Press Release: “Shooting Star” at Cotuit Center for the Arts

Cotuit Center for the Arts presents “Shooting Star,” by Steven Dietz, May 9 to 26 in the Black Box Theater. Performances are on Thursday through Saturday at 7:30 PM and Sunday at 2 PM. Marcus Liuzzi directs.

Snowed in overnight at a middle-America airport, ex-college lovers Elena Carson, played by Liz Liuzzi, and Reed McAllister, played by Marcus Liuzzi, have an unexpected and life-altering reunion. Elena has stayed true to her hippie-ish, counter-culture path (still with yoga mat and rain stick in tow), while Reed has gone corporate and conservative right down to his yellow tie and Wall Street Journal.

As the night gives way to laughter, banter, remembrance and alcohol, Elena and Reed revisit a past that holds more surprises than they imagined—and a present that neither of them could have predicted. As regrets surface and secrets are revealed it becomes clear that both view the other as the one that got away. Now they must contend with the ramifications of past decisions and what the future might hold.

Filled with laughter and ache, “Shooting Star” is a bittersweet romantic comedy about the middle days of our lives, and how we got there. The Austin Chronicle wrote, “Stories told this well don’t come around very often,” and the Providence Journal wrote that “Shooting Star” “is that rare romantic comedy that is funny, but also charming, endearing, and not removed from reality…the entertainment is in the telling, in the playful banter, and there’s lots of it.”

“I’ve always liked the premise author Steven Dietz sets forth about these ‘chance meetings’ we sometimes have in life and bumping into people that we’re done with,” said Mr. Liuzzi. “Especially an old girlfriend or boyfriend you haven’t seen in 25-30 years. What do you do? What do you say?

“As Dietz writes in his play ‘you end up talking out of a shared desire to be done talking!’ In this play, however, the author doesn’t allow them to be done talking and move on but instead keeps them together throughout the afternoon and into the following morning as both their flights have been grounded due to a blizzard,” said Mr. Liuzzi.

“It’s a wonderfully entertaining show that is not only fun to perform but also takes the audience on an emotional journey – one that might have them wondering what it might be like if it happened to them!”

Much like Elena and Reed, husband-and-wife acting duo Liz and Marcus met in college in the seventies. In real life though, neither let the other get away and they continue to enjoy life and performing on the Cape. Liz and Marcus were last seen together on stage last fall in “Good People,” also in the black box theater at CCftA.

Award-winning playwright Steven Dietz has written 37 original plays and adapted 11 plays from other sources. They have been seen at over 100 regional theaters in the US, including Off Broadway. His plays have been produced in over 20 countries and translated into 10 languages. “Shooting Star,” titled after a Bob Dylan song, was written in 2008 and had its world premiere in Austin, Texas, where he is a professor of playwriting and directing.

Tickets are $20, $15 for members. Cotuit Center for the Arts is at 4404 Route 28 in Cotuit. For more information, visit artsonthecape.org, or call 508-428-0669.

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What:

“Shooting Star,” by Steven Dietz

Where:

Black Box Theater, Cotuit Center for the Arts, 4404 Route 28, Cotuit

When:

May 9-26. Thursday through Saturday, at 7:30 PM; Sunday at 2 PM

Admission:

$20, $15 for members

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