Feeling “Nickel and Dimed”
Rock River Players has put on several plays. A few years ago they performed “Our Town.”
WILLIAMSVILLE- The Rock River Players present “Nickel and Dimed,” a play by Joan Holden, based on Barbara Ehrenreich’s book, “Nickel and Dimed, on (Not) Getting by in America.” Performances are Thursday through Saturday, August 1 to 3, at 7 pm, and Sunday, August 4, at 3 pm; the play will be at the Williamsville Hall, Dover Road.
Ehrenreich’s memoir chronicles her journey across America as she tries to live on minimum wage.
In the script version, the audience feels for the author, played by Vicky Santiesteban, as she weaves in and out of the lives of her co-workers, who labor to fulfill job commitments while struggling to balance life challenges at poverty wages.
Gail (Dawn Slade), the waitress, and others at Kenny’s Diner, deal with pressures both on and off the job; Carlie (Cherie Moran), an Economy Inn housekeeper tries to find employment in keeping with her declining health; Holly (Sherry Brown), in charge of the Magic Maids house cleaning crew, craves advancement but is threatened by medical problems; Patti (Sue Kelly), the nursing home cook, escapes into fantasy; and Melissa (Sherry Brown), the Mall-Mart associate, finds in religion the beginnings of self-assertion.
Other cast and crew members include Bahman Mahdavi; Miles Keefe; Stewart McDermet; Mary Margaret Castro; Johanna Gardner; Susan O’Hara; Connie Baxter;David Roberts; Tanyan Avendano; Maria Pugnetti; Rose Watson; Emi Morita; and Annie Landenberger.
Admission is $10, general; $7 for seniors and students. No one will be turned away for lack of funds. For reservations email verbatimvt@gmail.com or order online at rockriverplayers.org.
