Paper Mill Playhouse's Carriage House in Millburn opens a fall entertainment series Thursday, Sept. 17, with Broadway performers and themed events running through November.
The 2026 Fall Entertainment Series, announced by New Jersey Stage, follows a summer run at the Brookside Drive venue. The lineup mixes cabaret-style concerts by Broadway veterans with interactive events including trivia nights, themed Halloween parties and murder mysteries.
Singer and pianist Michelle Foster opens the series Thursday, Sept. 17, with "Welcome Home: The Legacy of Carole King," performing hits including "It's Too Late," "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" and "You've Got a Friend."
Dominic Scaglione Jr., one of the longest-running actors to play Frankie Valli in Broadway's Jersey Boys, performs "Sinatra: An Evening of Frank's Greatest Hits" on Saturday, Sept. 19, and Thursday, Sept. 24. The announcement calls the Essex County native's show a celebration of the classic American songbook.
Jarran Muse, who portrayed Marvin Gaye in Motown the Musical on Broadway and worked alongside Motown founder Berry Gordy for about five years, brings "One Night in Motown" to the Carriage House on Friday, Sept. 25, and Friday, Oct. 23.
Benjamin Eakeley, a Millburn-Short Hills native whose Broadway credits include Cabaret, She Loves Me and Sweeney Todd, performs "Benjamin Eakeley Sings the Paper Mill Songbook" on Oct. 15 and Oct. 17. His concerts have been named a Critics' Pick and one of the top 10 cabarets in New York City by Time Out.
Beyond the concerts, the schedule includes Best Men Trivia on Friday, Sept. 18, and Friday, Oct. 16; a Golden Girls Halloween party presented by Without a Cue Productions on Oct. 1, 2 and 3; "Late Nite Catechism: Til Death Do Us Part!" on Oct. 7, 9, 10 and 11; a "Hocus Pocus Musical Murder Mystery" on Oct. 22 and Oct. 29; and "A Dickens of a Murder" on Nov. 5, 6 and 7.
Pianist Joe Regan, a repeat nominee for Outstanding Piano Bar Instrumentalist at the Manhattan Association of Cabarets awards, plays Broadway favorites and takes requests every Thursday at 7:30 p.m.
The Carriage House recently held a grand reopening and expanded to five days a week. Head Chef Jacques Marra, a Maplewood resident who spent 13 years at the Metropolitan Opera House and headed kitchens at upscale New York City restaurants, leads the menu. Hours are Wednesday and Thursday 4–10 p.m., Friday and Saturday 4–11 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m.–4 p.m. for brunch.
Reservations are available through RESY. The Carriage House is at 22 Brookside Drive, Millburn.
Upcoming Carriage House events:
- Thursday, Sept. 17 — Michelle Foster, "The Legacy of Carole King"
- Friday, Sept. 18 — Best Men Trivia
- Saturday, Sept. 19, and Thursday, Sept. 24 — Dominic Scaglione Jr., Sinatra tribute
- Friday, Sept. 25 — Jarran Muse, "One Night in Motown"
- Oct. 1–3 — Golden Girls Halloween
- Oct. 7, 9–11 — Late Nite Catechism
- Oct. 15 and Oct. 17 — Benjamin Eakeley, Paper Mill Songbook
- Oct. 22 and Oct. 29 — Hocus Pocus Musical Murder Mystery
- Nov. 5–7 — A Dickens of a Murder
