Play About Women's Friendship Opens March 29 At Players' Ring

A group of women in the Seacoast who have gone through the highs and lows of being friends and colleagues for several decades will stage a production this month at the Players' Ring of a play that tells the story of, well, the highs and lows of women's friendships.

The women of Generic Theater, founded in Portsmouth in 1982, will be performing "Shush," a play that provides a glimpse into the lives of five ordinary Irish women. It will open Friday, March 29 and run through Sunday, April 14.

"There is a certain synchronicity to that," said Peggi McCarthy of Exeter, a cast member and founding member of Generic Theater. Four of the five women in "Shush" have worked together in Generic Theater for at least a decade.In fact Debbie Chick of Kittery, a founding member who has not been involved for 25 years, returned to the company to direct the show.

"They called me out of the blue and I had been wanting to get active again in theater so I was really excited for the opportunity," said Chick, who had left to raise a family and work a day job.

The story involves a woman in her 50s or 60s who is not thrilled to celebrate her upcoming birthday. Life has not been going according to plan; her department at work is downsizing, her husband just left her, and her house is falling apart. Some friends and neighbors, however, try to cheer her up with drinks and cake.

"One of the women has gone through three husbands because they have all died; two of the women have men cheating on them and then there is the daughter who's thinking 'is this what I have to look forward to?'", said Chick, who is thrilled to be back working with the troupe. "You wouldn't think that would be very funny, but it is."

"It's playful and a bit provocative," agreed Cary Wendell, Peggi's husband, the show's set designer and another Generic Theater founding member.

Because the play is set in Ireland, the cast has worked on perfecting their Irish accents, even training with a voice coach. Their dialect may not be there yet, but they are getting close, Chick said. They also have fun using words that Americans don't hear much, like "knackered" and "feck."

Cast members include longtime Generic Theater performers Betsy Kimball of Dover as Breda, Barbara Hilton of Portsmouth as Irene, Susan Turner of Portsmouth as Ursula and McCarthy as Marie.

The only newcomer, Gwen Higgins of Dover, joined the cast as Marie's daughter after the original actress cast in the role had to drop out due to other obligations.

"Shush" is the second play Generic Theater has produced by Elaine Murphy of Dublin. It was was commissioned by and first performed on the main stage of The Abbey Theatre, the National Theatre of Ireland, in Dublin in 2013. Murphy's first play, "Little Gem," which later became an international hit, was produced by Generic Theater at the Players' Ring in 2011.

According to Peggi McCarthy, Chick was invited to direct after a slew of active troupe members wanted to audition, but none wanted to direct. Then they remembered Chick, a long-ago talent who last performed with Generic Theater in the mid 1990s as Bananas, the woman murdered in "House of Blue Leaves."

An employee at a group home in York for people with mental illness, Chick's children are adults now and she is looking to feed her creative side again.

"I'd like to act again. It's been a long time," she said. "This is a good way to keep active and involved in the arts."Generic Theater has produced close to 100 plays since 1982, ranging from original, absurdist and eccentric one-acts to full productions of popular plays, adaptations, and little-known works.

The Players' Ring, founded in 1992, provides affordable theater space to local production companies with an emphasis on original works.

"Shush" will be performed March 29 to April 14 at the Players' Ring Theatre at 105 Marcy St. in Portsmouth, with shows Fridays and Saturdays at 8 pm and Sundays at 3 pm. Tickets are $18 with discounts for students, seniors, and Players' Ring members. Reservations can be made at playersring.org or 603-436-8123.

To post a comment, you must register and login.