MARC JACOBS
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Stage 9 Theatre will present A Crazy Little Cafe Called Love this weekend, offering audiences a lighthearted comedy centered on a single day inside a neighborhood café.
The production is directed by Jo Stropes, who said the play blends laugh-out-loud humor with warm, heartfelt moments as it explores love in many forms — from romance and friendship to family and human connection.
“The play shows a day in the life of a friendly neighborhood café,” Stropes said. “It’s filled with quirky, lovable regular customers. It’s really meant to be a good-time comedy that people can just enjoy.”
Stropes said the show was chosen in part because it fits the intimate nature of Stage Nine Theatre, which seats fewer than 100 patrons and favors productions with smaller casts and limited scene changes.
“We needed a light comedy, and this one checked all the boxes,” she said. “It has the right number of characters, it’s charming, and it really works in a small venue.”
The cast features eight actors portraying an eclectic group of café regulars, including a waitress who anchors the story, a horror movie writer hoping to break through, a bride anxiously waiting for her missing fiancé, a man considering life as a monk, and an older patron whose visit sparks an unexpected spiritual experience.
Rehearsals began in December following auditions, with Stropes estimating the cast logged more than 30 rehearsals before opening weekend. She said the production came together fully by late January as the ensemble found its rhythm.
Stage 9’s small setting, Stropes said, creates a close connection between performers and the audience.
“It’s a very intimate auditorium,” she said. “You can really feel the energy between the actors and the audience. It’s a completely different experience than a large theater.”
Performances are scheduled for Feb. 13 through Feb. 16. Thursday through Saturday performances are at 7:30 p.m., with a Sunday’s matinee at 2 p.m. Tickets are available online and at the door.