Careful what you wish for....

Alan (Keith Nobbs) should have heeded the old warning about being careful what you wish for....

Keith Nobbs as Alan with Kevin Kilner as Doug in a photo by Richard Termine 

What if your dad turned out to be just the sort of creep who abandoned his family as Doug (Kevin Kilner) had when Alan was five?

There is nothing Alan wants more, in Lanford Wilson's "Lemon Sky," playing at Theatre Row in a Keen Company production through October 22nd, than to live with the father he never had.

Doug says he has dreamed of having him out to California to be with him, but that Alan's mother would never let Alan come. Doug also tells him that his mother hounded him and spied on him, but that his current wife, Ronnie (Kellie Overbey), lets him breathe.

Now that Alan wants to go to college, he can be with Doug and his family, 12-year old Jerry (Logan Riley Bruner) and 5-year old Jack (Zachary Mackiewicz), and the two foster children, Carol (Alyssa May Gold) and Penny (Amie Tedesco)who live with them, and maybe with Doug's help get a part time job.

Alyssa May Gold as Carol with Keith Nobbs as Alan and Amie Tedesco as Penny in a photo by Richard Termine 

The idyllic quickly turns ugly, but expecting the dire outcome in "Lemon Sky" should not be a deterrent to enjoying the play's unravelling. "Lemon Sky" spools out the story, using narration as a dramatic technique, and promising drama as the narrative unfolds.

Alyssa May Gold's Carol is a sad teenage femme fatale whose fate, like much of the plot, is perhaps predictible. Kellie Overbey's Ronnie is strong, understanding, and protective of the life she has chosen for herself.

Kellie Overbey as Ronnie with Keith Nobbs as Alan and Kevin Kilner as Doug in a photo by Richard Termine 

Lanford Wilson's "Lemon Sky" was written in 1970 and is autobiographical. He is best known as the author of "Talley's Folly" and
"The Fifth of July."

"Lemon Sky" is a small play, that is nonetheless engrossing, and all the actors do their best to let it breathe.

For schedule, tickets and information, visit http://keencompany.org/