Three days. Three spankin’ new plays.

Thursday, February 21

• DEPENDENCE DAY by Anne Nelson
  

  Once upon a time, “family” was what happened in the kitchen in the farmhouse, and “nature” was as close as the front porch. Now we “stay connected” by cell phones and e-mail if we’re lucky. Welcome to Karen’s family: four generations of spirited women — and the quiet man who connects them to each other — as they work through the challenges of parenting, marriage, divorce, and sweet life itself. DEPENDENCE DAY is as much a story of the American family as it is a story about the American Experience, lived one day at a time. Featuring Denice Hicks, Dorothy Marie Robinson, Rona Carter, Buddy Raper, Cassie Tesauro, and Mark Cabus. Ensemble member John Mauldin directs.

Friday, February 22

• THE HALF-LIFE OF JOY by Lauren Gunderson
  

  Joy is a brilliant girl, succumbing to her brilliance. To her high school physics teacher Max, she is an incalculable genius. To her mother Claire, she is an anorexic recluse. To The Ghost of Marie Curie, she is a friend and confidant. As Joy prepares for the prestigious National Science Conference (and try to beat her rival science all-star) she and Marie Curie decide to build a portable nuclear reactor in honor of her late father. Claire and Max begin a romance that totally grosses out Joy. The modern themes of poly-perfect daughter play out in this sarcastic, playfully absurdist coming of age story. Science, body image, teendom, well-matched love and the fate of mankind come together in THE HALF-LIFE OF JOY. Featuring Ginger Newman, Nan Gurley, Robert Marigza, Ellen Coble, and Jasmine Miller. Executive Director Richard Northcutt directs.

Saturday, February 23

• LETTERS TO SALA by Arlene Hutton
  

  Based on a true story, which has been called “one of the last great wartime narratives,” LETTERS TO SALA is a Holocaust tale. In 1940, when her sister received a letter to report to a German force labor camp, sixteen-year-old Sala Garncarz volunteered to go in her place. Over the next five years, in seven different camps in Germany, Poland and Czechoslovakia, Sala received over 350 pieces of mail sent to her by friends and family on the outside or fellow prisoners. She managed to save every piece of paper, often risking her life, only to hide them after her marriage to an American G.I. Over forty years later, Sala gave the letters to her daughter Ann Kirschner, who researched the people and stories in the letters and had them transcribed and translated. The letters were exhibited at the New York Public Library in the spring of 2006 and are currently touring the country. Ann’s book, “Sala’s Gift”, was published last fall. Featuring Misty Lewis, Peg Allen, Jenny Littleton, Holly Allen, Jessejames Locorriere, Phil Perry, Caitlin Kelly, and Nicole Deane. Founding Artistic Director Mark Cabus directs.

• WHEN: February 21, 22, and 23
• WHERE: Upstairs at Bongo Java, 2007 Belmont Boulevard
• TIME: 7:30 PM
• TICKETS: $10 for adults, $5 for students

There will be a brief talk-back after each play.