CMU School of Drama


Thursday, February 09, 2012

Playwright Ray Werner confronts age issues with 'Elder Hostages' trilogy

post-gazette: "Elder Hostages," a trilogy of one-acts tells the stories of people coping with the indignities of aging, takes the stage for its first full production after an acclaimed reading in 2010. For its run in Pittsburgh Playwrights' new Downtown home at 937 Liberty Ave., the Ray Werner play is bonded with "Work in Progress," an exhibition by former Post-Gazette photographer Annie O'Neill showing portraits of people who have worked at one job for more than 50 years.

1 comment:

js144 said...

This particular article, I think, really filled a void for plays about retirement and the beginnings of senior citizenship. Through all of the movies and shows, etc... we really don't get the full picture of what it means to get older, to have had the family, to have finished work, and so on. Many people joke about the prospects of getting older or say things like "oh, I can't remember/ can't hear, I must be getting old". There is so much more to a person than the age they are. We aren't finished being humans because we get a little older. We have a lifetime of experience to look back on, to have learned from. So much of what we know is prevalent to younger generations. These one acts are very necessary because, although there is humor involved, there are some serious messages that we can only learn from.
I also like the combination of the photographs and the actual one act pieces. So many people spend most of their lifetimes working at a single job and making it their own. It is only appropriate that those men and women are recognized as an extension of these shows.