THE GOOD TIMES ARE KILLING ME Showcases Young Talent at Maltz Jupiter Theatre, 9/17

A student-produced show at the Maltz Jupiter Theatre aims to lead theatergoers on a journey through the 1960s and civil rights movement.

With hands-on guidance and mentoring from industry professionals who work at the regional theater, a team of high school students is currently creating and producing the play "The Good Times are Killing Me," a coming-of-age story about interracial conflict and the friendship between two girls. The show will premiere at the Theatre at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 17.

A poignant drama, Lynda Barry's first play is about Edna, a pre-adolescent girl of the mid-1960s who believes in racial harmony and develops an interracial friendship with Bonna, the girl next door. Life changes as the accelerating civil rights movement converges on the streets of her neighborhood, as soul music provides a soundtrack for the story's laughter, bitterness and heartbreak.

The student team saw more than 50 young aspiring performers at Aug. 6 auditions and cast 22 local actors, ages 8-18. The diverse group of actors and student team members hails from as far as Miami, and for many, the show is their first experience onstage or behind the scenes.

"This show is truly going to be incredible, and we have amazing talent both on and off our stage," said the show's producer, Nicky Wood, 16. "The play is based on the book by Lynda Barry, and the material is brilliant, insightful and thoughtful. The show was very successful off Broadway, and I think our audiences are going to see why."

Part of the Theatre's Emerging Artist Series, the show is sponsored in part by Betty and Rodger Hess, Tamar and Milton Maltz, Bonnie and John Osher, The Roy A. Hunt Foundation and Muriel and Ralph Saltzman.

Tickets to The Good Times are Killing Me (Sept. 17 at 7:30 p.m.) are $15 for student and $20 for adults, and may be purchased by calling (561) 575-2223 or by visiting www.jupitertheatre.org. Note: strong language and adult subject matter.