September 30 - October 23, 2005

Director: Judie Chaimson

Silver Spring Stage presents the hilarious, antic and sidesplitting funny comedy of a middle-aged housewife revived by a mysterious long lost friend The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife by Charles Busch, directed by Judie Chaimson and produced by Richard Ley. The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife will run weekends September 30 to October 23, 2005.

The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife was a smash hit both Off-Broadway at the Manhattan Theater Club and on Broadway, running 777 performances. It won the Outer Critics Circle John Gassner Award for playwrighting and was nominated for a 2001 Tony Award for Best Play. This play about getting lost in the middle of life and finding one’s way demonstrates Charles Busch’s gift for turning “gimlet-eyed” social observation into hearty comedy while also presenting a poignant portrait of a mature woman adrift. It does seem a departure from the spoof and drag fare – Psycho Beach Party, Vampire Lesbians of Sodom and Die Mommie Die – that made Busch a stage and film success. However, a revival of Edward Albee’s play “A Delicate Balance” set his mental gears in motion to create a satire of the same middle-age crisis. Busch said: “Wouldn’t it be funny to take these Jewish characters and put them in a rather cryptic Albee or Pinter play? I didn’t intend it to be a genre parody, just a mysterious story line with very un-mysterious characters.” However, you wish to define The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife, Stephen Sondheim summed it up by saying, “it may be the funniest evening I’ve ever had in the theater.”

The play begins with Marjorie (Melanie Polk) wallowing in the funk brought about by her grown children out of the nest, the death of her adored therapist and her recent public breakdown in a Disney store. Life in her tastefully appointed apartment has never seemed emptier. Her husband, Ira (Craig Miller), with his clinic for the allergy-impaired homeless, seems most irritatingly fulfilled. Even Marjorie's aged, combative mother, Frieda (Norma Ozur), who lives down the hall, has her obsession with her digestive tract to keep her occupied. Enter Marjorie's long lost childhood pal, Lee (Carole Preston), a free spirit with the resume that includes accompanying the Nixons to mainland China and a part as an extra in a Fassbinder movie. The glamorous and worldly friend so completely fills the void in Marjorie's life that she immediately incites suspicion by Ira and Frieda. Rounding out the cast of characters is Mohammed (Roman S. Gusso), as the helpful handy man.

The production team includes Ira Haber (Assistant Director/Stage Manager), Andy Greenleaf (Set Design) and Bill Strein (Lighting Design).

The Tale of the Allergist's Wife is presented by special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc.

Silver Spring Stage is grateful for support from the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County, Maryland State Arts Council and Combined Federal Campaign.