Crimes of the Heart
by Fredericksburg Theater Company (FTC)
Apr. 10 - Apr. 26, 2015
Fridays-Sundays
Kerry Goff directs the Pulitzer Prize winning dark comedy about three eccentric, disaster-prone Southern sisters coming together after one shoots her husband. Rated PG-13.
The scene is Hazlehurst, Mississippi, where the three Magrath sisters have gathered to await news of the family patriarch, their grandfather, who is living out his last hours in the local hospital. Lenny, the oldest sister, is unmarried at thirty and facing diminishing marital prospects; Meg, the middle sister, who quickly outgrew Hazlehurst, is back after a failed singing career on the West Coast; while Babe, the youngest, is out on bail after having shot her husband in the stomach. Their troubles, grave and yet, somehow, hilarious, are highlighted by their priggish cousin, Chick, and by the awkward young lawyer who tries to keep Babe out of jail while helpless not to fall in love with her. In the end the play is the story of how its young characters escape the past to seize the future—but the telling is so true and touching and consistently hilarious that it will linger in the mind long after the curtain has descended.
Crimes of the Heart was the winner of the 1981 Pulitzer Prize and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. An astonishing first play, initially presented by the Actors Theatre of Louisville, then Off-Broadway, and then on Broadway, where it established the author as a major voice in the theater and launched the career of Oscar winning actress Holly Hunter. It eventually was made into a very successful 1986 Oscar nominated film starring Sissy Spacek, Diane Keaton and Jessica Lange. The dark comedy centers around three eccentric, disaster-prone Mississippi sisters that must come together when the youngest shoots her husband.
Director Goff describes Crimes of the Heart as "theater that everyone should find relatable because it deals with basic family dynamics. However, the story of these particular three sisters, the Magrath sisters, is far from basic." Goff continued, "The play focuses on the simple truth that every family is unique and different as the individuals themselves. That’s what makes Crimes of the Heart so compelling and moving. Our family hardships are different from what the three sisters experience, but we undoubtedly can feel empathy for them."
Cast in the production are Ashleigh Goff as Lenny Magrath, Nettie Joseph as Chick Boyle, Heidi Eubanks as Meg Magrath, Will Schalla as Doc Porter, Kristin DeGroot as Babe Botrelle and James Lacy as Barnette Lloyd.
Crimes of the Heart
by Beth Henley
Fredericksburg Theater Company (FTC)
April 10 - April 26, 2015
Apr. 10th - 25th, 2015, Fridays and Saturdays at 8:00 pm; Sundays at 2:00 pm. Advance tickets are $29 for adults and $12 for 17 and younger. Tickets at the door are $35.
Box office hours are Monday through Friday, 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. Tickets may be purchased at the theater box office, located next to the Steve W. Shepherd Theater, 1668 S US Hwy 87, Fredericksburg, TX, 78624, or by calling 830-997-3588 / 888-669-7114. They may also be purchased online at www.fredericksburgtheater.org.
For further details, please contact the theater office at 830-997-3588. Additional information and directions to the theater can also be found on FTC's website, www.fredericksburgtheater.org, or on their Facebook page.
