Independent Drama Society Quits While It’s Ahead with Neil Simon’s “The Good Doctor.”

Independent Drama Society’s Christine Toohey is one of those rare individuals that can balance business sense with creativity, and she manages them both remarkably well. Toohey has functioned as IDS’ Director of Marketing and PR Coordinator up until now, but her interest in theater goes well beyond the administrative realm: for Neil Simon's “The Good Doctor,” which opens tonight at the Factory Theater and runs until next weekend, she has stepped out of the shadows as the show’s director.

Toohey’s full-on directorial debut for IDS also happens to be the company’s swan song. Despite being one of the more successful fringe theater groups in Boston and an important component of the ’s dramatic canon, IDS is closing its proverbial doors this month. The circumstances are far from tragic, however: the group has reached a point of success wherein continuing might mean compromising the original mission. Each of the major players will remain involved in local theater.

We spoke with Toohey about juggling the various realms of this project, IDS’ closing and the art of being on the fringe.

Patch: Has it been difficult for you to straddle the lines btwn your interest in stage work and your marketing/PR endeavor? Artists don't often make the best business people…

Christine Toohey: It’s definitely been difficult balancing the right and left sides of my brain. I got involved in theatre during high school and college because I love performing, and my first involvement with IDS was as an actress in the company’s founding production, “The Illusion.” But, as happens to many artists with good organizational skills, I saw a distinct need in the functioning of the company and came on board to help. Balancing what I love to do creatively with what’s needed for the company—filling seats—has definitely been a challenge. It’s also been pretty difficult in terms of time management. For this project, I've had a lot of help from many people: Huntington Theater’s Desiree Pedrami, formerly of New Repertory Theater, came in as the Marketing Consultant; as the Production Manager for the company and someone that’s directed previously ("Proof" and "And Then There Were None"), my fiancé Chris Anton has also been instrumental in this process. His guidance, advice, and support have kept me sane.

Patch: How did this come to be IDS’s last production? 

Toohey: During rehearsals for “Eurydice,” the core staff of IDS debated the future of the company. Our first few productions had nonexistent budgets, and we’d grown to repeatedly sell out the 90-seat Black Box Theater at the BCA. We’d also just done a season of four productions, which is a lot for a fringe theatre company. It took a ton of hard work, and it wasn’t a sustainable pace. Each of us looked closely at our goals; I love being an arts administrator and want to make it my career, but most of the others prefer to write, act, direct, and create. We decided to close our doors before the job of running and maintaining a company became an obligation. While some companies wind up burning out or running out of money, we decided instead to recognize all that we’d achieved and close our doors on a high note.

Patch: Why did you choose this play? Explain your relationship to “The Good Doctor”...

Toohey: I had been talking about doing "The Good Doctor" with IDS for years before this… I just love this play. My high school did it, and I’ve loved it ever since then. I love how flexible it is in terms of casting: you can do it with five people or thirty people... we’re doing it with twelve. Neil Simon is a master of comedic dialogue, and the play is hilarious. There’s a lot of truth in it, too. It’s basically a series of short scenes, each inspired by a different short story by Anton Chekhov, who creates incredibly round characters.

Patch: Have you tweaked the play in any unique, fringe-y ways?

Toohey: Fringe Theater allows you to be creative with casting. There are more than 30 different parts in this play, and the original production had five actors - an older woman, a younger woman, an older man, the Writer, and a younger man. Each actor had their “type” set for them. When I cast this show, I was just looking for strong actors who were able to play a variety of roles, and I cast each actor to his or her strengths. So you get really interesting doublings, like Chris Larson--IDS’s resident sound designer--is playing both a salty sailor and a dignified, wealthy husband; Sierra Kagen is playing a haughty General’s wife and a naïve young actress. In general, I think the actors are excited for a chance to show off their chops, and the audience will be really interested to see how dynamic they can be with such varied roles.

Patch: Why did you stage this at the Factory? 

Toohey: I chose the Factory because it’s a hub for fringe theatre in Boston and because it has so much character. You walk into the Factory and immediately you feel this charming, offbeat atmosphere that works so well for this equally charming, offbeat play. It also has special significance for IDS, since it’s where we really came into our own as a company and started gaining recognition on the local scene. Somehow it just felt right for IDS’ final production.

The Good Doctor, a comedy by Neil Simon, Directed by Christine Toohey... A series of vignettes inspired by Anton Chekhov's short stories at The Factory Theatre July 15-23. $20 general admission, $15 student/senior https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/177781.