Final performances of Dog Sees God!

We're entering the third weekend of performances for our critically-acclaimed production of Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead at the Shimberg Playhouse. We hope you get a chance to make it down before we not only say goodbye to this show, but to the 09-10 season.

"[Jobsite] has produced this subversive twist on childhood innocence, and it's a fantastic finale to the [season] ... incredibly touching ... Dirty and raw ... still a loving tribute to good men everywhere." – The Tampa Tribune

"true to the heart of [the original] comic strip ... phenomenal entertainment, sometimes hysterically funny, sometimes sweetly philosophical and ultimately poignant ... hugely entertaining and even mildly thought-provoking." – St. Petersburg Times

"In the pressure-cooker that is high school, Dog Sees God might even save a life ... the acting in this Jobsite Theater production is topnotch ... superbly directed." –Creative Loafing

"...audiences will laugh until their eyes water and then, possibly, shed genuine tears of sadness, too–both totally warranted responses that speak to the script's generic range and delicate subject matter as well as the merits of this production." – Drama Daily [Spoiler Alert: this review contains plot spoilers]

It's been a very long time since we've garnered this sort of outpouring from our fans. Perhaps only The March of the Kitefliers has elicited such a visceral reaction from people who have come back to tell us exactly what this show meant to them, and who are making a point to come to the show more than once. Here is a link to comments from people who have seen the show and wanted to tell us what they thought.

Some of the stories coming back to us have been moving, and deeply personal. Here is one such letter that we were given permission to share.

We've held the show over through Aug. 29, but tonight (8/19 8p) is our final Thu. night show. Otherwise we still run Fri.-Sat. at 8p and Sun. at 4p this week and next. I sincerely hope you get the chance to come by, or if you've already made it out that you can share us with a friend.

We are very, very close to once again smashing our records in terms of annual attendance and gross receipts. We have seven more performances in order to accomplish that. Should be a cinch, right? Great show, great artists, great fans. Now all we need is you.

We truly hope to see you soon at the theater.

Sometimes they mean more than you know ...

The relevance of any work of art can be very subjective. That's obvious, despite how some may try to make it a universal thing. Not to be to cliched, but one man's trash and all that ...

At Jobsite, we always hold plays up to the relevancy test - after all it's mission-based for us. Jobsite was created in order to do "politically and socially relevant theater." Sometimes though plays mean more than what we intentionally set out to do, and that's quickly become the case with Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead.

I saw a tremendous amount of potential in this script after my first read. It's accessible and in some ways comfortable, using characters most of us are familiar with in some way and turning it on its head. It's very, very funny in a generally crowd-pleasing, if bawdy, sort of way. The themes in the show are timely, true and important. It's not just about being gay or not being gay, but about acceptance from one's peers, finding one's self and even self-acceptance.

Bullying in all forms is not just contained behind the walls of high schools. It's still on university campuses, workplaces, night clubs and on the street. I stated over at the Creative Loafing site that I couldn't buy their critic's harsh "Dear Pen Pal: What Else Is New" snide tag when we live in a world that still refuses to be accepting of differences. A world that lacks true equality for its citizenry.

Perhaps what I have been most surprised about to this point is the number of people - both gay and straight, men and women - who have either talked to me after seeing the show or who have sent things on to us via our website, social media or via a cast member thanking us for bringing this show to the stage, and either helping them heal or bring to light problems that have affected them.

I asked one person in particular if it would be possible to share their words with our fans. Here it goes. This is unedited by me or anyone, and is only one of the stories I have heard since we began performances last Wednesday:

Honestly, the show left me crying. The roles were amazingly done and I thank the cast for every moment on the stage, even the ones I turned my eyes from because I couldn't bring myself to look at something I deal with daily, in my own self-loathing way. During Beethoven's tirade on, "So, what makes me gay?", I lost it. Though I'm gay and understand stereotypes, I'm not effeminate. So when I came out, I wanted to hear people say, "It's cool. We still love you." Not, "We knew," or "it's about time". I wanted acceptance, not affirmed speculations. So, I heard myself in the script ... and it was frightening and reassuring at the same time.

Thank you for inviting me into this show. Thank you for allowing me to participate in a cascade of consensually reassuring tears with an audience that understood and accepted. And in a way that can only be described as cathartic revelry, I was forced to sit back in reflection many times during the play, especially the sentimental and touching ending. There is a wonderful thing being refined in the theatre, forged every night in each new audience. Afterward, I just wanted to hold onto some people I loved, commiserate and tell them truths I don't want them to miss me saying to them. Everyone in the community (every part...not just the Proud) should come and see this show and share that feeling with me! Best wishes to the cast, JB