More Money, More Drama

In what may have been the most prescient theatrical adaptation in years, playwright David Mamet revived the 1905 work The Voysey Inheritance in 2005, four years before Bernie Madoff pled guilty to 11 federal offenses including securities fraud and money laundering. The play, a fusion of Wall Street-style financial drama and Jane Austen-era decorum, involves the son of British financier Edward Voysey, who learns that the family business is a Ponzi scheme. The revelation fails to ruffle the debonair suits of the rest of the Voysey men, but Edward, cursed with a conscience, faces a moral dilemma: come clean and betray the family (a serious violation of Victorian propriety), or keep quiet and try to pacify duped investors while maintaining the family’s status. Although the play is more than 100 years old (though Mamet revised it for the modern stage), its lessons on the ethical complexities of society and social expectations are still very relevant. The show opens today at 2 p.m., and runs through December 18 at the Caldwell Theatre (7901 N. Federal Highway, Boca Raton). Tickets cost $34 to $55, $10 for students. Call 561-241-7432, or visit caldwelltheatre.com.
Nov. 8-Dec. 18, 2 p.m., 2009