- May 18, 2025
"On Golden Pond," one of the most beloved stage plays of American Theater, will be presented live May 29 to June 1 at the News-Journal Center on Beach Street in Daytona Beach.
Produced by Positively Florida Theater Company and directed by Michael Funero, the performance schedule features three evening shows — Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and matinees Saturday and Sunday at 2 p.m.
A Tony winner in its original Broadway rendition and later as a revival, the film version of "On Golden Pond," starring Henry Fonda and Katharine Hepburn as Norman and Ethel Thayer, was nominated for 10 Academy Awards. The Thayers are spending what may be their last summer on Golden Pond in their Maine cottage.
The play is a tribute to human resiliency while also exploring issues like aging, family estrangement, reconciliation, and connection between generations. Having arrived at their Golden Pond summer cottage, the Thayers are soon joined by their testy daughter, Chelsea, and her fiancé. The daughter is stopping by to drop off her fiancé’s young son, Billy Ray, whom the Thayers have never met. The daughter and the boy’s father soon depart for Europe, leaving a reluctant Billy Ray to make the best of it with the older couple.
As the tale unfolds, we see life blossoming anew for both old and young, as Norman, a retired college professor suffering cognitive decline, introduces Billy Ray to the joys of fishing On Golden Pond. When daughter Chelsea returns, she finds her heart softening toward her parents.
Michael Funaro and Joanne van Zyl play the elder Thayers, with Kayleigh Mollycheck as Chelsea and Dennis Amaral as Chelsea’s fiancé, Billy Rae Sr. Braeden is featured as Billy Ray Jr.
Tickets cost $22.50 online at www.positivelyflorida.com or in person at Aberrant Art Gallery, 118 N. Beach St. in Daytona Beach.
