The Happy Ones

Dramatic Comedy Characters: 3 males, 1 females WINNER! 2009 Ted Schmitt Award for the world premiere of an Outstanding New Play - Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Orange County, California, 1975. For Walter Wells, it’s the happiest place on earth. He has a beautiful wife. Two great kids. A house with a pool. Contentment. Until fate strikes a devastating blow, leaving Walter with no reason to put the pieces of his life back together. He resists attempts to help, especially the unexpected - and unwanted - offer from a Vietnamese refugee named Bao Ngo, who bears his own sadness. Then, across a cultural divide, Walter and Bao find a game to share, a song, a meal and then a way back in this uplifting - and surprisingly funny - new play by a rising star in American theatre.
Wry and affecting…Myatt’s characters are so engaging that it’s easy to push them toward comedy, which tends to reassure rather than surprise us. -Los Angeles Times …Understated power of this gentle yet gripping dramedy…The most impressive element of Myatt’s new work is the dexterous way she elicits emotional resonance by giving the human frailties of the characters a weight equal to their innate compassion and goodness. Subtly depicting the overwhelmingly difficult process of mourning and letting go, Myatt leavens the tragedy without blunting its significance. -Backstage