NEW MILFORD, Conn.—Broadway veteran Melinda Buckley will perform her critically acclaimed solo show “MOTHER (and me)” at the Merryall Center for the Arts on Saturday, Sept. 19 at 7:30 pm, followed by a talkback with Carolyn DeRocco, vice president of programs and education for the Alzheimer’s Association Connecticut Chapter.
A fast-paced 75 minutes, “MOTHER (and me)” is about a Hungarian force of nature—all Zsa-Zsa, grand opinions and showbiz dreams—who is slowly waltzing into dementia as her Broadway baby, Melinda, is shimmying into middle age. An outrageous, tender and completely unforgettable one-woman show about stepping up and into your own light.
Reviewing the show for Berkshire on Stage, Macey Levin wrote that “you may find yourself crying through side-splitting laughter.” The talkback picks up where the play leaves off: caregiving, what families face and the resources available to them.
According to the Alzheimer’s Association, an estimated 80,000 Connecticut residents are living with some form of dementia, supported by roughly 130,000 caregivers, most of them unpaid family members. Those attending are invited to bring their questions and their stories, and to sign up with Team MOTHER for the Western Connecticut Walk to End Alzheimer’s, Saturday, Oct. 24 in Newtown. Or they can simply donate anytime at act.alz.org/goto/teamMOTHER.
The performance falls on the final day of Paint the Town Purple, New Fairfield’s week-long Alzheimer’s awareness campaign, which is promoting the show at its events.
“MOTHER (and me)” premiered at FringeNYC, where it earned an extended run. It was further developed with Tony-winning producer Barbara Whitman (“Fun Home”) and director Kimberly Senior (“Disgraced”) at Off-Broadway’s Second Stage Uptown. Buckley has appeared on Broadway and in national tours of “Crazy For You,” “A Chorus Line, “and Bob Fosse’s revival of “Sweet Charity.” The production was nominated for a BroadwayWorld Award for Best Solo Performance. IMBY called it “a solo play with a cast of thousands—heartwarming, heartbreaking, and a million laughs.”
Merryall Center for the Arts is located at 8 Chapel Hill Road, New Milford. Tickets are $25 in advance, $30 at the door, $15 for students 25 and youngerer. For information visit merryallcenter.org
“MOTHER (and me)” is presented as part of Merryall Center’s “To the Power of One” play series, with funding provided by the Connecticut Community Foundation’s Arts & Culture Grant and the Ellen Knowles Harcourt Foundation.
