The Couple Next Door
by
Donna Hoke
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The Couple Next Door
Natalie Mack, Matt Witten, Kelly Meg Brennan and Luke Wager in
The Couple Next Door
The Road Less Traveled Theatre, Buffalo, NY
Photo: The Buffalo News

Comedy-Drama/ 4 Characters, 2 Men, 2 Women/ Full length, Two acts

Synopsis: After ten years of marriage, Sadie and Vance are experiencing the all too familiar trials that arise when lovers become parents, job and home responsibilities become never-ending, and alone time becomes scarce. To Sadie's further frustration, reticent Vance refuses to acknowledge — or discuss — any of them. Next door, demographic equals Janet and Rich have fared much better; their happy marriage is full of passion, love, empathy—and multiple sex partners.

When the ever-ready Rich overhears Vance and "hot burrito" Sadie having wild sex, he's intrigued, and determines to invite the couple over to test the waters. Janet is also curious, but hesitant: They live so close, what if it goes bad, and why is Rich so insistent? Through a comedic series of events, Sadie and Vance arrive at the Lewis house one Fun Friday, hoping that — as they've read on-line — a "just sex" evening of swinging will open up communication and elevate them to a new level of closeness.

All appears to go well . . . until the morning after. At the Nelson house, Janet senses the encounter with their new playmates was a little off, while Rich — dazedly fondling Sadie's left-behind underwear — feels something is definitely on. At the Lewis', the experiment has seemingly proved a bust: The couple is barely talking, and it's clear that Sadie is more pissed at her husband than ever.

In the ensuing days, Janet's suspicions grow, and Rich visits Sadie to confess that she made him feel something he never has before. While Sadie insists it was "just sex," Vance gets a cryptic visit from Janet that makes him realize his marriage is on the line. That night, Vance and Sadie bond after he digs deep to reveal his feelings about what happened last Friday, and the two take tentative steps toward reconciliation, which include a new start. Crushed, Rich nonetheless recognizes the need to recommit to his family, albeit with the unsettling knowledge that there might be more to love — and sex — than he’s ever known.

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"Playwright Hoke can write: dialogue flows naturally, real people saying real things . . . . the story has verve, it lives and breathes."
- The Buffalo News

"The play challenges notions of what defines a stable relationship, as neither couple leaves the encounter unchanged. This is not a cautionary tale warning against the evils of swinging; neither does the play condemn the practice. We see characters learn about themselves and learn about their relationships in surprising ways. That is the pleasure of The Couple Next Door."
- Artvoice
Contact Information:
Amateur and Professional Rights:
Email: donna@donnahoke.com

About the Playwright: After 17 years living and working in the New York/New Jersey area, Donna Hoke returned to her native Buffalo in 2004. A full-time freelance writer, she has been a national magazine writer/editor for more than 24 years. Since 1994, Donna has also constructed crossword puzzles, which appear in various publications, including the New York Times.

An avid theatergoer, Donna developed The Couple Next Door in the 2009 Road Less Traveled New Play Workshop; it was immediately slated for production and opened the season in 2010. The four-week run broke box office records, becoming the theater's second highest-grossing production and the highest grossing world premiere in the theater's history. Hoke's play have been produced from New York to Los Angeles to Seoul, Korea.

The Couple Next Door premiered at The Road Less Traveled Theatre, Buffalo, NY, in September, 2010.
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