Judith Hendra and Paula LaBrot, founders of Topanga Actors Company (TAC), present a staged reading of The Cake by Bekah Brunstetter, a play that portrays the struggle to create a bridge between people who love each other but have opposing commitments to faith and freedom.
Jen, raised in the south, is marrying Macy, a woman from New York City. Jen wants Della, one of the best bakers in America and her late mother’s best friend, to make her wedding cake. The winds of change take the characters on a soul-searching journey.
Brunstetter was raised in North Carolina by conservative parents whom she reveres as loving, kind people. She spent her adult life in New York and Los Angeles as a very successful playwright and as a writer/producer for This Is Us, often caught in conversations derogatory to her roots for which she has great affection.
What drew us to this play is the author’s attempt to de-polarize people.
As Jen struggles with the interface of her new, sophisticated values with love of her family and place of origin, Brunstetter reminds us that change takes time. She believes that, given time, people will find a way through forests of beliefs and attitudes to love and acceptance of each other. A two-way street, love opens a lot of doors…and minds.
This beautiful story will play on June 9 at 2 p.m., at the Topanga Library for what is TAC’s fourth season.
In our attempt to bring modern, award-winning theater to Topanga, we try to keep Topangans up on the latest works right here in the heart of the Canyon. We love the after-show chats with our audiences out on the terrace. Please stay for neighborly conversation and, of course, a piece of cake! Admission is free.
The Topanga Library is located at 122 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd., Topanga, CA 90290. For more information: (310) 455-3480; colapublib.org.