A nostalgic story of young romance written by Triumvirate Theatre president Joe Rizzo will hit the stage starting this weekend, as “The Girl Next Door” opens Thursday, Sept. 18, and runs for two weekends.
The show is set in 1984 and follows David, played by Gage Sturman, as he navigates a crush on his next door neighbor Alex, played by Ella Mallard. Alex is going through a major challenge in her life, and David doesn’t quite understand the way she behaves toward him. Rizzo said earlier this month that the show is framed as a look into the past, a la “A Christmas Story,” where a grown-up David portrayed by Todd Sherwood recounts a chapter in his life.
That format, Rizzo said, allows for more realistic dialogue — a real teenager isn’t going to be able to convey their feelings in poetic words, while an older man looking back might be able to verbalize those strong emotions in retrospect.
The show is rooted in ‘80s culture, Rizzo said, and features live music in the auditorium.
Sturman, a frequent sight in recent local productions from “The Lion King” to “Greece is the Word,” has risen to the occasion, Rizzo said. The show demands balancing a comedic sensibility that comes easy to the young actor with more emotional heavy lifting.
The show features a broad cast of local actors beyond Sturman and Mallard, as David recounts vignettes of his young life around the family dinner table or in a rowdy classroom.
The idea of writing another new play, Rizzo said, came after the success of “Lockers,” another of his own compositions, in 2023. When the Triumvirate opened its new theater in Kenai earlier this year, he said, he dropped a sheet of paper on the stage and asked who of his actors might want to be a part of his next show, already titled “The Girl Next Door.” He wrote the show this summer.
“One night, I sit down and I just start writing,” he said. “I’ve been doing this for a long time and I still never get over how serendipitous things can be — how things fall into place.”
Since opening the theater, the Triumvirate has put on multiple kids camps and a private grand opening performance. “The Girl Next Door” will be the first full-scale production staged inside. Rizzo said, months after opening, it’s still exciting to see young actors onstage in a “working theater.”
“It’s great that the building exists, but when I really love it is when it’s being used for what it was designed for,” he said.
“The Girl Next Door” runs Thursday, Friday and Saturday for two weekends, Sept. 18-20 and 25-27, with all shows at 7 p.m. Tickets cost $26.50 for adults and $16.30 for students, and they can be purchased at triumviratetheatre.org. For more information, find “Triumvirate Theatre” on Facebook.
This story was corrected on Wednesday, Sept. 17 to correct a spelling error in Ella Mallard’s name.
Reach reporter Jake Dye at jacob.dye@peninsulaclarion.com.
Ella Mallard and Gage Sturman rehearse “The Girl Next Door” at Triumvirate Theatre in Kenai, Alaska, on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Gage Sturman and Ella Mallard rehearse “The Girl Next Door” at Triumvirate Theatre in Kenai, Alaska, on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
