Dogwood Community Theater presents Crimes of the Heart on Friday, August 6 and Saturday, August 7. Performance begins at 7:30 p.m. both evenings. Michael Coon has returned to the Dogwood Center to direct the performance.
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 of 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.
The play is headlined by Melissa Baker, Meghan Voss, and Chelsea Pummill portraying the three sisters. Supporting roles are played by Sarah Brown, Jason De Jager, and Mark Ayers.
Director Michael Coon states “This play is a comedy about tragedy. All three sisters each have their own set of tragedies, but there is one tragedy that they share in common. In the past it has searated them, but come to the play, and you will see how a terrible event can turn into the bond that brings people together. Sometimes the best way to get through the tragedies in our lives, we just need to find a little laughter.”
Tickets: $10 in advance, $12.50 day of show. Main Stage. 7:30 p.m.
The Dogwood Center Box Office is open Monday – Friday, 9:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. and one hour prior to an event. For information, phone 231.924.8885.