Wits’ End Productions: Staged reading of “Aunt Dan and Lemon” by Wallace Shawn

Wits’ End Productions will present a staged reading of Wallace Shawn’s Obie Award-winning play “Aunt Dan and Lemon” at the Basil Burwell Community Theate on Friday, October 23, at 7:00 PM and Saturday, October 24, at 2:00 PM. Proceeds from ticket sales will benefit the Waldo County Woodshed and Waldo County Bounty. Coming just ahead of the Nov. 3 election, the reading is intended to spark conversation and keep Midcoast Maine voters engaged during this political moment.

The performances are sponsored by Madison Cook, candidate for House District 39, which represents the towns of Belfast, Belmont and Northport.

Told through the memories of a young woman nicknamed Lemon, the play introduces her captivating mentor, “Aunt” Dan, a close friend of her parents who fills Lemon’s young imagination with tales of her wild days in London’s Swinging Sixties and her adoration of Henry Kissinger. Dan’s descriptions of her affairs with married men, her hedonistic circle of friends, and the beautiful but calculating Mindy, who is willing to go to violent lengths to maintain her lifestyle, illustrate the human capacity to depend on comfort enabled by cruelty toward others, our voyeuristic fascination with evil, and our willingness to give power and allegiance to strongmen who promise us the way of life we desire.

The reading is directed by Zafra Whitcomb of Belfast, a Waldo County native who studied acting, directing and performing arts management at Bard College and Brooklyn College City University of New York. Whitcomb spent more than ten years working with theater companies in New York City and Washington, D.C., before returning to Maine in 2007. Most recently, Whitcomb directed “Below the Belt” for the Belfast Maskers this spring.

The cast features Sally Mills as Aunt Dan and Emily Fetter as Lemon, with an ensemble including Andre Blanchard, Greta Brown, Cory Burns, and Linnea Harrold. The play will be performed in the style of a live radio play, with actors reading from scripts and interacting on stage while positioned at music stands.

Audience members are invited to social gatherings at the theater before and after each performance, providing a space for building community, discussing the play’s themes and making plans for taking action locally. Music will be provided by local DJ Dee Dee Seahorn. Pre-show socials begin at 6:00 PM on Friday (with a beer and wine cash bar) and 1:30 PM on Saturday. Post-show gatherings begin immediately after each 90-minute performance.