SKOWHEGAN — Madame Marie Cormier plans to perform the solo play “Shirley Valentine,” by Willy Russell, at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 24, at the Skowhegan Opera House, 225 Water St.

The Friends of Skowhegan Opera House present this funny and moving show about one woman’s escape from a shuttered, humdrum life to happiness and satisfaction.

Valentine, a middle-aged housewife, finds herself talking to the wall while she prepares her husband’s meals. She compares her current situation with her younger years, and recognizes that she’s in a rut. When her best friend wins an all-expenses-paid vacation for two in Greece, Shirley packs her bags and heads for the sun, leaving drudgery behind. Her note on the kitchen table reads “Gone to Greece, back in two weeks.” That’s not quite what happens.

Upon landing on a Greek island, her friend ditches her for a fling. Left to her own devices, she explores the island, meets the owner of a taverna, and begins to find joy in her life again. Now she talks to a sun-drenched rock! She begins to see the world, and herself, in a different light.

Cormier was born on Lameque Island in New Brunswick, Canada, and has performed throughout New England and in Louisiana, Canada, France and Russia. She has appeared on several television programs and has appeared in advertisements for television, radio and print. She is a co-founder of Du Monde D’A Cote, a Franco-American repertory company that performs French plays by Gregoire Chabot and Paul Pare.

She has played Shirley Valentine, her favorite role, in English and French for the past 30 years.

Tickets cost $20, all proceeds will go toward improvements to the historic theater. Tickets are available at the Skowhegan Farmers Market and at the Opera House Manager’s Office at Skowhegan Town Hall. They also are available for $22 online at Eventbrite.com and at the door on the night of the show.

For more information, visit wesarts.org.

 

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