Press Release (Boston Theatre)
Locally developed AddictShunned gives a human face to the opioid and addiction crisis
Avenue Stage Presents
AddictShunned
By Judith Austin
It’s hard to turn away from any human being -- once you’re five minutes into their story.
“The Princess” knows she doesn’t have a problem, but she can’t get that ice-cold martini out of her mind. “Who Gives?” is out on the street again, but pounding beers with his brothers at age 10 is still a happy memory. And at 47, “Hard Candy” is giving detox one more try for the sake of her kids -- but her dealer is the one she never keeps waiting. AddictShunned, a new play by Brockton-based playwright Judith Austin -- a Nurse Practitioner specializing in addictions -- is a collection of compelling and brutally honest monologues on the topics of addiction and recovery. A variety of characters, from patient to clinician to active user, relate their experience with a mix of humor and pain, wisdom and irony. Thoroughly grounded in our time and place, where addiction touches virtually every life regardless of age, class, or culture, AddictShunned is a plea for understanding and dialogue from the front lines of a crisis.
Judith Austin, a Psychiatric Nurse-Practitioner specializing in addictions, began working on AddictShunned in late December of 2016. The process of creating AddictShunned began through her interactions with patients in the acute detoxification units she works in. These conversations have covered the spectrum of human emotion, from side-splitting hilarity to bone-shaking sorrow, sometimes overt, oftentimes subtle. The constant theme in each of these conversations has been, “I don’t want to be this way.” With that in mind, she started to create characters based on these interactions.
AddictShunned tells real-life stories of teens, adults, elders, and providers struggling to understand addiction. The powerful stories will take one’s breath away, opening our minds and hearts to the impact of addiction.
-- Colleen T. Labelle, director of Boston Medical Center's Office-Based Addiction Treatment (OBAT) program
The company will host a post-performance audience talk-back on Friday, July 13, with special guests Eilene Davidson Grayken (founder of the Grayken Center for Addiction at Boston Medical Center) and Colleen Labelle (Director of Office Based Addiction Treatment at BMC). Ms. Labelle will participate in an additional talkback after the Saturday, July 14 performance.
Since 2012, Avenue Stage has produced innovative shows in a variety of settings in Dorchester and downtown Boston. AddictShunned is its 7th production. Most recently, the original comedy Fish Food had successful runs in Dorchester, at Boston Playwrights’ Theatre, and the 2017 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Listings Information for
Presented by: Avenue Stage
Written by: Judith Austin
Directed by: Michael O’Halloran
Cast: Geoffrey Pingree, Saloni Kumar, Eunice Simmons, Bridget Haberecht, Joel Derby, Megan Ward, Miss Mary Mac
Venue: Boston Playwrights’ Theater, 949 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215
Dates : July 12th – 28th, 2017
Times: Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8:00 PM
Tickets: $30.00 General Admission, $20 students and seniors. Tickets may be purchased online at www.avenuestage.org, or by calling the box office at 866.811.4111.
Media Contact: Michael O’Halloran
Tel: 617-838-5912 Email: stageavenue@gmail.com
Press photos: www.avenuestage.org
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