The Luckiest People written by Meridith Friedman will rip your heart out. Oscar Hoffman (J.D.Sutton) and his son Richard (David Lane) enter Oscar’s retirement in an assisted living facility along with David’s partner David (Alexander Mrazek.) David is carrying what I presumed to be ashes. They had just returned from a funeral burring Oscar’s wife. Oscar finds himself alone in the world and he is cantankerous and angry. Richard is blindsided when his father demands to leave his
assisted living facility.
With his sister Laura (Suzanne O’Donnell) living in Shanghai, and his plans to soon to become a first time father with his partner, he is less
than thrilled at the prospect of housing his–to put it mildly–difficult
father. Accusations begin to fly and defenses are drawn, spiraling
father and son, brother and sister, and spouses into a heated game of
finger pointing with unintended consequences.
When Richard has second thoughts about adopting a child with his partner, their relationship is strained to the point of breaking. David knows he wants to raise a child but suddenly Richard is faced with having to possibly care for his father. He also discovers that his sister Laura is planning to meet an old boy friend behind her husband’s back. She yearns to be with someone who knew her before life set so many demands on her. This contemporary and wryly humorous play touchingly explores the
middle years of life when competing priorities from children, spouses,
and parents create challenges and self-examination.
I laughed, I cried, I sketched. Seemingly comedic at first, the play delved deep into this family’s relationships, demands, and blunt trauma. The injuries of childhood surface and the injustice of being treated like a child as an elder become a driving theme. “You are lucky to have somewhere to runaway to. Someone to run to.” Everyone had hidden scars and no one seemed particularly lucky to me. This is the first play in a
trilogy about the Hoffman family.
The Luckiest People runs approximately 1 hour and 45 minutes with one 15-minute intermission.
Tickets are $25 to $50
John and Rita Lowndes Shakespeare Center 812 E Rollins St, Orlando, FL 32803
The remaining show dates are:
Thursday, April 12, 2018 – 7:30 PM
Friday, April 13, 2018 – 7:30 PM
Saturday, April 14, 2018 – 7:30 PM
Sunday, April 15, 2018 – 2:00 PM
Wednesday, April 18, 2018 – 2:00 PM
Wednesday, April 18, 2018 – 7:30 PM
Thursday, April 19, 2018 – 7:30 PM
Friday, April 20, 2018 – 7:30 PM
Saturday, April 21, 2018 – 7:30 PM
Sunday, April 22, 2018 – 2:00 PM
Wednesday, April 25, 2018 – 2:00 PM
Wednesday, April 25, 2018 – 7:30 PM
Thursday, April 26, 2018 – 7:30 PM
Friday, April 27, 2018 – 7:30 PM
Saturday, April 28, 2018 – 7:30 PM
Sunday, April 29, 2018 – 2:00 PM