‘Our Town’ coming to town

“The Milford Theater is celebrating ‘Our Town,’” Beth O’Neil said, specifically intending the pun on the play’s title and Milford. The Milford Theater’s Artistic Director chose this Pulitzer prize winning classic particularly because the fictional small town of Grover’s Corners is so much like the small town of Milford. “Especially in these times,” she said, ”it is important to reflection a play that brings us all together. We have way more in common with each other than we do differences.”

Edward Albee describes “Our Town “ as the greatest American play ever written. Thornton Wilder wrote the play in 1938 and it just closed its revival on Broadway in January of this year.

“Our Town” takes place between 1901 and 1913 and follows the lives of the Gibbs and Webb families within the context of a typical closely-knit small town. The play explores the themes of “Daily life,” “Love and Marriage,” and “Death and Eternity” in three acts.

“’Our Town’ is one of the most produced plays in the entire world, perhaps because of its universality, and its relevance to what it says about the human experience,” director Joseph Fuqua said. A graduate of Yale Drama School with a background of 40 years as a director and actor, Fuqua has a special place in his heart for the play and has injected some interesting interpretations of some of the scenes. This is his second appearance as a director at the Milford Theater, previously having directed “A Few Good Men.” Many of the actors in the current play have appeared in previous plays at the theater so the experience is all the more compelling.

The poster and post cards for “Our Town” were created by Chiara Marone, Resident Stage Manager/Theater Manager for the Milford Theater. Its inventive design displays drawings in white ink of some of the iconic historic landmarks of Milford superimposed on a black background announcement of “Our Town.”

This illustration graphically shows the symbiotic relationship between Grovers Corners and Milford. The drawings in the photo are of Forest Hall, the Columns Museum, Hotel Fauchere, Grey Towers, and the Presbyterian Church, as well as the mountains, trees, and the cemetery in Milford. O’Neil, Fuqua, and Marone all wanted the poster to truly reflect “Our Town” of Milford.

The performance dates for the show at the Milford Theater - located at 114 E. Catharine St. - are Friday, Nov. 7 and 14 at 8 p.m.; Saturday, Nov. 8 and 15 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 9 and 16 at 2 p.m. Tickets are available at www.ticketmaster.com. For more information, call (570) 300-5990.