WTC presents Pulitzer Prize-winning masterpiece ‘Lost In Yonkers’

The dramatic comedy “Lost In Yonkers” is Whitefish Theatre Company’s first mainstage show of the 2023-2024 season.

Written by Neil Simon and winner of four Tony Awards and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, this charming show opens with a preview night on Oct. 12 at 7:30 p.m. at the O’Shaughnessy Center in Whitefish. Performances continue on Oct. 13, 14, 19, 20, and 21 at 7:30 p.m. with a matinee on Oct. 15 at 4 p.m.

This nostalgic memory play takes us back to the summer of 1942: World War II is on and flat-broke Eddie Kurnitz leaves his sons Jay and Arty with their grandmother while he takes to the road as a salesman to pay off his debts. The two boys are left to contend with an ill-tempered Grandma, the sweet but damaged Aunt Bella, and small-time hoodlum Uncle Louie in a strange new world called Yonkers. This coming-of-age masterpiece is filled with Neil Simon’s gifted touch of witty dialogue and heartfelt emotion as the young boys learn lessons about love, responsibility, and the importance of family that will carry them into adulthood.

“Surprisingly, I was not familiar with ‘Lost in Yonkers’ when I was asked to direct it,” says Director David Ackroyd. “It was perhaps the one Neil Simon play that I hadn’t either seen or read, but I believe it is certainly one of his finest.”

Ackroyd, reflecting on Neil Simon’s work, says, “Simon once wrote, ‘My view is how sad and funny life is. I can’t think of a humorous situation that does not involve some pain.’ The interplay of comedy and drama that holds this play together is brilliantly crafted.”

“At the same time, Simon so ingeniously inhabits the civilian world of the Second World War, bringing it to life in a way that I think accurately reflects a nation united against a common enemy through the lives of a family that is sometimes at war within itself,” Ackroyd said. “I truly love this play.”

The cast is composed of seven actors from around the Flathead Valley. Corey Burke plays Louie, Amy Galt plays Gert, Marnie Klein plays Grandma Kurnitz, Ethan Lopez plays Jay, Tony Nelson plays Eddie, Landen Pullen plays Arty, and Scarlett Schindler plays Bella.

“It’s wonderful to watch these actors journey effortlessly through this story with such ease and skill,” Ackroyd said.

Tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for seniors, and $10 for students with reserved seating. General seating tickets for the preview performance on Oct. 12 are sold only at the door and are $12 for adults and $10 for students.

Tickets can be purchased at the Box Office at 1 Central Avenue in Whitefish or by calling 862-5371. Box Office Hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday and one hour before a performance. Individual tickets can also be purchased online at www.whitefishtheatreco.org. This show is sponsored by Glacier Bank, Linda and David Hunt and Sue and Hank Ricklefs.