Lynn Timmons would only agree to direct the production of “The Gin Game” for the Four Flags Players if she could find the right cast members for the two-person show.
She said she has found the perfect duo in Johanna Drew, of Niles, and Gary Oesch, a Mishawaka resident. They will perform the 1978 Pulitzer Prize-winning drama June 17-19 at the Niles First Presbyterian Church.
They play Fonsia Dorsey and Weller Martin, a pair of seniors at a nursing home, who strike up a friendship over games of gin rummy. While playing their games, they have long conversations about their families and past lives.
“They develop a very intense relationship in a very short amount of time,” Drew said. “The universal appeal is watching these characters as they are in a more advanced age cope with the challenges of that aging process. And it’s done with humor, vulnerability and great passion.”
Timmons says both characters struggle through coming to grips with aging.
“With all of their suffering, they still choose to live and have hope, which is what we hope people take away from it,” she said.
Tickets are $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and $5 for students and active military members. They can be purchased by calling (269) 695-1150.