Beyond Therapy

by Christopher Durang
Directed by David McCandless

April 19-22, 26-29, May 3-6; 8:00PM
April 30 matinee 3PM

[508] 228-4305

The Theatre Workshop of Nantucket is pleased to announce the opening of it's upcoming show, Beyond Therapy, a zany comedy by Christopher Durang. thanks. Known for his dark humor, Durang is a witty, rebellious satirist of the first order. Still, Beyond Therapy is one of his sunnier pieces. This play is "screwball and scatty with as much owed to the Marx Brothers as the Viennese brothers" according to a New York Times review.

In the story, Bruce and Prudence meet through a personals ad, but their date doesn't go so well. He expresses emotions and likes to cry. Prudence doesn't think men should cry "unless something falls on them." He has a male lover. "I'm bisexual," he tells her. She's not sure; they talk at cross purposes some more, and then end up throwing water in each others' faces. We then see them talk about meeting with their respective psychiatrists.

Even though this is a farce, there are serious concerns below the surface. "When I wrote this play," observes Durang, "all my friends were turning thirty. Most of them were seeing psychiatrists. They all talked about relationships (me too. me too). And they all worried about not being married yet; so the play is about 'relationships' and also how psychology and psychobabble hinder and help us."

The show is directed by David McCandless and features Chris Witte, well known to the Nantucket stage since the days of Straight Wharf Theatre; Mark Carapezza, Chris Lind and Ciaran Byrne all of whom were most recently scene in TWN's fabulous A Christmas Carol: Scrooge and Marley; Chip Gustafson, a TWN mainstay, and new to the island stage, Alison Buchbinder. McCandless also directed the memorable Psychopathia Sexualis a number of years ago, which featured Chris Witte in the role of the psychiatrist.

The show opens April 19 and runs Wednesday through Saturday through May 6 at 8PM with a Sunday matinee April 30 at 3PM. Theatre Workshop is located in the Methodist Church, 2 Centre Street. This show takes place upstairs in the Performance Center. Tickets are $15 Please call 508-228-4305 for reservations.

*All Sunday matinees are free to island seniors and students thanks to a generous grant from the Tupancy-Harris Foundation.