Closing Weekend for ETC's "A Piece of My Heart"

The Elgin Theatre Company continues its 2017-2018 season with A Piece of My Heart, written by Shirley Lauro and suggested by the book by Keith Walker.

Most histories of the Vietnam War say little about the women who served as nurses, Red Cross workers, and entertainers. A Piece of My Heart brings the women's stories front and center. The play concentrates on six archetypal characters: a self-described military brat who wants to be an Army nurse like her mother; a wide-eyed singer who gets booked as an entertainer at military camps; a small-town girl who sees military service as a way to break out; a wealthy young woman who horrifies her parents by applying for Red Cross work in the war zone; a half-Chinese, half-Italian nurse from New York City who thinks she's going to serve in a rehabilitation hospital in Hawaii; and an African-American career officer who takes an overseas posting to improve her professional standing.

The stories begin before deployment, follow the six women through their tours of duty, then show how the women attempt to find where they belong once they come home. A Piece of my Heart is a powerful work that explores the heart, music, and soul of a tumultuous era in our history. This production contains adult language and situations, and is intended for mature audiences.

A Piece of my Heart is being directed for ETC by Madeline Franklin. Richard Grieger is the producer. The cast features Mark Brewer, Elizabeth Dawson, Libby Einterz, Marixa Ford, Jamie McCalister, Angel Novie, and Kia Wolfe.

Franklin has been passionate about this project for some time and she recommended the play to the ETC board. "This is an untold story that needed to be told. We had to share the true-life dramas of 6 women who lived through the horrors of war and their haunted return upon American soil," she said.

Franklin is enthusiastic about the cast she has been directing. "They have become an incredible ensemble, a family, who care about each other and the amazing true stories of the distinctive and courageous young women they portray before, during, and after her tour in the war-torn nation. They have worked diligently developing their characters, creating relationships, digging deep into an unpopular war. These seven gifted actors have blended their love and passion for this production."

Dawson, one of those gifted actors, commented on the production. "I think this show brings reality and humanity to history that is sometimes too easy to overlook. We study history in school, we see it in books, and we sometimes forget that history is about real people who thought and felt and dreamed, just like we do."

Performances of A Piece of My Heart will be held on February 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11, 16, 17, and 18, 2018. The Friday and Saturday performances start at 8:00 P.M., while the Sunday matinees start at 2:00 P.M. All performances will be presented at The Elgin Art Showcase at 164 Division St. on the 8th floor of the Elgin Professional Building in Elgin.

Tickets are priced at $18.00 for adults and $15.00 for seniors and youth. Group rates and season tickets for the Elgin Theatre Company are also available.

For reservations or more information call (847) 741-0532, e-mail tickets@inil.com, or see the ETC website at www.elgin-theatre.org, where tickets can also be purchased online.

There is some parking is located on Division Street, as well as plentiful parking in the City of Elgin parking lot on the corner of Division Street and Douglas Street and in the City of Elgin parking deck located at the corner of Spring Street and Highland Avenue.