If you go
› What: “Picnic”› Where: Mars Theatre, 117 N. Chattanooga St., LaFayette, Georgia› When: 8 p.m. Aug. 3-4 and 11; 2:30 p.m. Aug. 5 and 11-12› Admission: $16, $13 for senior adults, $12 students› For more information: www.BAPshows.com
Jackie Ellis, left, plays Madge Owens and Zoe Kokotek plays her sister, Millie Owens, in “Picnic.” (Photo: Emily Miller)William Inge’s coming-of-age classic “Picnic” will open Friday, Aug. 3, for six performances by Back Alley Productions in the historic Mars Theatre in LaFayette, Ga.
The intimacy of small-town life and its stifling limitations are at the forefront of “Picnic.” The 1953 Pulitzer Prize-winning play is the study of one eventful Labor Day in Eisenhower-era Kansas. Anyone from a small town will recognize someone in the cast of characters.
The story ignites when the charming and seductive drifter, Hal (played by Jared Kane), stumbles into town by way of old college friend Alan (Alex Clay). Alan greets Hal warmly – as do the women of the town. However, their cordialness ends quickly when Hal takes a strong interest in Alan’s beautiful, but naive, girlfriend Madge (Jackie Ellis).
“This is going to be a very special show,” says director Madison Smith. “It holds a special place in the hearts of many theatergoers, including myself.