Brothers

Paul Mohrbacher
Monday, October 16, 2017 - 6:30pm
Venue: 
The Playwrights' Center, 2301 E. Franklin Ave., Minneapolis, MN 55407
Cost: 
Free; no reservation necessary

It’s the late 1990s. Two elderly brothers, Nick and Ben, raised in Bismarck, ND, have been estranged for years. Ben stayed on to teach in Bismarck, but Nick, a clinical psychologist, headed west to San Francisco, where he lived, worked, drank, went broke, and lived on the streets for two years. Notified of Nick’s decrepit health status by a board and care residence, a resentful and slow-to-respond Ben goes west to do the minimum act of kindness before Nick dies. He discovers Nick trying to make meaning of his life by helping elders cope with sundowning, end-of-day anxiety that can afflict people with dementia. Enter two middle-age women who meet the men at an outdoor concert — luckily for Ben, who is quickly overwhelmed by Nick’s chaotic behavior. Joyce and Bonnie click with the brothers and stay involved in the unraveling of their estrangement.