May 13, 2011 — For its last show of the season, Theatre Kapow presented Marsha Norman's Pulitzer Prize-winning play, " 'night, Mother," at the Stockbridge Theatre at Pinkerton Academy in Derry, New Hampshire. This is not an uplifting play. In fact, it's fairly devastating. After spending some time carefully laying things out in her aging mother's house, making arrangements for grocery delivery and other things she'll need when she's left alone, the daughter matter-of-factly informs her mother she's going to kill herself. There's some humorous dialog up to this point between the two rural southern women, before the mother accepts the fact her daughter is serious.
Carey Cahoon as the daughter and Donna Goldfarb as the mother give masterful performances as the mood of the play turns from lighthearted banter in the early going to denial, recrimination, anger and grief as the mother realizes her daughter is on an irreversible course. Tonight was the first of three performances of the play. I usually avoid a first-time performance, not wanting to witness first-night jitters, but I needn't have worried. The performances by the two actresses were emotionally shattering and the direction by Matthew Cahoon perfect.
Following the play, the actresses joined representatives from the Center for Life Management, NAMI-NH, the Connect Project and the Support Group for Survivors of Suicide Loss for a question-and-answer session about suicide prevention with the audience.
May 31, 2011 - I'm comfortably ensconced in my room at the Seawall Motel in Southwest Harbor, part of the Bar Harbor area in Maine. I just had supper at Scotty's Dockside down the road a piece. I came here to check out the Seal Cove Auto Museum, almost a five-hour drive. It was well worth the trip. The museum, inconspicuous on a rural road, houses some of the most beautifully preserved and restored brass-era cars in America. You can view my photos of these stunning automobiles at this link:
