Playhouse prepares for ‘Bad Dates’

Bad dates. We’ve all had a few. And we’d probably like to dwell on

them as little as possible. Unless you’re playwright Theresa Rebeck.

Rebeck (whose “View of the Dome” was staged at Orange Coast

College last season) has turned these awkward social engagements into

a comedy, aptly entitled “Bad Dates,” which will be making its

Southern California premiere at the Laguna Playhouse next week,

opening Sept. 17 after four evenings of previews. And it promises to

be the theatrical equivalent of a chick flick.

“Bad Dates” is being directed by Judith Ivey, who has two Tony

awards on her shelf. And the show’s focal point will be Beth

Broderick, who grew up in Orange County and graduated from Huntington

Beach High School.

Broderick probably is most familiar to television audiences for

her role as Aunt Zelda on the series “Sabrina the Teenage Witch.”

She’s also one of the castaways on the island in “Lost,” playing the

role of Diane.

After taking her diploma from Huntington Beach High at the age of

16, Broderick enrolled in the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in

Pasadena, from which she graduated two years later. She went on to

appear in the movies “Stealing Home,” “Psycho Beach Party,” “Bonfire

of the Vanities” and “Fools Rush In,” among others.

In “Bad Dates,” Broderick portrays Haley, newly divorced with a

14-year-old daughter and an extensive collection of shoes, who takes

a restaurant job and sets out once again onto the dating scene. Her

experiences in that scene are nothing short of bizarre -- even though

she is the only character on stage.

Director Ivey earned her Tony awards for “Steaming” in 1983 and in

the original production of David Rabe’s “Hurlyburly” two years later.

Recently she directed “Steel Magnolias” at the Alley Theater in

Houston. She and Broderick are being reunited, having performed

together in the TV comedy “The Five Mrs. Buchanans” from 1994 to

1995.

“Bad Dates” will be on the playhouse stage through Oct. 16, with

performances Tuesdays through Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 2 and 8

p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m. There also will be a 2 p.m. matinee on

Thursday, Sept. 29.

Ticket prices range from $20 to $59. More information is available

by calling the playhouse at (949) 497-2787.