Shelter Inn Place to Open at Theater Row in Family Comedy
Mike Roche leads the cast as a hurricane-stranded innkeeper confronting his ex-wife, father and son.
Ego Actus Theatre Company will present 'Shelter Inn Place,' a warm-hearted ensemble comedy by Henry Feldman, at Theater #5 at Theater Row (410 West 42nd Street) from September 18 to October 4, 2026. The comedy is about a Gulf Coast innkeeper who, attempting to secure his bed and breakfast during a hurricane, finds himself trapped inside with the people who complicate his life the most. Joan Kane directs.
When it rains, it pours. Hurricane Claudia, a Category 3 monster, is heading toward the Pelican Bay Bed and Breakfast. Frank Bennett, its hapless, high-strung hotel manager, is preparing to both evacuate the place and sell it. An unexpected series of arrivals upends his carefully laid plans. His suicidal father comes to 'help' but is quietly plotting to end his own life. A famous female TV psychologist, fleeing a professional and personal crisis, holes up in the room off the lobby, seeking solitude. Frank's flamboyant ex-wife seeks refuge after discovering that the muscular young man she left Frank for has abandoned her. Their twenty-year-old son is desperately in love and must convince his fiancee that he 'comes from a good home' by reuniting his divorced parents. With a mandatory shelter-in-place order in effect, all these ragtag characters, including Frank himself, are forced to confront emotional storms they have been avoiding. A lifelong people-pleaser, Frank has spent years putting everyone else's needs before his own. Now he finds himself confronting a question many members of the 'sandwich generation' eventually face: when does he get his own turn? 'Shelter Inn Place' comically explores the process of starting over, accepting family members for who they are, and finding happiness even when there's nowhere else to go.
Playwright Henry Feldman drew inspiration from personal experience. During Hurricane Ike in 2008, he and his wife spent two weeks without power after the storm struck Houston. At the same time, he was caring for an aging father while his college-age twins demanded attention from afar. 'All this got put in my mind's blender,' Feldman says, 'and out came this play.' It received a developmental production at The Players Theater on MacDougal Street in January, 2026 with reviewers praising its blend of humor and heart. The production was then titled 'Shelter in Place.' After re-writes, an extra 'n' has been added to the title, making it 'Shelter Inn Place.'
The cast features Mike Roche as Frank Bennett, the hotel keeper; Martin Revere as George Bennett, his father; Alyssa Simon as Heidi Murphy, the TV psychologist, Aaron Lamm as Sam Bennett, Frank's son; and Haley Zale as Mildred Bennett, Frank's wife.
Stage manager is Dana Robbins. Set designer is Evan Frank. Costume Designer is Cat Fisher. Lighting designer is Bruce A! Kraemer. Sound designer is Ian Wehrle. Prop designer is Max Kilsheimer. Dramaturg is Nadine Feldman. Casting director is Robin Carus, CSA.
Author Henry Feldman is an actor-turned-playwright who spent 40 years in Houston and now splits his time between Cold Spring, NY and NYC. He studied acting and directing at the University of Houston after getting his engineering degree from Rice University. So far, his plays are all comedies and two of them are about climate change. These are 'Sea Level Rise: A Dystopian Comedy,' which was produced in the Broadway Bound Theater Festival in New York City in July, 2019, and 'Global Warming: A Comedy,' which was workshopped in 2019 in Port Townsend, Washington. Another play, 'The Pickle Jar,' is a boy-meets-girl romantic comedy.
Director Joan Kane is founding Artistic Director of Ego Actus. Her directing credits include 'Sycorax, Cyber Queen of Qamara' by Fengar Gael at HERE, 'Play Nice!' by Robin Rice at 59E59 Theaters, 'I Know What Boys Want' by Penny Jackson on Theatre Row, 'Six Characters in Search of an Author' in Oslo, Norway, 'Kafka's Belinda' in Prague and four plays by Toby Armour at Theater for the New City. She was awarded Best Director in the 2016 United Solo Festival and was named to the Indie Theatre Hall of Fame by nytheatre.com. She graduated from the High School of Performing Arts, studied acting at The Neighborhood Playhouse with Sanford Meisner, and earned an MFA in Directing from The New School. In the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, she received a five star review for her solo show, 'Almost 13' and four star reviews for her productions of 'Safe' and 'What Do You Mean.' She is a member of SDC, DG, NYWITF and LPTW. (www.JoanKane.us)
Production Company Ego Actus was founded in 2009 by Joan Kane and Bruce A! Kraemer. Its Off-Broadway productions include 'Play Nice!' at 59E59 Theaters, 'I Know What Boys Want' at Theatre Row and 'Sycorax, Cyber Queen of Qamara' at HERE. The company has produced 35 festival shows in 15 different festivals including the Edinburgh, New York, Prague, Capitol, Ottawa, and Edmonton Fringes, the United Solo Festival at Theatre Row and FringeArts in Philadelphia. Its shows have been nominated for 61 awards, winning 21. Its reading series have included 'Off the Page,' seven scripts read to live audiences at TornPage, 'Survival is Insufficient,' ten scripts seen on Zoom, and three series of various sizes at Episcopal Actors Guild. Its La MaMa Umbria Playing Reading Series offered 14 full length plays in three days at the La MaMa rehearsal space on Great Jones Street. Its nonprofit fiscal sponsor is Producer Hub.
Event Details
September 18 to October 4, 2026.
Tue-Sat at 8:00 PM, Sun at 3:00 PM
Theater Row, Theater #5, 410 West 42nd Street
Tickets: $35 gen. adm. Seniors & Students $25
Box office: (212) 714-2442, https://theatrerow.ludus.com/show_page.php'show_id=200542606
Running time: 90.
Preview Friday, September 18. Opens Saturday, September 19. Critics are invited on or after September 19.
Show's website: https://www.shelterinnplace.com/
