Between 1997 and 1998, Irish playwright Martin McDonagh developed four feature-length plays. One of them was a dark comedy about a 40 year-old woman who looks after her 70 year-old mother. There is bitterness. There is dysfunction. There is mental illness. There is a sense of entrapment and isolation. (The entire play takes place in a small kitchen,) With the right staging, the play could be a compelling mix of comedy and dramatic darkness. The play is brought to life in Racine this week as Over Our Head Players opens The Beauty Queen of Leenane this Friday.
Doug Despin directs a cast featuring Melissa Hughes Ernest, Jacquelyn Laursen, Joseph Piirto, and Matt Rangel.
Over Our Head Players’ production of The Beauty Queen of Leenane runs March 19th through April 3rd at the Sixth Street Theatre on 318 Sixth Street in Racine. For more info, call 262-632-6802.
