'Almost Maine' to be performed at SUNY Orange in November

The SUNY Orange Apprentice Players will present John Cariani’s celebrated “Almost Maine” on stage at the William and Helen Richards Theatre at Orange Hall in November.

Almost, Maine is located somewhere between Norman Rockwell and the northern lights that hover in the star-filled sky above. The people of Almost are honest and unsentimental, prepared for the vicissitudes of love by the stoicism and hardiness that Mainers are famous for. A series of gently told and amiably absurdist vignettes are fortified with humor and a touch of magic, like love itself.

A woman carries her heart, broken into 19 pieces, in a small paper bag. A man shrinks to half his former size, after losing hope in love. A couple keeps the love they have given each other in large red bags -- or compress the mass into the size of a diamond. These playful and surreal experiences are commonplace in the world of Cariani’s Almost, Maine. Bended knees are bruised and hearts are broken with a sweetness and decency rare in today’s theater. The performance is suitable for all ages.

The alumni/student cast includes John Adler, Natalie Bronson, Brian Brown, Paul Caiafa, Tristen Collins, Mario Henriquez-Saez, Nicholas Kanan, Autumn Kimball, Ian Miller, Maggie Misciagna, Lyndsay O’Brien, William Odell, Christina Polichetti, Dominick Rico, Sarandon Shindon, Kali Smith, and Phillip Valluzzi.

The director, SUNY Orange professor David Cohen, and cast will talk with the audience following each Saturday evening performance.