The Farmington Players Present BECKY'S NEW CAR

Fasten your seatbelts for "Becky's New Car, " a wild ride along the road of love, fidelity and second chances, opening Friday February10th at The Farmington Players Barn in Farmington Hills. It's part quirky comedy and part heartwarming drama. When the married Becky Foster meets a millionaire widower Walter Flood at a car dealership, they begin an unlikely friendship, and the audience gets a chance to ride shotgun in a way most plays wouldn't dare. The show runs through February 25th. Tickets are available at www.farmingtonplayers.org or 248-553-2955.

The play by Steven Dietz premiered at The Seattle Act Theatre in 2008, commissioned by a local realtor as a birthday gift for his wife who loved the theatre.

Erin Osgood of Brighton plays "Becky," who skillfully crashes through theatre's famous "fourth wall." She interacts with audience members throughout the play and even enlists their help in amusing ways. "Be prepared to be surprised," says director Cynthia Tupper of Farmington Hills.

Barn regular Dorne LeFere of Metamora plays Walter, the socially awkward rich man who mistakes Becky for a widow, and offers her a chance to step into a new life where she is wined and dined. Becky can't bring herself to set the record straight with Walter and she launches a secret double life.

Bob Hotchkiss of Bloomfield Hills plays Becky's husband Joe, a roofing contractor who barely sees his wife and doesn't talk much about relationships, because "it just messes things up."

Bob Cox of Ann Arbor shines as their unemployed son and psychology graduate student who lives in his parents' basement and analyzes his mother.

Becky's coworker Steve (Steve White of Plymouth) is a new widower trying to restart his life. He repeatedly runs a slideshow of his past for anyone who will listen, leading to both touching and humorous results.

Throughout the play, Becky inspires Walter's daughter Kenni (Nancy Boyd of Highland) and his friend Ginger (Sue Rogers of West Bloomfield) to leave behind lives of privilege and embrace work and relationships.

Tupper says every character goes through some kind of transformation, as they discover their lives are all inter-woven. "All of the characters are somehow stuck in their lives and desiring a big change," says Tupper. "How they go about getting themselves unstuck is an interesting process that not only makes you laugh but think."

And as the characters get "unstuck" the audience enjoys a delightful drive down the road not taken.

Reserved seats for Becky's New Car, sponsored by Cadillac Travel, are available now at www.farmingtonplayers.org or by calling the box office at 248-553-2955.

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