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• U of I's Theatre Department performs "Killer Joe" at KCPA

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As any other that has come before it, this Valentine’s Day weekend is sure to be filled with couples celebrating their love. For CU, that means everywhere, from restaurants and coffee shops to sidewalks and theaters, will experience a jarring influx of affectionate hand holding, snuggling, frolicking and gift giving. So, it is only fitting that this weekend is also the premiere weekend for the University of Illinois Department of Theatre’s production of "Killer Joe", a play full of violent brutality, graphic language, murderous plotting and drugs.

The play follows the tale of a Middle American family, the Smiths. Chris Smith is a young man, but has managed to rack up a substantial debt from his failed business attempts and costly drug habits. His solution to kill his mother for the insurance money he will get from her death goes over well with the rest of his not-so-respectable family, who apparently do not find this proposition as appalling as one might foresee.

The Smiths gladly welcome police detective and part-time contract killer Joe Cooper into their home. Joe is willing to help for a small price, but the Smiths cannot even scrounge up enough to pay a retainer. So, Joe finds it in the goodness of his heart to suggest that the sexual favors of Chris’ innocent sister Dottie will be more than sufficient payment. The show is clearly bursting with upright, moral characters.

These characters and the story that plays out in "Killer Joe" are all the creation of playwright Tracy Letts, who won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and a Tony Award for Best Play for August: Osage County in 2008. "Killer Joe" was originally published in 1993, and has been produced in Chicago, London and New York.

For the next two weekends, Urbana’s Krannert Center for the Performing Arts will feature Killer Joe’s shockingly offhand approach at violence and revelations of the results of television’s numbing savagery. The play brings to the stage a comedic atmosphere unlike many others. Directed by Guest Director Robert Quinlan, Killer Joe will premiere on Feb. 11, 2010, and continue through the weekend and the weekend following, with a total of eight performances.

Whether going to see the production with that special someone in order to take a shockingly violent turn from typical Valentine’s activities, or as a single exchanging the cruelty of a holiday for lovers for the cruelty and ferocity of the stage, "Killer Joe" is sure to be a killer time.