trestle at Pope Lick Creek and Birdy.
Richard J. Hinds serves as choreographer, returning to Ogunquit after directing and choreographing the Playhouse’s 2025 production of Come From Away. His previous Ogunquit credits also include Escape to Margaritaville, Mamma Mia!, and Saturday Night Fever.
A World Premiere Right Here in Ogunquit
Perhaps the most exciting part for Southern Maine theater fans is that this isn’t a touring production arriving after audiences elsewhere have already seen it.
Ogunquit gets it first.
Small Town is receiving its world premiere at the Ogunquit Playhouse, continuing the historic theater’s tradition of developing and staging new work alongside established Broadway favorites.
That means audiences attending this October will be among the first anywhere to see Jack and Diane’s story expanded into a full stage musical and hear how Mellencamp’s songs have been reimagined within it.
And there’s a certain poetry to debuting a musical called Small Town in Ogunquit. For a show built around community, love, uncertainty, and the complicated ties people have to home, a historic theater in a small Maine seaside town seems like a pretty fitting place to begin.
Catch “Small Town” at the Ogunquit Playhouse
Small Town: A John Mellencamp Musical runs October 1 through November 1, 2026, at the Ogunquit Playhouse, 10 Main Street in Ogunquit.
The production runs approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes and is rated PG-13. Regularly scheduled matinees are at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday, with evening performances at 8 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday.
After a summer filled with Broadway favorites, the Playhouse is heading into October with something audiences haven’t seen before.
Familiar songs. A brand-new story. Jack and Diane. And the music of John Mellencamp filling one of Southern Maine’s most historic theaters.
That sounds like a pretty good reason to spend an October night in Ogunquit.
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