Join us on one Tuesday every month as we explore a variety of great plays … classics as well as new works! Some plays may contain mature subject matter.
Sweat, by Lynn Nottage: September 10 at 7 p.m. No stranger to dramas both heartfelt and heart-rending, Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Lynn Nottage has written one of her most exquisitely devastating tragedies to date. In one of the poorest cities in America, Reading, Pennsylvania, a group of down-and-out factory workers struggles to keep their present lives in balance, ignorant of the financial devastation looming in their near futures. Set in 2008, the powerful crux of this new play is knowing the fate of the characters long before it’s even in their sights. Based on Nottage’s extensive research and interviews with real residents of Reading, Sweat is a topical reflection of the present and poignant outcome of America’s economic decline.
Moonlight & Valentino, by Ellen Simon: October 1 at 7 p.m. This light-hearted comedy by Neil Simon’s daughter captures the warmth and spirit of four women seeking answers to life’s biggest questions. When Rebecca’s family and closest friend arrive on her doorstep following the sudden, accidental death of her husband, they bring their own baggage and distinctive personalities: a controlling ex-stepmother, a naive younger sister, and an eccentric best friend. When a sexy painter is hired to paint Rebecca’s house, each woman learns that, when all is said and done, laughter is the best medicine.
The Humans, by Stephen Karam: November 5 at 7 p.m. Breaking with tradition, Erik Blake has brought his Pennsylvania family to celebrate Thanksgiving at his daughter’s apartment in lower Manhattan. As darkness falls outside the ramshackle pre-war duplex, eerie things start to go bump in the night and the heart and horrors of the Blake clan are exposed.
Peter and the Starcatcher, by Rick Elice: December 10 at 7 p.m. Tony-winning Peter and the Starcatcher upends the century-old story of how a miserable orphan comes to be The Boy Who Would Not Grow Up (a.k.a. Peter Pan). A wildly theatrical adaptation of Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson’s best-selling novels, the play was conceived for the stage by directors, Roger Rees and Alex Timbers, and written by Rick Elice, with music by Wayne Barker. From marauding pirates and jungle tyrants to unwilling comrades and unlikely heroes, Peter and the Starcatcher playfully explores the depths of greed and despair… and the bonds of friendship, duty and love.
For more information about the First Tuesdays Play Reading series, call 517-264-7469 or email jrighter@croswell.org.