News

The Public Theatre goes Over the River to Grandma's!

March 30, 2008

The Public Theatre, Lewiston/Auburn's Professional Theatre ends its current season with Over the River and Through the Woods, a delightful family comedy about grandparents and the people they drive crazy, running May 2 – 11th. Tickets for this crowd-pleasing comedy, written by the author of I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change, are already in high demand, and an additional 2pm matinee performance has been added on Sat May 10th.

A tender, loving and comedic look at an Italian-American family, Over the River and Through the Woods revolves around Nick Cristano, a 29 year old man brought up to live by the three F's: family, faith and food. For his entire life, Nick and his four grandparents have gathered for the traditional Sunday family dinner. This tradition is about to change when Nick breaks the news that he is leaving Hoboken for a job promotion in Seattle. Bent on keeping their grandson around so he can marry and have children, his four Italian-American grandparents are spurred into a frenzy of meddling, match-making, and micro-management of his life.

At the heart of their meddling is a plan to invite a lovely young woman named Caitlin to dinner with the hope that she and Nick will fall in love. The encounter is a disaster (none of the grandparents can comprehend her explanation of "vegetarianism" and praise her skills as an animal doctor!), and their master plan backfires. Now, Nick is convinced he needs to move far away from this insane, overly loving group of senior citizens until he has a panic attack and is forced to spend several days at the house, where he really gets to know his grandparents. "A perfect blend of comedy and pathos, no matter what your grandparents are like, we guarantee you’ll recognize at least one of them on stage", says director Janet Mitchko.

Portraying Nick, the grandson in this heartfelt comedy, is NY actor Brian Hoffman. Brian was last seen at TPT in the film-noir farce Red Herring. Caitlin, his blind date for the evening, will be played by Sarah Koestner, last seen as the Nurse in TPT's production of A Month of Sundays. Decades of professional experience, ranging from Broadway to feature films are divided among the four talented grandparents. Playing Frank, Nick's maternal grandfather, will be Boston based actor Michael Dell’Orto. Offering Nick food at every turn, will be his maternal grandmother Aida, played by Andrea Gallo. Nick's paternal grandparents Nunzio and Emma (also referred to as "the loudest people you’ve ever met"), will be played by Bill Van Horn and Carole Schweid. A familiar face to Theater at Monmouth audiences, this will be Bill's debut at TPT.

This is definitely a show that will leave you smiling and an especially timely play to be performing on Mother's Day! In addition to the annual fund-raising Silent Auction happening in the lobby during the run of the production, Early Bird Subscriptions (offering free bonus tickets!) for the upcoming 08-09 season will be on sale during the run of this show.

Over The River and Through the Woods will be performed at The Public Theatre, Lewiston/Auburn's Professional Theatre, May 2nd and 3rd at 8pm, May 4th at 2pm, May 8th at 7pm, May 9th at 8pm, May 10th at 2pm AND 8pm, and May 11th at 2pm. Adults $18, Sr/Stu $16, Group Rate (10+) $14. For tickets call The Public Theatre Box Office at 782-3200.