DANBURY - The court appearance of a 23-year-old man who has been charged with eight sex-related felonies in connection with his work at a Newtown theater group has been postponed in Danbury Superior Court.

The attorney for Matthew Madden of New York City had his client's court appearance, which had been scheduled for Tuesday, May 3, postponed to Friday, May 27. Mr Madden is free on $100,000 bail.

On April 8 in court, a judge entered into the court record eight pro forma pleas of not guilty on behalf of Mr Madden. Neither Mr Madden nor his attorney Charles Christian Young were present in the courtroom when the case was called for arraignment on April 8.

Mr Young could not be reached for comment.

On March 17, Newtown police arrested Mr Madden, who had been working at Sabrina's Encore Productions, charging him with eight sex-related felonies for allegedly pursuing, and in some cases having, sexual contact with underage females who were receiving theater training.

Police charged Mr Madden with two counts of second-degree sexual assault, three counts of risk of injury or impairing the morals of a minor, and three counts of enticing a minor by computer contact. According to court records, those crimes allegedly occurred in 2015, 2014, and 2011.

Police have provided a New York City address for Mr Madden, but information provided in an arrest warrant affidavit on the case indicates he also has had a Newtown address.

Asked for comment on the court case in April, Mr Young responded, "I would just ask that the community refrain from the temptation to rush to judgment of the young man. According to the rules guiding our practice of law, it would be inappropriate for me to comment further."

A complainant reported to police in November 2015 that Mr Madden, who police have said worked as a theater coach/director at the theater group, had contacted the complainant through social media on the Internet and had engaged in an inappropriate conversation.

In response to Mr Madden's arrest, Sabrina Post, the proprietor of Sabrina's Encore Productions, issued a statement in March.

Ms Post wrote, "Matt Madden was a student of Sabrina's Encore Productions from 2007-2011, when he left to attend college. There are no allegations of criminal behavior during this time," she claimed.

Ms Post has stated that Mr Madden was not an employee of the theater group, but only served briefly as an assistant there.