'Night Mother
Saturday June 25, 2011 8pm - 9:30pm (1 Hour 30 Minutes)
Theatre / Play All Ages
[email protected]
Pulitzer Prize winning “'Night Mother” coming to the Al Whittle Theatre
'WE'VE got a good life here,'' says Thelma Cates to her adult daughter, Jessie, half way through the Pulitzer Prize winning play, '”Night, Mother.'' Thelma, who is a widow, and Jessie, who is divorced, live together in a spotless house on a country road somewhere in the southern US. But on one particular Saturday night we learn that the good life may not be so good after all.
Presented by the Red Rock Theatre, the play runs Friday, June 24, and Saturday, June 25 at Acadia Cinema’s Al Whittle Theatre in Wolfville. Both performances begin at 8 p.m.
Written by Marsha Norman, ‘Night Mother is set in the early 1980s. As Jessie (Andi Rierden) prepares to perform her weekly ritual of giving her mother, Thelma, (Brenda Keen) a manicure, she says calmly, almost as a throwaway line, ''I'm going to kill myself, Mama.'' And, over the next 90 minutes, Thelma must face the fact that Jessie is not kidding.
''People don't really kill themselves,'' argues Thelma, ''unless they're deranged.''
“But Jessie isn't deranged,” says the play’s director, Tony Napoli. “She's never felt better in her life - and that's why ‘Night, Mother is more complex than even its plot suggests. It’s not a message play about the choice to commit suicide. It's about life and what gives it - or fails to give it - value. The play brings forth so many extraordinary issues. At the same time there are these brilliant pockets of humour and warmth.”
“It’s a major work of modern theatre,” says Rierden. “Audiences around the world have found it a very significant and profound play.”
‘Night Mother was first performed in 1982 and immediately received critical acclaim (New York Magazine called it “…honest, uncompromising, lucid, penetrating, well-written, warm and intelligent.”) In addition to the Pulitzer Prize, the play received four Tony Award Nominations.
[email protected]
Pulitzer Prize winning “'Night Mother” coming to the Al Whittle Theatre
'WE'VE got a good life here,'' says Thelma Cates to her adult daughter, Jessie, half way through the Pulitzer Prize winning play, '”Night, Mother.'' Thelma, who is a widow, and Jessie, who is divorced, live together in a spotless house on a country road somewhere in the southern US. But on one particular Saturday night we learn that the good life may not be so good after all.
Presented by the Red Rock Theatre, the play runs Friday, June 24, and Saturday, June 25 at Acadia Cinema’s Al Whittle Theatre in Wolfville. Both performances begin at 8 p.m.
Written by Marsha Norman, ‘Night Mother is set in the early 1980s. As Jessie (Andi Rierden) prepares to perform her weekly ritual of giving her mother, Thelma, (Brenda Keen) a manicure, she says calmly, almost as a throwaway line, ''I'm going to kill myself, Mama.'' And, over the next 90 minutes, Thelma must face the fact that Jessie is not kidding.
''People don't really kill themselves,'' argues Thelma, ''unless they're deranged.''
“But Jessie isn't deranged,” says the play’s director, Tony Napoli. “She's never felt better in her life - and that's why ‘Night, Mother is more complex than even its plot suggests. It’s not a message play about the choice to commit suicide. It's about life and what gives it - or fails to give it - value. The play brings forth so many extraordinary issues. At the same time there are these brilliant pockets of humour and warmth.”
“It’s a major work of modern theatre,” says Rierden. “Audiences around the world have found it a very significant and profound play.”
‘Night Mother was first performed in 1982 and immediately received critical acclaim (New York Magazine called it “…honest, uncompromising, lucid, penetrating, well-written, warm and intelligent.”) In addition to the Pulitzer Prize, the play received four Tony Award Nominations.
Admission
Pricing: Tickets are $15, $12 in advance (available at Box of Delights bookstore).
 |
| Other Events at Al Whittle Theatre |
|---|
| Fri Aug 21, 7pm Alone, Together |
| Sat Aug 22, 8pm I Saw The TV Glow |
| Sun Aug 23, 2pm CatVideoFest 2026 |
| Fri Aug 28, 8pm The Fifth Element (1997) |
| Sat Aug 29, 8pm Galaxy Quest (1999) |
| Thu Sep 3, 7pm Matt Wright Peekaboo Comedy Tour |
| Fri Sep 4, 7:30pm CRY WOLF Ft. Jack Pine and The Dirty Sheep |
| Sat Sep 5, 7:30pm Night Kitchen Rootsy |
| Sun Sep 6, 7pm Ponyo |
| Sun Sep 13, 4pm The Invite |
| See More... |