​TThe Playmakers: Comedy to Bloom Again
Have you had an experience with an overly attentive waiter that you wish would let you enjoy your dinner in peace?  Then you’ll want to see “Slow Food” by Wendy MacLeod. It’s brought to you by The Playmakers. One reviewer describes it this way: “An East Coast couple celebrating 23 years of marriage on a trip to Palm Springs, California, find themselves trapped in a restaurant at the mercy of a mercurial waiter. Alone at a table with this terrorizingly Teutonic seneschal, they suffer his moods, his habits, his quirks and his adoration. It’s a comedy, the sort of comedy we all dread encountering in real life on a Sunday night in March in a strange place that claims to be a Greek restaurant, though there is no spanakopita. We fear it for real, but we laugh ourselves silly at it in a play.” (J. Peter Bergman The Berkshire Edge )                                                                                                                             
“It’s about time,” says Karon Wheat, the Playmakers’ board chairperson. “We began trying to produce this play last summer, but we kept having to postpone it due to unavailable venues and cast members as Covid-19 advanced.  At least now maybe our audiences can finally have a chance to laugh again.  We thank the Oklahoma Arts Council and the licensing agency, Dramatists Play Service, for staying with us while we maneuvered around the obstacles to getting it on stage… finally!”
This comedy is helping end The Playmakers’ “extended intermission” though it will run for only two in-theatre performances on Friday, March 12, 7:30 pm and Sunday, March 14 at 2:00 pm, at 121 W 3rd Street, in Grove, OK. A Tuesday night performance may be added if reservations warrant. There is limited seating due to pandemic protocols, and masks are required. 
There will be other opportunities to laugh at the characters in this production.  It will be The Playmakers’ first “streamed” production. At normal or slightly discounted ticket prices it will be possible to watch the show from the comfort of your home and on your own schedule, in late March or early April.  Call The Playmakers if you want to take advantage of this way to see theatre; leave a message at 918 786 8950.
The couple, Irene and Peter, a busy couple just beginning to experience an empty nest, will be played by Karon Wheat and a new Playmaker actor, David Sloan.  The Playmakers were given permission by the licensing agency to cast a female in the male role of the waiter as many actors are unavailable due to the pandemic. The character will be played by Ashley Davidson, also the director or the play.
Playwright Wendy MacLeod says she was inspired to write “Slow Food“ by a nightmare waiter she encountered on the first night of a family vacation in Palm Springs. “We were trapped there both by circumstance — it was the only restaurant open on the Sunday night of our arrival — and by the fact that my sister-in-law had recommended the restaurant so nobody wanted to insult her choice by declaring the meal a failure…the situation involved a simple want — we needed food — and that goal offers a dramatic engine. And my playwright’s brain was tickled by wondering: how many things could the couple do to try to get the food? And how long could the waiter keep them there without bringing it?” (from an interview with Pioneer Theatre, Salt Lake City.
“Reservations for the two scheduled performances are almost full,” says Suzanne Boles, Artistic Executive, “but there might be a seat or two on Friday, March 12.  Or if interested in a Tuesday, March 16 performance, please leave a message so we can assess the demand.”  With the limited seating and spacing requirements, theatre-goers are encouraged to make reservations ASAP by calling 918 786-8950 and leaving a message.  Or they can be made by emailing groveplaymakers@yahoo.com.  Major credit cards are accepted.  A volunteer will reply to confirm your reservation.
The content of the production suggests that the age level of students be limited to mid-school and high school. This is a recommended guideline for parents.  Tickets for adults will be $15 each and for students, $8 each.