Shirley-Diane sees her teenage son, Soren, as a painful reminder of her past. Her ex-con boyfriend, Billy, sees Soren as a reflection of his own childhood. As Billy tries to help the troubled boy, the dysfunction of hard-core addiction and manipulation blur the lines of control and love between the three. The Dead Eye Boy playwright, Angus MacLachlan is the award-winning screenwriter of the critically acclaimed film Junebug.

The Story

The Reason

MALINDA L. BECKHAM, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

When I begin the process of selecting plays for our season, I look for works that leave a lasting impression on the mind, heart, and soul. The Dead Eye Boy, which was suggested to me by longtime Dirt Dog, Kevin Daugherty, is such a play. I have personally witnessed these situations, lived with these people, and escaped this environment. Throughout this production, I have been reminded that good people get trapped and abandoned in bad environments, left teetering on the edge, not sure how to change their own circumstances. They are in dark places where they struggle with their own shortcomings, battle their own demons, and oppose good intentions that would compromise their dysfunctional comfort. This oft-overlooked segment of society, hidden in the fringe, can get stuck in a cycle of abuse, both to themselves and to those they love, without intervention. Unless the cycle is broken, many more will fall. Any of us could have been born into the family that Soren was, or been dealt crippling blows that forever changed the course of life, as in Shirley-Diane’s case. Each of us could be one bad hand away from despair, if not already existing in it. We do the best that we can.