Antrim Playhouse Opens in Rockland with Hang On

Hang On, a new play directed by Alison Costello and written by Rick Apicella, marks the inaugural show of Antrim Playhouse’s 2024-2025 season. The brand new theater is “an extraordinary accomplishment” says Rockland local Rick Apicella, calling the playhouse “…a gorgeous new venue with state of the art equipment…a must see destination. I absolutely feel the magic when I am there”. The new playhouse has been years in the making and is proud to open its doors as another community space for Rocklanders and beyond to enjoy quality live entertainment.  

The new piece tackles “…mental health and passion and prescription drugs and dreams”, says Apicella. These themes are revealed through the course of the show and are most clearly displayed by Costello’s skillful direction of the relationships between the three characters. 

The show follows Lester, a man who struggles with the dissonance between his dreams and his reality. At first blush, Lester, who is played by Apicella himself, is wholly acerbic. He barks at his sister, Maggie, whose guest house he lives in, and does everything but physically push her away from him. He is rude towards Brooke, his sister’s employee, who Maggie has asked to provide Lester with food while she vacations in Nice. While she is gone, audience’s witness how Lester’s dreams of being a rockstar and his looming mental illness leads to conflict in his relationships with others. 

Lester maintains his child-like dream to become a rockstar and feels as though his prescribed mood stabilizing medication prohibits him from fulfilling this. While the idea of “rockstar” could seem trite, Apicella handles it with such pure passion that audiences willingly buy into it. Apicella deftly handles the emotional changes that occur after refusing necessary medication. It is heartbreaking to witness the initial uptick in Lester’s joie de vivre and harrowing to see the following tailspin. 

Brooke, played by Jenn Dottino, displays a stunning range throughout the show. First introduced as an awkward and sweet woman, audience members could be quick to write her off. However, it is the fact that Dottino never loses the bubbly, affable nature is what makes her so enjoyable to watch. Once she is comfortable with Lester, she expounds upon her sweetness, unabashedly unashamed of her love of rock and roll, of cooking, of her daughter. By the end of the show, audiences are treated to a woman standing firmly on her own two feet.

Maggie’s overarching theme, played by Tiffany M. Card, is one of a harried older sister, burdened with her intense corporate job, her incompetent offstage husband, her two small children and her struggling little brother. However, the moments where the facade of a put together CEO falls away are the moments where Card and Apicella shine. The two siblings have an animalistic ferocity between them, hitting each other where it hurts, which ends up nicely offsetting the brief gasps of tenderness. We see these flashes of sibling love in the mundane, such as Maggie inviting Lester over for pizza or asking his advice about her work. 

This play comes at a time where men’s mental health has reached an absolute crisis point. The National Institute for Mental Health states that men are “less likely to have received mental health treatment than women in the past year”. According to the National Health Society, suicide is the top killer for men under 50. As we see time and time again, mental health struggles do not discriminate and can weigh heavy on anyone… even rockstars. 

Apicella’s writing of Lester’s experience highlights how “…sometimes what we dream of doing and what we are meant to do are two different things. Follow the energy that improves your life and let love be your guide.”

Hang On runs from September 12th through September 22nd. Tickets can be purchased online at antrimplayhouse.com. Contact 845-533-5616 with ticketing inquiries. 

If you are struggling or just need someone to talk to, please call 988. This 24/7, free and confidential mental health hotline connects individuals in need of support with counselors.