The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Purl plays divorcee in new play
‘Love Quest’ finds comedy in world of online dating
IVORYTON — Linda Purl, who played Charlene Matlock on “Matlock” and Fonzie’s girlfriend Ashley Pfister on “Happy Days,” has been seen more recently in “Homeland,” “The Office” and “Designated Survivor.”
That long career in Hollywood makes Purl another kind of survivor, and her career extends to theater, specifically these days at Ivoryton Playhouse, where she’ll begin a three-week stint in a new comedy starting Wednesday.
In “Love Quest,” directed by Ivoryton’s Executive Director Jacqui Hubbard, Purl will play Katherine Crawford, a 60-year-old married for thirty years and divorced for the last three. She’s dealing with being abandoned by her husband (for a younger woman) and the new world of internet dating.
In a phone chat, Hubbard said the show’s cowriter, Steven McGraw, invited her to a reading of the play in New York City in early 2017 with Sandy Duncan in the lead.
“I go to a lot of readings ... and I always have to think, how is my audience going to react to this?” Hubbard said. The audience for the reading loved it “and I realized that it was a story that I hadn’t seen — a woman in her 60s that is drawn back
into the world of dating after her husband leaves. And it’s a lot of women’s stories, actually. And it’s funny and it’s poignant.”
Hubbard said it’s actually co-writer Mary Maguire’s true story “in the wild world of online dating,” where a possible relationship is decided in a second with the swipe of a finger across your smartphone.
Another female character, Brook Davis, 35, has climbed the corporate ladder with determination but has neglected her social life (after growing up in foster homes and not trusting in relationships). She is encouraged by executives in her fashion firm to raise her celebrity profile by being seen with eye-candy dates; she also ends up on the Love Quest online site.
“It’s the two of them,” Hubbard said, “so their two stories sort of overlap in the middle. And it’s also a mother-daughter story (with Kate’s daughter signing her up for the online site) ... and how sometimes the daughter becomes the mother ... and takes that role on. And it’s really funny. They say that nothing is as funny as real life and that’s the truth. Every single one of these dates really happened.”
Hubbard said the Ivoryton run will be the first full production of the play. The two writers have been working at Ivoryton on the piece, which helps when an actor is stuck on how to make a section work, she said.
The show doesn’t get deep into social media, but it does show Kate being drawn into the world of “likes” and “how it can affect you as a person,” said Hubbard.
Also starring are Josh Powell, Mike Mihm, Jes Bedwinek, Joe Candelora and Susan Slotoroff.
As for Purl, Hubbard said she was worried that she didn’t look old enough to play the role “even though she’s the right age. She’s still really cute. But aside from her amazing career on TV and movies, she’s done a lot of great theater. It’s always a little nerve-wracking to work with somebody who’s done TV and movies because stage is different. But she is just so experienced and so wonderful. And she came with her dog, Harley, who’s with us at every rehearsal.”
So, is there anything here for a male viewer, Jacqui?
“That’s one of the things I talk to the guys in the cast about . ... And the thing that the guys got from it really is, ‘Oh my God, yes, I recognize that guy. I’ve done things like that. God, guys can be real jerks!’ So, guys, you’re going to appreciate the way that you are portrayed, but you’re not all bad. There are some really good guys in the show.”
Hubbard calls the production a trial run. “We’re in this little position, in Ivoryton, that we’re out of the way of any of the New York critics. So we can try something out . ... I would say my audience is a great barometer of a national audience. You know, they’re not city people. They’re just your regular, local people . ... Often stuff that does well in New York doesn’t work when you get it out of the city.”
Ivoryton Playhouse, 103 Main St., Ivoryton in Essex, April 25-May 13, 2 p.m. Wednesday and Sunday, 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday. $50 adults, $45 seniors, $22 students, $17 children. 860-767-7318, ivorytonplayhouse.org