Director Stephanie Voss Nugent says it doesn't matter what your nationality or cultural background is — everyone will be able to relate to the characters in "Over the River and Through the Woods."
The play, written by Joe DiPietro, known best for his stage work "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change," centers around "family, faith and food." It arrives at Newburyport's Firehouse Center for the Arts this weekend after a successful run at West End Studio Theatre in Portsmouth, N.H.
First produced in 1994, "Over the River and Through the Woods" follows a young man named Nick, who has gotten together with both sets of Italian grandparents for family dinner every Sunday for 27 years. Then one Sunday, he must break the news that he's been offered a great job. The trouble is, the job will require Nick to move.
"Nick needs to go off and find out who he is, but he needs to find out how to do it without breaking his grandparents' hearts," Voss Nugent says. "His grandparents need to learn to let go. The play is about the ties that bind us to the people we love."
Although the play isn't set around Thanksgiving, Voss Nugent says it's the perfect time of year to think about family and the ones we love most.
"We have the perfect blend of believable characters who make you laugh," she says. "But the heart of the story will leave you sobbing along with the characters, as there is so much love in the family."
The production marks the second partnership between the Firehouse and the New Hampshire-based Artists' Collaborative Theatre of New England (ACT ONE).
As the economy has made it more difficult for theater companies to stage productions, Mary Shapiro, a longtime member of the local theater community who sits on the Firehouse's programming committee, says officials took Voss Nugent up on her offer to co-produce "Over the River and Through the Woods." As part of the agreement, the theaters are splitting expenses as well as box office proceeds.
Shapiro is confident the play will resonate with audiences in Newburyport, explaining that when she first saw the show, it stuck with her.
"It's a solid character-driven play," Shapiro says. "It will be moving and a good (example of) what theater can do, something few other mediums can do."
The response to the play has been overwhelming, Voss Nugent says. After one production, a woman came up to her and said she had been unsuccessfully trying to persuade her mother to move in with someone so she wouldn't be alone. After taking in the play, the woman said she was now ready to stop talking and persuading, and start listening to what her mother had to say.
"That's why I do theater, because it can reach people on those levels," Voss Nugent says.
Voss Nugent says the production has benefited from a cast that has remained fairly consistent since the show's debut, creating a familiarity that shines through especially during the quick dialogue that peppers the script. The Firehouse show will feature Anne Rehner, Alan Huisman, Josh Bresette, Meaghan Willis, Carol Davenport and Danny Gerstein.
"It's a great thing to run so long because you are able to build layers of trust (between characters)," she says. "The characters have percolated in them, and they feel like they know what the other is thinking now."
While "Over the River and Through the Woods" has light moments, Voss Nugent says the themes touch deep into the core of families.
"I hope people feel they can connect with their family," Voss Nugent says. "I hope they get to treasure how much you love the people in your life."
IF YOU GO
What: "Over the River and Through the Woods" by Joe DiPietro
When: Tomorrow and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m.
Where: Firehouse Center for the Arts, Market Square, Newburyport
How: Tickets $20 adults, $18 students, seniors and members. Call the Firehouse box office at 978-462-7336 or visit www.firehouse.org.
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