“This is a tour-de-force by a highly talented and engaging actress. You may find yourself crying through side-splitting laughter.”
—Berkshire on Stage • FULL REVIEW
“a hit with audiences. A laugh-out-loud, heartwarming tribute to mothers everywhere.”
—Rochester City Newspaper • FULL REVIEW
“The mother/daughter dynamic is hilariously unpacked... Highly recommended.”
—TheatreinChicago.com • FULL REVIEW
Artist Spotlight
Check out this feature article that just came out about my show and how it came to be!
History
MOTHER (and me) is a fast-paced 75-minute piece that uses the power of theater to bring people together around an important issue: Alzheimer’s, and the struggles families face while caring for a loved one.
What distinguishes MOTHER (and me) is that the subject is handled with skill and, more importantly, with humor. This beautiful show moves the audience, makes them laugh and in the end, is an incredibly uplifting piece of theater.
MOTHER (and me) was originally developed from bits of writing Melinda Buckley performed in Wynn Handman’s acting class. As the piece grew, Melinda brought it to her friend and Go-Solo founder, Matt Hoverman who helped her shape it into a one woman play. In 2014, it premiered in the FringeNYC Festival at the Celebration of Whimsy where it had an extended run as a Best of Fest winner. Barbara Whitman, Tony Award-winning producer of Fun Home and Strange Loop, then took the show under her wing bringing Kimberly Senior, director of the Tony Award-winning play, Disgraced, on board to further refine the production. MOTHER (and me) went on to developmental runs at Chicago Shakespeare, Off-Broadway’s Second Stage Uptown and Bay Street Theater in Sag Harbor, NY.
In 2016, MOTHER (and me) premiered in Chicago as a part of Greenhouse Theater’s Solo Celebration, one of 12 shows selected out of 400. From there, the show had an enormously successful 3-week run at Geva Theatre Center, where it sold 225% above goal. Following that, the play ran at the celebrated Martha’s Vineyard Playhouse as part of their Spring Solo Festival. For the next three years, the show returned to that region and played to full houses at the Cape Playhouse, the Cotuit Center for the Arts and Provincetown Works, as much-needed fundraisers for the Alzheimer’s Family Support Center of Cape Cod.
During Covid, MOTHER (and me) debuted in the virtual realm with San Francisco’s renowned Marsh Theatre as part of their Solo Arts Heal Festival. More recently, it was featured in Solo Festivals at New Jersey's Centenary Stage Company and at Catskill’s Bridge Street Theatre, where it received rave reviews and a BroadwayWorld nomination for Best Solo Performance. Continuing the show’s mission to support the Alzheimer’s Association, the show was recently performed as a benefit for the Western Ct. chapter in Sherman, Ct. before heading to Amherst, Ma where we ended the year with a full house and a standing ovation at the newly renovated UMass Curtain Theater.
“BUCKLEY DRAMATIZED the most heartrending situations imaginable, and left us laughing (almost) all the way.”
—Cape Cod Times • FULL REVIEW
Our 1 minute teaser!
MOTHER (and me) @ Bridge Street Theatre | MOTHER (and me) @ Geva Theatre | MOTHER (and me) @ Bridge Street Theatre | MOTHER (and me) @ Geva Theatre | MOTHER (and me) @ Benefit Alzheimer’s Assn of CT |
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MOTHER (and me) @ Geva Theatre | MOTHER (and me) @ Centennary Stage Company | MOTHER (and me) @ Geva Theatre | MOTHER (and me) @ Benefit Performance | MOTHER (and me) @ Geva Theatre |
MOTHER (and me) @ Benefit Alzheimer’s Assn of CT | MOTHER (and me) @ Curtain Theatre UMass, Amherst |