BE HERE NOW At Dreamcatcher Opens February 20

Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre, professional theatre in residence at Oakes Center in Summit, is continuing its 25th Anniversary Season with the NJ Premiere of Be Here Now by Deborah Zoe Laufer. This comedy was first produced at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park in 2018 and since has been performed at venues throughout the country. Be Here Now runs February 20 through March 8, 2020.

Surrounded by painfully cheerful co-workers, Bari is deeply cynical and woefully underemployed. After an unexpected and unexplainable turn of events, Bari finds herself on an enlightening new path. When she meets Mike, it's her turn to pull another out of the darkness. Critic Mary Damiano said of the Florida production, "Laufer has a talent for creating unforgettable characters with distinct, quirky personalities-plot aside, it's fun just to watch these people interact with each other. But she has also crafted an insightful story, one that takes threads of the meaning of life, mindful living, and finding purpose in the forgotten and woven them into a beautiful, thought-provoking tapestry." The production is directed by Harry Patrick Christian (Montclair) and features Dreamcatcher ensemble members Nicole Callender (West Orange), Clark Carmichael (Montclair), and Laura Ekstrand (Livingston), as well as guest Daria M. Sullivan (Montclair).

Laufer is a recipient of the Helen Merrill Playwriting Award, the Lilly Award, and grants and commissions from The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, The Edgerton Foundation, The National New Play Network, the NEA, and the LeCompte du Nouy grant from the Lincoln Center Foundation. Her plays are published by Samuel French, Smith and Kraus, and Playscripts, and have been developed at The Eugene O'Neill Playwrights Conference, PlayPenn, Williamstown Theatre Festival, The Ojai Playwrights Conference, The Missoula Colony, The Cherry Lane Alternative, The Dramatists Guild Fellowship Program, New Georges, The Lark Play Development Center, Asolo Repertory Theatre, PlayLab, and the Baltic Playwrights Conference. She is a graduate of Juilliard, an alumna of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop, and a member of The Dramatists Guild.

As a special treat for patrons at the Sunday matinees, three free short yoga and meditation classes will be offered before the show. Guest instructors from Bhakti Barn Yoga in Millburn, Your Inner Tranquility (Badawang Art) in Summit, and Unwind Yoga in New Providence will lead participants in activities that will allow them to "be here now" just in time to enjoy the performance. For more information on these workshops, visit the Dreamcatcher website.

Tickets range from $25 to $39, with special rates for subscribers and groups. Purchase tickets at www.dreamcatcherrep.org or by calling Brown Paper Tickets at 800-838-3006.