Playwright of McKinney Repertory Theatre’s current production, <i>Hartburn Hotel</i> to speak at July 19 matinee

Hartburn Hotel playwright Whitney Ryan Garrity

McKinney Repertory Theatre’s melodrama Hartburn Hotel will be attended by its playwright Whitney Ryan Garrity of Lubbock, Texas. Mr. Garrity is a published and produced playwright & lyricist with several productions of musicals, melodramas and children's plays to his credit.

Mr. Garrity has graciously agreed to conduct a Question & Answer session with the audience after the 2:00 pm matinee performance of Hartburn Hotel on Sunday, July, 19. He will take audience questions on being a playwright. Here is a sample of his insight into the writing of this play.

“Although Hartburn Hotel is the 3rd entry in the Calamity Gulch series, it was originally supposed to the 2nd. I came up with the basic storyline, but erroneously cast Sahara Hartburn as the damsel in distress, in danger of losing her new hotel. This gave the characters of Ma, Pa and Polly absolutely nothing to do! The story fell apart on page 10 and I put the script on the shelf."

“I then came up with the idea for Return to Calamity and it was published in tandem with the first play, Last Chance Inn, Calamity Gulch.

“While talking to the editor at Eldridge Publishing, she mentioned that a theatre group was looking for a melodrama with a strong female villainess. I realized that was where I went wrong with Hartburn and reworked the story with Sahara as the villain. Once the penny dropped, the actual script took a week to write!"

"Casting Sahara as the villain gave me the opportunity to turn the melodrama genre upside down and create a very feminist piece. Polly, summoning up her courage to confront Sahara, becomes a female hero. And Jasper, of course, becomes the damsel in distress.”

Hartburn Hotel by Whitney Ryan Garrity and directed by Eric Gray continues Friday, July 17 and Saturday, July 18 at 8 pm and Sunday, July 19 at 2:00 pm in the Courtroom Theater at the McKinney Performing Arts Center in historic downtown McKinney. Tickets range from $13 to $16 and there are discounts for groups, seniors and students.

Tickets are available at the Emerson Ticket Office at MPAC, or call 214-544-4630 or visit www.mckinneyperformingartscenter.org for tickets. Additional fees apply to online and telephone ticket purchases.

Be sure to catch this last weekend of a truly hilarious melodrama, complete with an outrageous chase scene, and a surprising conclusion. And don’t miss this unique opportunity to chat with the playwright!

Check out McKinney Repertory Theatre’s Young Actor Guild’s premier performance of 2 melodramas: The Scheme of the Driftless Shifter and Foiled by An Innocent Maid which will be held at the McKinney Performing Arts Center on August 21 and 22.

The Young Actors Guild (YAG) is the only educational youth theatre group for ages 8-18 in the Collin County Area. We provide education in all aspects of drama and theatrical arts including, but not limited to expression, characterization, directing, set design, set construction, costuming, fundraising, management, and leadership by sponsoring classes, and seminars, and public demonstrations.

For more info contact: e-mail YoungActorsGuild@tx.rr.com or call 214-733-1699.

McKinney Repertory Theatre is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.