The Department of Theatre at Hope College will present “Cry It Out” on Wednesday-Saturday, Feb. 20-23, at 7:30 p.m., with an additional matinee on Saturday, Feb. 23, at 2 p.m. There will also be a matinee performance on Sunday, Feb. 24, at 2 p.m. that is free of charge. All performances will be in the DeWitt Center main theatre.
Directed by Hope theatre faculty member Richard Perez, “Cry It Out” is a new, dark comedy written by award-winning playwright and screenwriter Molly Smith Metzler. The story centers around Jessie and Lina, two women who bond over the love they have for their newborn children. One of their daily get-togethers is suddenly interrupted when a stranger from a nearby mansion arrives to ask if his wife, who is having a hard time adjusting to parenthood, can join their coffee klatch. The shift from a duo to a trio brings interesting results, and shows us the biological, social and economic upheavals all new mothers face.
“It’s been almost two years since I first saw ‘Cry It Out’ at The Humana Festival of New American Plays,” Perez said. “At the time, I couldn’t understand how I, as a single man without children, could be so moved by a play about three new mothers. I have since realized that while the play is indeed about motherhood, it is also about class, privilege, friendship, marriage, working parents and a host of other issues that so many of us deal with every day. Not to mention, ‘Cry It Out’ is also often very funny.”
In addition to Perez, the production team includes faculty members Perry Landes as lighting and sound designer and Richard Smith as scenic and properties designer; and staff members Paul Anderson as technical director and Darlene Veenstra as costume shop manager. Multiple students also serve on the production team. Senior Paige Trujillo of Holland is the assistant director, junior Katie Joachim of Dearborn is the stage manager and junior Gracen Barth of Dallas, Texas, is the production manager. Freshmen Valerie Dien of Fountain Valley, California, and Lisbeth Franzon of Whitehall are the assistant stage managers. Senior Megan Clark of Clymer, New York, is the costume designer and properties manager, sophomore Peter Hayward of Beaverton, Oregon, is the assistant sound designer and junior Makeya Royer of Boston, Massachusetts, is the master electrician.
The cast includes sophomores Kelsey Davis of Grand Rapids and Madison Meeron of Oxford, senior Olivia Lehnertz of Bloomfield Hills and freshman Piper Arington of Lexington, Illinois.
Tickets for the evening performances and Saturday matinee are $10 for regular admission, and $7 for senior citizens, Hope faculty and staff. Tickets are free for Hope College students and children 18 and under, and are available at the Events and Conferences Office located downtown in the Anderson-Werkman Financial Center at (100 E. Eighth St.). The office is open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and can be called at 616-395-7890. Tickets may also be purchased in advance or in person at the performance.
The DeWitt Center is located at 141 E. 12th St., facing Columbia Avenue between 10th and 13th streets.