A Heroine Free Summer Play Review Essay

On Sunday, April 9, I attended a production of A Heroine Free Summer, written by Dr. Janet Lowery. This production was held at Spring Street Studios, and directed by Chesley Krohn of Mildred’s Umbrella Theater Company. Set at a lake house in upstate New York, this play explores what happens when a family of four sisters becomes divided - the result of two teenage sons confessing to drug use. The piece explores ideas of drug addiction, family history, and determining where your allegiances lie. Although I would have liked to have seen more vocal control from one of the actors, I felt that this piece overall had strong acting, well conceived scenic design, and well thought out costuming choices. In this production, I felt that the scenic
I had the privilege of attending the world premiere of this play, and witnessing a piece of theatre that had been conceived very recently. I was unfamiliar with the playwright prior to this performance, and I am interested in reading more of her work, as I felt it was very naturalistic and poignant. As a theatregoer I found there to be certain areas in the piece that left some unanswered questions, for example, after Kevin is taken to the hospital from the drug overdose, all of the women, including his mother come back to the lake house, although it would make more sense for her to be by his side in the hospital. However, I am sure that this is common of new plays, and the piece will be further developed before publication. I felt that as a writer a learned a lot from being able to identify these areas, and possibly how to solve those problems in my own writing. This was the second show I have seen from Mildred’s Umbrella Theater Company, and I am excited to potentially see more productions from this up and coming theatre company, which is a strong positive effect on my participation as an audience member of local