Eleemosynary (ella-MOS-inary, {adj.} charitable, the giving of alms)

by Lee Blessing

was performed on April 16, 17, 18, 2010

            Eleemosynary (“el-e-MOS-inary” – of or pertaining to alms, charitable) examines the unusual and volatile relationship among three remarkable women: the grandmother, Dorothea, whose dissatisfaction with her sheltered life led her to seek a place for herself in spiritualism and eccentricity  (“You know the house where the ball rolls uphill?  I personally found a lot of strength in that.”), her brilliant daughter, Artie, who has repeatedly fled the stifling domination of her mother (“I couldn’t function when she was around; she’d come over with some theory for making toads fly”); and Artie's daughter, Echo, in love with words and learning, and wise beyond her years, despite being abandoned by her mother to be raised by her grandmother. 

 

            The title of the play refers to the word with which Echo wins the National Spelling Bee, an achievement she hopes will bring her the attention of her mother and the world.  In comic and tragic snapshots, we watch them struggle to tolerate and understand and love each other.  In the end, as Dorothea begins her search “for life after eternity,” Artie and Echo come to accept their mutual need and summon the courage to try to build a life together. 

            “There’s something about the Wesbrook women,” Echo muses.  “We have this expectation about ourselves…to be extraordinary.  It’s a little like having a disease in the family.”

Directed by M. A. Smith

and featuring:

Rachel Deans Krute

as Dorothea

"My father laughed at the idea that I might prefer college to marriage."

"Eccentricity saved my life!  I thank God for it...for all the good--and the harm--that it has caused."

Debby Bowers

as Artie

 "When I was with my husband, I had no memory at all...of where I came from, what I'd been like, or what I was afraid of.  When my mother arrived, my memory came back.  Forever."

        and Veronica Lingo as Echo"At twelve, I decided to be the greatest speller in history.  For life.  I didn't realize only kids had spelling bees.  I thought there was an adult division."

 ~~~ 
 Today we are going to prove that man--or in this case, woman--can flywithout the aid of any motor of any kind, using only the simple pair ofhomemade you see my daughter, Artemis, wearing here.
 

 ~~~

"I can feel my grandmother in me. 

My mother, too--a little. 

Something flies straight through us, straight from Dorothea to me. 

 It's a gift...

   I guess it's a gift..."

We seek to engage ourselves and our audiences in the challenges, risks and rewards of live, intimate theatre; to share thought-provoking stories with which we can touch and move one another, to learn from one another's humanness, to make a difference by opening minds and hearts. 

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