About Constantine Maroulis Masterclass and Meet and Greet



Constantine Maroulis was born a scrappy kid in Brooklyn with big pipes, deep pride for his Greek heritage, and a love for the theater and rock n’ roll. It was an upbringing a world away from the showbiz glitz of New York and Los Angeles, yet he would come to penetrate the firmament of stars in those galaxies many times.

 

Constantine first came to prominence as the beloved rock n’ roll underdog on American Idol. He then secured his place in pop culture as a Broadway superstar, best known for his Tony-nominated role in Rock of Ages. Now, for his third act, he begins an invigorating and promising new era with a bevy of intriguing projects, including putting the finishing touches on his most assured and swaggering solo music to date.

 

“I always knew I was going to do something within the entertainment business. From a young age I told everyone that,” the New Jersey-based performer says. “I always had a plan. The streets of New York were my college. I hustled a ton, pounding the pavement selling clothes, doing real estate, just anything to support my dreams. I was the kid with a mic in one hand and a briefcase in the other.”

 

Constantine’s story took an important turn at a young age when his family moved from Brooklyn to Wyckoff, New Jersey. The city’s manicured lifestyle was a culture shock to Constantine who preferred the more diverse and earthy environs of Brooklyn. He took solace in close family ties, and his family’s eclectic music soundtrack which included goth, classic rock, jazz, Spanish hymns, Greek music, pop, and show tunes. His life would get another jolt when he witnessed his brother’s performance in a high school production of West Side Story. “I remember seeing the scene where he got stabbed in a rumble and came back to life in a dream sequence. That changed me forever,” Constantine recalls.

 

Despite his vocal prowess and his magnetic presence onstage, Constantine bounced around the New York music scene through most of his 20s having put in a lot of hard work with little to show. In 2004, an old friend convinced him to try out for American Idol. Before his fateful appearance on the show, Constantine had studied musical theater at Boston Conservatory, spent years in the theater scene, and slogged it out on the thankless NYC rock n’ roll club circuit. At the time of his Idol audition, he was fresh from touring with the musical Rent and out of touch with the popular show, as this was before social media. The rest is history, one Constantine is grateful for. “Basically, my life changed the moment I stepped on the property. I had cameras in my face all time. It was the right time and I was ready to play,” he recalls.

 

Constantine Maroulis became a household name through his memorable run as a finalist on the fourth season of American Idol. His charisma, rock n’ roll edge, and astounding vocals entranced the judges, along with the 30 million viewers watching the show at home. His triumphant performances on Idol included some of the show’s most electrifying moments on TV, including his rendition of Queen’s epic “Bohemian Rhapsody". 

 

Constantine knew after American Idol he had a relatively limited window of opportunity to fortify his career. “I went into survival mode—I knew nothing would be handed to me,” he confides. It was by hustling, flying back and forth between New York and Los Angeles, working 12-hour days, that he began to make headway. A show called Rock of Ages with an unknown cast and unknown creatives came knocking. It had a great program of classic songs and a Constantine was instantly drawn in by the concept and signed on. The show enjoyed a highly successful run as one of the highest-grossing Broadway shows of all time, culminating in a myriad of awards and critical acclaim for Constantine including a Tony Award nomination, and firmly establishing him as a world-class performer. Constantine then went on to receive a Drama League Award nomination for the Distinguished Performance Award for Rock of Ages, as well as his work on the show Jekyll and Hyde. “In a way, there are two ‘me’s—the guy driving the van and trailer, and the guy onstage in front of millions. I want to be like a great utility player on a baseball team and play every position on the field. That feels honorable,” he says. Constantine’s clout is growing on Broadway, as his name is attached to many upcoming projects both as producer and actor.

Constantine channels appreciation for his visibility and success through working even harder, including Tony-nominated work as a producer of Broadway’s revival of Deaf West's Spring Awakening, as well as recently releasing a new album of original work entitled Until I’m Wanted on July 10, 2020. Recording Until I’m Wanted was a collaborative effort, with Maroulis calling on relationships he developed over the course of his career. “Here I Come” was written by Constantine Maroulis, Christopher Reardon, Andrew Waldeck and Jason Spiewak. Reardon and Waldeck, better known as Killer Deluxe, have written hits for other Idol alums Daughtry and David Cook, to name a few. Killer Deluxe also wrote “Blown Away,” “Once In Your Life” and “She’s Just Rock N’ Roll” with Maroulis. “Try” was written by Constantine Maroulis and hitmaker Ryan Star and was produced by Dan Monea and Nate Monea at Little C Studios in Canton, Ohio. “All About You” was written by Constantine Maroulis, Sam Hollander and Grant Michaels. Sam Hollander has written and/or produced over 20 US Top 40 Pop Hits, as well as numerous worldwide smashes, including Panic! at the Disco's worldwide number one, "High Hopes". In 2019, Hollander held the top position on the Billboard Rock Songwriters chart for nine weeks, a year-end record. “All About You” was produced by Constantine Maroulis and Josh Edmondson and was mixed by Jeff Juliano. Jeff Juliano is a Grammy-winning mix engineer who has worked with such acts as Dan+Shay, John Mayer, Shawn Mendes and Miley Cyrus among others. 

All of this ambition is held in balance by Constantine’s inspiration – his 10-year old daughter Malena. Life as a single Dad is not without its challenges, however, Constantine is firm in his commitment to being present in his daughter’s daily life. Constantine says: “I’m really a regular guy, and my family reminds me of that. There is nothing more important to me than spending time with Malena. Everything is for her and her future."



Authentic Community Theatre Inc.



Mission & History

Mission

Authentic Community Theatre, Inc. exists to educate and enrich the community through classes and theatre performances.

Goals

ACT will:

  • Develop original work to address significant and relevant social issues.
  • Offer educational opportunities for students to explore the creative arts and processes.
  • Provide artistic outreach programs to underserved segments of our community.
  • Encourage artistic growth in amateurs and professionals by providing professional and social opportunities for local artists.

Support

ACT is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization registered with the Internal Revenue Service. If you would like to make a donation, visit our donation page.

History

ACT began as a creative collaboration between Hagerstown native Niki Perini and English drama educators Tony Goode and Warwick Dobson. The trio met at an educational drama workshop run by Tony and Warwick in New York City. ACT became an official not-for-profit organization in the spring of 2005, and its first undertaking was the 2005 Summer Institute for the Arts (SIFTA). SIFTA was designed to bring together like-minded artists and arts educators committed to the development of community music, arts and performing projects throughout the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States.

The organization has participated in everything from variety shows to art shows and from small showcase performances to the best known Broadway classics. The organization continues to grow and develop their programs by adding relevant productions and classes available to all ages.

In 2005 the organization started its Summer Institute For The Arts (SIFTA) program which includes a week long performance camp at the Maryland Theatre in downtown Hagerstown as well as a Visual Arts camp located at Doubs Woods Park. Each camp hosts 80+ campers and are still running today.

In 2009, with the amazing support of the Nora Roberts Foundation, Authentic Community Theatre, Inc.’s Creative Arts Team brought an original “storytelling” to parks in Washington County. ACT eventually partnered with the Washington County Free Library System to present these original storytelling performances in several library branches to promote their Summer Reading Program! The program has grown to include outreach days with the local Meal Machine program and provides free books to all who attend the performance for summer reading as part of their outreach efforts in Washington County.

ACT has offered classes in voice, dance, and acting over the years and has changed and developed its classes to include a wide range of theatre based knowledge for its students. In 2012 they started a theatre program for students in grades 1-8 called ACTjr. The students in this group have an educational experience by learning the in's and out's of theatre from a performance perspective. ACTjr performs two productions a year and in 2018 partnered with the Maryland Theatre as their home for their productions.

In 2014 ACT started developing their Community Theatre program for teens and adults. After performing Annie at the Maryland Theatre they continued developing the program and finally in 2017 they partnered with the Maryland Theatre and started their full Community Theatre program with The Wizard of Oz. The Community Theatre program performs 3 shows a year at the Maryland Theatre and is open for ages 13 & up.

After the addition of the Community Theatre program, ACT began to grow quickly. In 2018 the organization relocated to a larger facility that provided them with a larger rehearsal space, more classrooms, and more overall space for the organization. With the demand for more productions on the rise the organization started developing more programs to meet the need.

In 2019  ACT added a Teen Theatre Group that will perform 2 shows a year and is specifically designed for ages 13-19 and a third ACTjr show as part of their SIFTA program that puts together a full show in just 2 weeks in the summer. The organization is also developing a Mentor Program that will give the ACTjr students a chance to work with the seasoned actors of the Community Theatre program in the same character roles to learn character development for a specific production.