Northampton Community College kicks off its summer theater season with a musical that is a love letter to theater, and Touchstone Theatre presents original works by graduate students.

NCC’s Bill Mutimer Summer Theatre Series opens with “A Chorus Line,” June 3 to June 14 in the Lipkin Theatre on the college’s Bethlehem Township campus.

Touchstone Theatre presents its annual production of “Fresh Voices,” June 5 to June 6 in the south side Bethlehem theater.

The award-winning musical “A Chorus Line,” set on the bare stage of a Broadway theater, focuses on 17 Broadway dancers auditioning for spots on a chorus line.

The innovative show provides a glimpse into the personalities of the performers and the choreographer as they describe the events that have shaped their lives and their decisions to become dancers.

The 1975 musical was conceived by Michael Bennett with music by Marvin Hamlisch, lyrics by Edward Kleban and a book by James Kirkwood Jr. and Nicholas Dante.

“A Chorus Line” opened on Broadway in 1975 and was nominated for 12 Tony Awards and won nine Tonys, including Best Musical. The show won the 1976 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

The musical is best known for its songs “One” and “What I Did For Love.”

“A Chorus Line” is co-directed by Darah Donaher and Jessica Lopez-Barkl.

The cast includes Jason Roth, Dami Shote, Eileen Lee, Gianna Neal, Ava Boyd, Mia Quesada, Charlotte Keefe, Deb Katz, Mackenzie Hall, Riley Lusk, Melody Chen, Mike Gueriere, Kaleb Bell, Adrian Colon-Burgos, Spencer Williams, Harrison Fox, Giovanni Failla, Max McCurdy, Daxton Chapell, Auqinay Jones, Audrey Wood, Maricel Wheatley, Declan Messics, Jacob Piccini and Madisyn Bonilla.

“A Chorus Line,” 7:30 p.m. June 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 11, 12, 13; 2 p.m. June 7, 14, Bill Mutimer Summer Theatre Series, Lipkin Theater, Northampton Community College, 3835 Green Pond Road, Bethlehem Township. 484-484-3412, https://www.ncctix.org/

Touchstone Theatre’s annual “Fresh Voices” includes three works about the past, present and future of womanhood.

“Fresh Voices” stages performances by first-year students in the Moravian University-Touchstone Theatre Master of Fine Arts program.

What began more than 20 years ago as part of Touchstone’s apprenticeship program has evolved into the capstone project for first-year MFA candidates.

Developed over the course of six months under the guidance of the Touchstone ensemble, the works debut every June.

Jolie Lanning and Anisa Hosseini were interested in telling stories through a feminist lens. Through exploring this shared interest, they developed two solo works and one collaborative piece that address the past, the present and the future about themes of female empowerment.

Hosseini’s solo performance introduces Ṭáhirih, a Persian poet and women’s rights advocate. The piece weaves together the experience of an American-born Iranian college student with the harsh realities faced by women in Iran during the Qajar Dynasty.

Lanning’s solo performance “Period” explores the present-day experiences of young girls navigating puberty in the age of social media. Inspired by watching her younger sister begin puberty, along with her own research into social media. The performance art and video projection piece sparks conversation about how communities can better support youth and destigmatize menstruation.

The final piece is footage from Lanning and Hosseini’s youth empowerment initiative, “In the Future, Girls Can … ,” for girls ages 9-14 about creativity, community and imagining the future through art and play.

“We want to end the performance with hope,” says Lanning. “We delve into some very raw, sometimes dark and upsetting topics. We’re looking ahead with dreams for a better future, and this current generation of young girls is pivotal to that dream coming true.”

The performance is recommended for audiences age 13 and older.

Tickets are pay-what-you-will.

“Fresh Voices,” 8 p.m. June 5; 2 p.m. June 6, Touchstone Theatre, 321 E. Fourth St., Bethlehem. 484-767-2456; http://www.touchstone.org/

“Curtain Rises” is a column about the theater, stage shows, the actors in them and the directors and artists who make them happen. To request coverage, email: Paul Willistein, Focus editor, pwillistein@tnonline.com