Drexel Co-op Theatre Company Opens DOG SEES GOD Tonight

Imagine Charlie Brown and the Peanuts gang as anguished teenagers. The Drexel Co-op Theatre Company will stage a production of "DOG SEES GOD: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead," an irreverent, yet poignant drama that conceives the teenaged Charlie Brown and his friends as real people dealing with complex issues. The play, which opens tonight, Feb. 13 at 8 p.m. in the Black Box Theater in Drexel's URBN Center Annex (3401 Filbert Street), follows the gang through explorations of sexual identity, self and social hierarchy. Digging deeply, it deals with such difficult topics such as drug use, suicide, eating disorders and teen violence.

A dark parody written by Bert V. Royal, "DOG SEES GOD" first premiered off-Broadway in 2005. "The play is about finding faith in oneself to get up every morning and live authentically in the world. The ride is bumpy. It's not the smoothest or the straightest path, but this play is ultimately about having hope that things will get better," said Bill Fennelly, the play's director and an assistant professor of theater.

Audience members will be ushered individually into the Black Box and given a handwritten letter from a "pen pal." The heartfelt letter sets the tone for the play and explains how audience members can participate, including by adding their own graffiti to the show's set. "The idea is for the audience to engage in a way that's deeply personal to them," Fennelly said.