The Story

On a dark and desolate snowy night, successful romance novelist, Paul Sheldon, crashes his car into a snowbank and is rescued by his “number one fan,” Annie Wilkes, who brings the unconscious Paul back to her isolated home. While Paul recovers, Annie reads an unpublished manuscript of his latest novel and becomes distraught when she learns that the author has killed off her favorite character, Misery Chastain. Holding him hostage, Annie forces Paul to write a new novel where Misery survives, and he wonders if Annie has any intention of ever letting him go. When loneliness confuses fictional characters for beloved friends, and passion leads to distortion, can either of them survive the misery?

The Reason

MALINDA L. BECKHAM, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

Love does not always feel good. It is not always warm or kind. Love can hurt us, and the lack of love can do even more damage. The idea that love only makes us happy is bunk. Divorce, loneliness, isolation, detachment, self-preservation all can be the result of love gone wrong or love that just never came at all.

Continuing our 2022–2023 “season of love,” Misery explores the heartache and damage that results from the lack of love.

This production of Misery has had its own share of heartache. During the rehearsal period, we lost two of our principal actors to injuries we did not want to exacerbate for the sake of the love of art. Lyndsay Sweeney and Kevin Daugherty had to leave the production to focus on themselves and their health, creating a kind of love that aches when one can’t fulfill a dream. They have both been instrumental to this show and for that we dedicate this production TO KEVI – no “N” and LY – no “N” – DSAY.

Please enjoy the show.