HURLEYVILLE, NY — Standing People Together (SPT) will present John Mighton’s play “Half Life” at the Hurleyville Performing Arts Centre on Friday, December 8 at 6 p.m. and again on Sunday, December 10 at 2:30 p.m.
“Half Life” takes place in a nursing home and revolves around two elderly residents, Clara and Patrick, who meet and fall in love, rekindling what might have been a wartime romance that neither can quite remember.
The story explores memory and memory loss, the toll that lost memory takes on families and communities, and what can shine through when memory fades.
Caroline Baillie and Eric Feinblatt are the co-directors of both the show and Standing People Together. SPT uses arts, education and nature-based programming to connect people to people and people to nature through local activities that range from theatre workshops and performances to forest schools and nature retreats.
Baillie is an educator, theatre director and author. She launched her UK-based company Critical Stage in London in 1998 and directed shows in England, Australia and Canada before arriving in Hankins in 2017. Her shows focus on raising awareness of social issues, including homelessness, domestic abuse, mental health, teenage pregnancy and at-risk youth.
Feinblatt is an educator, photographer and filmmaker with a background in theatre for development (community-based theatre practice that promotes civic dialogue) and Augusto Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed. Baillie and Feinblatt met at the launch of his show about HIV AIDS in Lesotho.
The cast includes Cass Collins (Clara), Bill Williams (Patrick), James Sullivan (Donald), Thomas Cambridge (The Reverend), Jim Stratton (Scientist), Lexee McEntee (Tammy), Elizabeth Hope Williams (Anna) and Cynthia Crisp (Agnes).
Tickets cost $25 for general admission and $20 for seniors, students and members of the military.
To learn more and purchase tickets, visit hurleyvilleartscentre.org/half-life/.