The play, starring regional actors Marla Brown and Lou Dalessandro, opens Sept. 8 and runs through Sept. 17, in remembrance of the events ten years ago.

Play Summary

A few weeks after the Sept. 11 attacks, New Yorkers are still in shock. One of them, an editor named Joan, receives a phone call on behalf of Nick, a fire captain who has lost many of his colleagues in the attack. He’s looking for a writer to help him write the eulogies he will offer at memorial services in the weeks to come.

Nick and Joan spend a long afternoon together, recalling the fallen men through recounting their virtues and their foibles, and re-telling their stories as touching memorials. In the process, Nick and Joan discover the possibilities of friendship in each other and their shared love for the unconquerable spirit of the city. As they make their way through the emotional landscape of grief, they draw on humor, honesty, and the enduring bonds of common humanity.

Originally performed with Sigourney Weaver and Bill Murray playing Joan and Nick, the play took on a life of its own in the subsequent months and years, becoming an important piece of theatre throughout the country and featuring a revolving cast of well-known actors.

After each performance, there will be an opportunity for an individual who was in New York City at the time to recount their story for members of the audience.

Local first responders will be admitted free of charge as well as being honored at each performance. Donations received at each performance will go to designated foundations and fire departments in honor of those associated with 9/11.

WANT TO GO?

The show is appropriate for children ages 10 and older and opens Sept. 8 at Armour Street Theatre, 307 Armour St. in Davidson. Show dates are as follows:

• Thursday, Sept. 8, 8 p.m.
• Friday, Sept. 9, 8 p.m.
• Saturday, Sept. 10, 7 p.m.
• Sunday, Sept. 11, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m.
• Thursday, Sept. 15, 8 p.m.
• Friday, Sept. 16, 10 p.m.
• Saturday, Sept. 17, 7 p.m.

Tickets are $10 and a portion of the proceeds will support training programs for the Davidson Volunteer Fire Department and First Responders.

Call 704-892-7953 for reservations

The play centers on Carmen Ruiz, a rich and powerful New York City business woman who, when the curtain rises, awakes to find herself in a cell-like room with no idea how she got there. Her only contact with the outside world is a hand, and together she and the hand embark on a journey through her past, discovering some startling truths about her life.

Background on the writer/actor duo

Don Cook began writing Stigmata decades ago when he and Divina were active in the Detroit theater scene. But he put the script aside while the couple concentrated on their day jobs – he was a Detroit-based automotive film and speech writer, and she moved east to carve a niche for herself in the New York City theater scene. For the next few years, they made monthly trips between Detroit and New York City.

Divina has performed in numerous Off-Broadway shows as well as in regional theaters across the country. She also has appeared in feature films, including Scent Of A Woman, The Paper, and 24-Hour Woman, and on many New York City-based television shows, including Law And Order, the Conan O’Brian Show (voice-over), Sesame Street and The Guiding Light.

Both of the Cooks retired and are living in Charlotte, and Don finally found the time to finish Stigmata. A reading of an early draft was well received at Actors Theatre, but the first production of Stigmata, which was supposed to be at Theatre Charlotte two years ago, was cancelled when Divina was diagnosed with cancer.

After fully recovering from multiple surgeries, she appeared in two Warehouse productions, in which she wowed the audiences and critics alike, and then directed two Warehouse shows, and now is ready to take on the demanding solo role in Stigmata.

WANT TO GO?

The play opens Sept. 8 and runs through Sept. 25 at the Warehouse Performing Arts Center, 9216-A Westmoreland Rd., Cornelius.

Show times are 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays, and 2 p.m. Sundays.

General Admission is $20, or $15 for seniors, students and groups.

For reservations, call 704-619-0429 or email tickets@warehousepac.com