"Summer, 1976" - by David Auburn - Central Square Theater (Cambridge, MA.) - REVIEW
(Cover Photo: Laura Latreille as “Alice” with Lee Mikeska Gardner as “Diana” in a scene from "SUMMER, 1976" by David Auburn, now playing at Central Square Theater in Cambridge, MA. until November 30, 2025. Photo Credit Nile Scott Studios)
By Kevin T. Baldwin
METRMAG Reviewer
# 774-242-6724
“Parents who can’t or won’t control their kids aren’t upset when you do it for them. They’re grateful and ashamed."
- ("Diana") / David Auburn
Central Square Theater
Presents David Auburn's
"SUMMER, 1976"
Written by David Auburn
Directed by Paula Plum
Cast Includes: Lee Mikeska Gardner* as “Diana” and Laura Latreille as “Alice.”
Additional Creative Team:
Scenic Designer - Kristin Loeffler; Lighting Designer - Deb Sullivan; Costume Designer - Sydney Hovasse; Properties Designer - Lauren Corcuera; Sound Designer - Aubrey Dube; Projection Designer - Justin LaHue; Associate Artistic Director - Cassie Chapados; Stage Manager - Charles Waite Clay; Assistant Stage Manager & Wardrobe Supervisor - Jack Douglas Riter; Assistant Director - Ulrika Brand; Lighting Supervisor - Matthew Breton; Technical Director & Builder - Al Gentile.
* Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States
Performances:
November 6, 2025 through November 30, 2025
(Contact Box Office for Exact Times)
CENTRAL SQUARE THEATER, 450 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA. 02139
TICKETS:
# 617-576-9278
https://www.centralsquaretheater.org/shows-events/season-tickets/
BUY TICKETS
COVID 19 PROTOCOLS
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(Warning: The following review contains spoilers)
Just as many prepare for the annual autumnal celebration that is Thanksgiving, Central Square Theater (CST) serves up a delightful feast in a compassionate lookback to a so-called “simpler time” in "SUMMER, 1976."
The one-act two-hander play tells the story of two neighbors who strike up a dubious friendship while simulteaneously looking at the prevailing “second wave of feminism” which took place during the 70s and was just hitting its stride.
Written by Pulitzer Prize-winner David Auburn (“Proof”) and directed for CST by Paula Plum, the story of "SUMMER, 1976" follows the two women living next door to one another in Ohio.
The first woman, Diana (Lee Mikeska Gardner), is a fierce iconoclast artist and single mother whose house is maintained as organized as her day-to-day life.
Alice (Laura Latreille) is a latent hippie whose husband is a workaholic professor while she remains at home.
(Photo: Laura Latreille as “Alice” in a scene from "SUMMER, 1976" by David Auburn, now playing at Central Square Theater in Cambridge, MA. until November 30, 2025. Photo Credit Nile Scott Studios)
"SUMMER, 1976" debuted in 2023 (running from April to June) with the original Broadway production featuring actresses Laura Linney as Diana and Jessica Hecht as Alice (with Hecht receiving a 2023 Tony Award nomination).
For the CST production of "SUMMER, 1976" the striking single-set design is of the outside of these neighboring houses, each sharing some sort of coastal view.
Latreille is exuberant as the relentlessly cheerful Alice, who at first spends most of her summer reading “B” novels, smoking grass and supervising a home improvement project (not always in that order) all while watching over the couple’s young daughter, roughly the same age as Diana’s child.
Gardner gives a strong performance as the ardently independent and intellectual Diana, who works on the same campus as Alice’s husband but initially has zero interest in getting to know her neighbors, especially their young child.
However, it soon becomes apparent that the two children have other ideas in mind for their mother’s planned summer days as they quickly become playmates.
Thus, these two very distinctive personalities are thrown together by circumstance…and through a faculty babysitting co-op set up by Alice’s husband.
As they begin to regularly spend time together, qualities they first found annoying soon become traits they admire in one another.
(Photo: Laura Latreille as “Alice” with Lee Mikeska Gardner as “Diana” in a scene from "SUMMER, 1976" by David Auburn, now playing at Central Square Theater in Cambridge, MA. until November 30, 2025. Photo Credit Nile Scott Studios)
As the two get to know one another through the child playdates, an unlikely friendship blossoms over the "SUMMER, 1976", the year of the American Bicentennial.
For anyone doing the math - assuming these two women were in their mid-twenties at the time, they would now be in their mid-seventies.
The above would be a good thing to keep in mind given some of the sexist overtones of the era in the Auburn story which are there intended for us to recall but hopefully never repeat (although the current administration might seek otherwise).
There are numerous plot-twists and turns in the second half of the Auburn tale which may entertain some while infuriating others - but it is the overall storytelling and compelling performances by the respective CST creative team and cast which makes the show a delight to watch.
An area which is a relief to observe in the play is in the omission of seemingly obligatory pop culture references of the period, which OTHER authors seem to think we require in order for our "little minds" to accept the time and place in which their stories exist – thankfully, you won’t find many here.
That said, not sure if this was scripted or impromptu, but there was one, brief moment where Alice mimicked an iconic John Travolta “disco stance” – perhaps not realizing that the film “Saturday Night Fever” debuted in 1977, not 1976.
However, only a few of us “of a certain age” might possibly even pick up on that and, really...who gives a damn?
(Photo: Laura Latreille as “Alice” with Lee Mikeska Gardner as “Diana” in a scene from "SUMMER, 1976" by David Auburn, now playing at Central Square Theater in Cambridge, MA. until November 30, 2025. Photo Credit Nile Scott Studios)
As time advances over "SUMMER, 1976" Alice and Diana become closer than either had expected, although their distinctive personalities do occasionally clash, resulting in some unexpected fireworks along the way.
Nevertheless, the bond they develop that begins as unlikely soon seems unbreakable.
The contemplative and nostalgic "SUMMER, 1976" continues at Central Square Theater in Cambridge, MA. until November 30th, 2025 and, if you plan to attend and are of “a certain age” feeling nostalgic over this particular summer yourself, if think of it, maybe contemplate re-connecting with an old friend from that era...and bring them along.
Coming up next for CST will be Ken Urban’s “THE MODERATE” beginning February 5th and running through March 1st, 2026.
For tickets and more information contact Central Square Theater at # 617-576-278 or visit www.centralsquaretheater.org
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Approximately one hours, 45 minutes with no intermission.
Kevin T. Baldwin is a member of the American Theatre Critics Association (ATCA)
@MetrmagReviews
@Theatre_Critics
ABOUT THE SHOW
1976.
An Ohio college town.
The second wave of feminism is cresting.
Two very different women are thrown together through a faculty babysitting co-op and an unlikely friendship forms between Diana, a fiercely iconoclastic artist, and Alice, a free-spirited yet naive young housewife.
Written by Pulitzer winner David Auburn ("Proof") with Paula Plum making her CST directorial debut, Alice and Diana bring us directly into their memories and the small moments that change the course of their lives in this funny and poignant play
The New York Times praises as “sharply observant…subtly, insistently feminist.”
ABOUT CENTRAL SQUARE THEATER
CENTRAL SQUARE THEATER (CST) is dedicated to the exploration of social justice, science and sexual politics through theater; catalyzing the dynamic synergies sparked by the collaboration between The Nora and Underground Railway. Through award-winning productions, the Catalyst Collaborative@ MIT Science Theater Initiative, and youth development programming – CST creates theater where points of view are heard, perspective shifts, and change can happen.
450 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA. 02139
# 617-576-9278
