When Miki Mathioudakis read the script for “Ripcord,” she immediately knew she wanted to be a part of the show.
“I had read the play and I thought, ‘Oh, yeah, I want to play Marilyn,’” Mathioudakis said. “Then I went to see the play (in Cincinnati in 2019) and said, ‘Oh, no, I want to play Abby’ because Abby is a real curmudgeon, and she has this wonderful scene with her estranged son.”
Mathioudakis and fellow Indianapolis resident Tina Nehrling have the leading roles in Main Street Productions’ presentation of “Ripcord” Oct. 3-13 at Basile Westfield Playhouse.
The comedy centers on two women who engage in one-upmanship in a senior living center.
“They’re trying to prank each other to get the other one kicked out,” said the play’s director Andrea Odle, a Noblesville resident.
Nehrling, who plays Marilyn, is making her debut with Main Street Productions.
Nehrling said the show is mixed with anger and tenderness.
“It’s like they’re in a battle and we find out their backstory later and why they’re the way they are,” Nehrling said.
Nehrling said she was not familiar with the show until she read the script. Nehrling and Mathioudakis formerly lived near each other and are longtime friends.
“Oftentimes, we’d be in competition for a role rather than playing together’” said Mathioudakis, who made her first appearance at Basile Westfield Playhouse in April.
Nehrling said the leading roles are strong — not “drippy oatmeal parts,” which are often available for older actresses.
“There are several women of a certain age who wanted to audition for this,” Mathioudakis said. “I think we both showed up on the first night and I think that was smart.”
Odle described the play as a comedy with heart. She said one of her directing mentors sent her the show, calling it “fantastic.”
“The challenging part is we move to different locations within the story,” Odle said. “We’re in a haunted house, then they jump out of an airplane and then we’re in a park, so that’s a bit of a challenge on how we show the audience we’re gone. It’s set pieces and (the) audience’s imagination.”
Mathioudakis said she previously did readings of the play for Indy Actors Playground and Carmel Community Players and audiences loved it.
“It’s my favorite kind of play because it’s funny,” Mathioudakis said. “When you laugh, it opens up the tender place inside of you, so deeper truths can touch you.”
For more, visit westfieldplayhouse.org.
