BY KAREN BOSSICK

When Ida Armstrong begins to spend all of her children’s money, her son is forced to assume the unwanted role of “The Treasurer.” And that arrangement becomes untenable as he begins questioning his devotion to her.

The Sun Valley Writers Residency will present a free reading of Max Posner’s darkly funny, intimate portrait of the strained ties between a son and his aging money on Oct. 7 as part of a month’s worth of events showcasing the works of two of its resident playwrights.

It and another free play reading will bring a Tony Award nominee and two Pulitzer Prize finalists to Ketchum, along with Samuel Hunter, whose “The Whale” won an Oscar for Brendan Fraser.

“We couldn’t be more excited about the events we’re going to present this October,” said Jon Kane, who co-founded the residency with John Baker. “It’s really thrilling to bring artists of this caliber to the valley and have them share the experience with locals.”

THE EVENTS:

Wednesday, Oct. 2, 5:30 p.m.—Max Posner will be in conversation with Wood River Valley-based actor Aly Wepplo, who also is The Community Library’s collection manager. Seats may be reserved at https://thecommunitylibrary.libcal.com/event/12909778.

Monday, Oct. 7, 7 p.m.—Max Posner’s reading of “The Treasurer” will be staged at The Argyros in Ketchum. The reading will be preceded by a conversation with MacArthur “Genius” Sam Hunter, who presented his play “A Case for the Existence of God” in Ketchum a few years ago.

“The Treasurer” will feature Wood River Valley actor David Janeski; Colorado Theatre Guild’s Lifetime Achievement Award Winner Billie McBride, who acted in Broadway’s “Torch Song Trilogy;” Shonda Royall, who starred in “Clyde’s” at Boise Contemporary Theater, and Obie Award Winner and Tony Award nominee Jeremy Shamos, who most recently appeared in the final Sondheim musical in New York. Free seats may be reserved at https://www.sunvalleyplaywrights.org/.

Saturday, Oct. 12, 2 p.m.—Monologue Writing Workshop led by Max Posner and Pulitzer Prize Finalist Sarah DeLappe, known for “The Wolves” and “Bodies Bodies Bodies.” The workshop will be held at The Community Library in Ketchum. Reserve a spot at https://thecommunitylibrary.libcal.com/event/12942673.

Friday, Oct. 25, 7 p.m.—A reading of Pulitzer Prize finalist Rajiv Joseph’s play-in-process “Horoscope,” featuring 12 Theatre Arts majors from Boise State University. John Baker, artistic director for the Sun Valley Playwright’s Residency, will lead a conversation with Joseph ahead of the play reading.

The actors will also read Rajiv’s play at Boise Contemporary Theatre on Oct. 24. Reserve a seat at https://www.sunvalleyplaywrights.org/.

“The first reading we ever did was with Obie Award winner David Cale. It featured one man on stage and will be mounted at Fordham University in New York so we’ll see what life the play has,” said Baker. “Now we will have 12 actors on stage for Rajiv’s ‘Horoscope.’ ”

“The Treasurer,” written by Posner who is the Sun Valley Playwright’s 2024-25 resident playwright, was nominated for the Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding New Play” and it was included on the year-end “best-of” lists in New York Magazine and The New York Times.

The memory play was a huge hit off-Broadway in 2017.

Huffington Post likened the play to “something of a ‘The Glass Menagerie.” The play is an emotionally dense one that suggests how crisis pushes reality into the realm of nightmares, said the New York Times It’s “quite simply, a marvel,” said the New York Magazine.

“It’s a play about a son who is very comfortable being a husband and a dad but struggling with the idea of being a son—it’s a struggle over the love and lovelessness between him and his Mom,” said Baker. “It’s a gorgeous play—so honest but with a brutality to it.”

Posner, who was born in Denver but now lives in New York specializes in comedies of family life that push buttons off-Broadway. His plays include “Judy,” “Gun Logistics,” “Sisters on the Ground,” “Snore,” “The Pool” and “Hannukah Spectacular.” He has also done some TV work and completed a new translation of Chekhov’s “Three Sisters.”

“I’ve known him for over a decade since he moved to Brooklyn with his wife Sarah. She’s a screenwriter who wrote a horror movie a couple years ago called ‘Bodies Bodies Bodies’ that went well,” said Baker. “He’s been working on a play over the course of the year about Jewish identity, grappling with what it means to be Jewish in 2024. He some cool collaborators that we hope can come out to Idaho next year when he has a full draft. One is David Cromer, a noted director and actor and Tony nominee.”

Last year’s resident playwright Ravij Joseph, who wrote “Guards at the Taj,” also wrote “Gruesome Playground Injuries,” which was read last year at The Argyros.

His new play “Horoscope” revolves around young people in their 20s and zodiac signs, hence the need for 12 characters and 12 scenes.

Joseph moved into the Hemingway House with very little idea of what his new play was going to be and spent his month in the house mapping out the play, fleshing out the characters and storylines and finishing his first draft.

“Spending a month at Sun Valley Playwright’s Residency last year was transformational for me,” said  Joseph. “Not only was it creatively productive and inspiring, but I felt like I became a part of the Ketchum and Sun Valley artistic community. I can’t wait to come back.”

The Sun Valley Playwrights Residency is a non-profit organization that was started to fuel the American theatre with invigorating new plays as support for playwrights began dwindling. The organization partners with The Community Library to offer a playwright a month to write at the Ernest and Mary Hemingway House, which sits on 12 acres overlooking the Big Wood River with views of the Pioneer and Boulder mountains.

It also offers a commission and creative support to the playwright to foster a new full-length play over the course of a year. The Argyros Performing Arts Center offers space for the play readings, and Boise State University’s Department of Theatre, Film and Creative Writing and Boise Contemporary Theater are now partnering with the residency, as well.

“In a moment full of loss for new play incubation, when so many artistic homes are folding and shrinking, Sun Valley Playwright’s Residency offers a unique ray of optimism for playwrights,” said Posner. “The opportunity to dedicate myself to the strange work of incubating a new play, a process that requires time, solitude, silence but also attentive care, and communal rallying, is a godsend. Writing is a beautiful struggle, and without opportunities like this, many vital plays might be left to the wayside. I can’t wait to spend a month under a big western sky on a play that keeps me up at night. I feel very fortunate for the chance to dig deeper.”

Last year the residency provided Rajiv Joseph the opportunity to share about his career with students from Sun Valley Community School and Wood River High School. He also led them through an exercise where they wrote a short scene.

The residency plans to do that again this year.

“The people we bring to Sun Valley are not only talented but they’re warm, generous people and good people who want to engage with the community,” said Baker. “This is not a chore for them. They want to meet the community. And to hear from an artist who has made is really inspiring for kids to know there’s a path forward if this is something that interests them.”

Baker added that the residency wants to put scripts that reflect the next generation of playwrights in local school libraries.

“When I was in high school, I combed through the library stacks and devoured plays by the likes of Arthur Miller and Tennessee Williams. They were cool writers, but it wasn’t until I was in college that I got to read contemporary plays by living writers.”

Sun Valley Playwright’s Residency’s 2024 programming is made possible, in part, by support from Idaho Commission on the Arts, Idaho Humanities Council, National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, and Spur Community Foundation. Additional support is provided by Boise Contemporary Theater and the School of the Arts and the Department of Theatre, Film, and Creative Writing at Boise State University.

Community sponsors include Atkinsons’ Market and Wall Property Management.