Ripe November 3, 2012

Manhood takes on a very different meaning for baby boomers who waited until middle age to marry. 'RIPE' is a profound and risky examination of how John Jiler dealt with his father's death while his own son was in infancy, confronting the existential issues that came with it. Manhood, Jiler finds, is when you are strong enough to make unexpected decisions about your parents, all in view of your own child, for whom every action is an example. Throughout the play, Jiler plays a dozen unforgettable New York characters swirling around his dying, Runyonesque father.