NEGLECT
By Sharyn Rothstein
Over 700 people died during the 1995 Chicago heat wave. Most of those who died from the heat conditions were elderly persons who lived in isolation, and who lacked social contacts and means of transportation. Many of them were hesitant to open windows and doors at night for fear of crime. Hundreds of victims died alone.
“Wood-Patterson knows better than anyone in our region that drama can come to life anywhere. For “Neglect,” she’s chosen a naturally rough industrial setting. Lined with pipes, dials, cranks and old temperature gauges, the Powerhouse Boiler Room has high brick walls, peeling paint and old windows. Sounds like a decaying Chicago apartment building to me. What better place to set a one-act drama about two people trapped in an old urban high-rise?” – Judith Reynolds, The Durango Herald
Merely Players’ production of Neglect in the historic Durango Powerhouse, in September 2009, marked the first time it had been produced in the West.
photos by: Roxane Covert and Rebecca Vargas
Merely Players
49 Wedgewood Circle
Durango, CO 81301
email: directors@merelyplayers.org