01/26/2016
Final weekend. We sold out or almost sold out every show so far except for opening night. But there are (as I write) plenty of seats remaining for Thursday (7:30), Saturday (7:30) and Sunday (2:30). (Just one left for Friday.) We had great reviews (besides Michael Moore's mentioned below, we had one in the Leader) last week, but this week we're depending on word of mouth. This is a reminder to come see us if you haven't already, or to recommend it to your friends if you liked our show.
It's a challenging show to be sure. "THIS SHOW IS WRONG!!!!" said an animated audience member after act 2 last week. "I NEED TO PROCESS THIS" said the same audience member after act 3. "This is the most intense play I've ever seen," said somebody else. It's Sam Shepard. It's not light entertainment. It's not straightforward drama either. There's really nothing like Sam Shepard. If you want to sample some of his work, I recommend the film Fool for Love, directed by Robert Altman, starring Shepard, Kim Basinger and Harry Dean Stanton. Or, go see the current revival of Fool for Love on Broadway, starring Sam Rockwell. There's a terrific version of True West on Youtube, starring Gary Sinese and John Malkovich. True West is also playing in March on Orcas Island. But if you want to see his Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Buried Child, this is the place to do it!
We've blown some people away with this show. You can see it in their eyes afterwards. We've had standing ovations. A young woman who I'd never seen before had to give me a squeeze on the way out of the theater, she was so affected by it. We were thrilled to have a former director of theaters in Seattle and Portland go out of her way to praise us. And then there are those who I see leaving the theater with that "PROCESSING" look on their faces. But the thing I hear more than anything else is people say: "The acting! What acting! Amazing acting! Not a weak link in the cast! Every actor found truth in their part!" So besides challenging yourself, opening yourself to new experiences, taking this rare opportunity to see a great Sam Shepard play, come on out to see our tremendously talented cast, all local actors: Lawrie Driscoll, Michelle Hensel, Peter Wiant, David Wayne Johnson, Katie Kowalski, Jason Noltemeier, Scott Nollette. They've been living with this play for a long time.
For more info, and links to buy advance tickets and to reviews: http://www.onetimeplayers.org For low-income tickets, call me at 385-6207. And if you haven't gotten around to doing the advance ticket thing, don't hesitate to just show up at the door! The Chameleon Theater, Thursday (7:30), Friday (7:30, just one ticket left), Saturday (7:30), Sunday (2:30). Final weekend!
The darkly comic play depicts a 1970s farm family in southern Illinois. At one time, long ago, this family had been living the American dream. But then things went wrong.
