"John & Jen" Opens at the Unicorn Theatre

May 20–June 7 | Stockbridge, MA

Berkshire Theatre Group opens "John & Jen" at the Unicorn Theatre on May 22, with previews beginning May 20. The show runs through June 7.

Written by Andrew Lippa and Tom Greenwald, "John & Jen" is a two-person musical that covers thirty years in two acts. The first act follows a sister and her younger brother growing up in the 1950s and 60s; the second follows the same woman as she raises her own son in the 1980s, the boy named John after the brother she lost in Vietnam. The score blends pop, folk, and musical theatre in the way that small-cast musicals of the 1990s often did — the show premiered off-Broadway in 1993 — and the whole thing rests entirely on the shoulders of its two performers. Samantha Gershman plays Jen; Jake Bentley Young plays both Johns.

Directing is Gregg Edelman, a Tony Award nominee whose Broadway credits include "City of Angels," "Into the Woods," "Cabaret," "Sweeney Todd," and last season's "Water for Elephants." He has directed previously at BTG, including "White Christmas" and "Once."

On May 31, following the 2pm matinee, the creative team comes to Stockbridge for a talkback: Lippa, Greenwald, and Carolyn Rossi Copeland, who produced the original off-Broadway production, will take questions from the audience.

The Unicorn Theatre, 6 East St., Stockbridge, MA. Tickets $51–$69 at berkshiretheatregroup.org or (413) 997-4444.