Having grown up in Maplewood and South Orange, playwright Eric Alter is excited to open his new play, Kill Goofy, set in both towns, about best friends reunited decades after a traumatic incident that happened middle school and one of them moves away abruptly.
The play explores how the two have coped with the trauma of sexual assault in his own way, having grown up living separate lives.
While being newer to exploring the dark themes in this play, Alter has previously explored depths of trauma and its effects in his works. Having written and produced 185 plays of diverse genres, Alter said, “Drama has always been a little bit easier for me to write. …I do write a lot about themes of trauma, and redemption, and forgiveness.”
With 26 years of experience as a playwright and producer, Alter says he is fascinated by the diverse human experience of coping with trauma. “Everybody, in some way shape or form, no matter who you are, you are affected by traumatic events… Trauma is not always this major, horrible, terrible event.”
The idea that virtually no one is immune to how their experiences will shape them, even similar experiences, he said, also intrigues him. “Not everyone has a shared trauma…the story struck me as interesting and how each person dealt with that. How did they overcome it or not overcome it?”
With the backdrop for this play being Maplewood and South Orange, if the audience is listening closely, they will hear references to Ferrell Field as well as Town Hall Deli and other local spots.
Though he now lives in Livingston, Alter often brings his plays back to Maplewood and South Orange. Having written at least 25 plays set locally, Alter feels a strong connection with his hometown, “It’s familiar to me…you don’t forget your roots.”
In addition to playwriting, Alter wrote a pilot for a TV show called 180 Days set in South Orange Middle School with references to places in town. “I like to keep it close to my heart, I have a lot of good memories growing up in town. I like to remind myself of those times.”
Livingston playwright Eric Alter, who grew up in Maplewood and South Orange, sets a lot of his plays in his hometowns. (Photo courtesy of Eric Alter)
Eric Alter began his life in Maplewood before moving to South Orange; all together spending the first 14 years of his life in MAPSO before moving to Short Hills during his sophomore year in high school. Spending the majority of his formative years in such a diverse community, Alter looks back fondly on being able to have friends of “all different backgrounds and colors and socioeconomics, and stuff like that.”
As an adult, Alter returned to serve South Orange as an auxiliary police officer and enjoys the occasional meal at local restaurants with his family.
Kill Goofy premieres Friday, October 9, at the Grove Street Theatre at 130 Grove Street in Montclair NJ. Not recommended for audiences 15 and under, Kill Goofy is open for three weekends Oct 9-11, October 16-18 and October 23-25. And yes, Goofy is in reference to Walt Disney’s Goofy. If you want to know how Mickey Mouse’s friend got tied into all of this, you’ll have to buy tickets to find out!
Tickets are $25, $20 for seniors and students, with reservations at http://apricotskyproductions.com/killgoofy. The play has a content advisory regarding discussion of sexual assault of two 13-year-old boys. The ticket website provides the following support resources: 1in6.org, RAINN 800-656-4673, 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
Rianna LaVerdiere is a 12th grade student at Columbia High School and is working with Village Green as part of a grant from the New Jersey Civic Information Consortium.
