At USC, many students can think of that one person they know who drinks just a little too much. Maybe this person still functions during the day, but when the sun goes down and those Five Points bar lights come on, they become almost a totally different person.
Some of these students may ditch the bottle for bigger responsibilities such as a job or a family, but some people may end up as alcoholics.
Nowadays, we have treatment facilities and specialized therapy to help people recover from alcoholism and other drug addictions. However, just 100 years ago, nothing of the sort existed. Doctors didn’t even believe alcoholism was a disease.
So on Friday, May 29, Trustus opened their Side Door Theatre to honor this almost 100 year-old discovery with the play Bill W. and Dr. Bob. This production tells the story of the partnership that led to the development of the recovery program Alcoholics Anonymous.
Clearly, the play is a dramatization of real life sequence of events. During the roaring '20s, two alcoholics come together to find stability and sobriety. After having immense success with staying sober, they decide to develop a program to help other hopeless alcoholics.
Bill W. is a stockbroker who finds highs through fame, money and, of course, alcohol. However, after the stock market crashed in 1929, he loses everything and become a low-life drunk. Dr. Bob, a surgeon, husband and father by day, drunk by night, has been sneaking drinks and sedatives behind everyone's backs for the past 30 years.
After seeking help through doctors, hospitals and the Oxford group evangelical movement, Bill and Bob meet in a manner that could only be brought on by fate.
Bob’s job search falls through and he finds himself needing a drink, but he instead seeks out help from another alcoholic. The two men form a close relationship through relapse, sorrow and successes, which helps them both stay sober. Ecstatic about their sobriety, they go out into the world to find other alcoholics who could benefit from their new program.
Laced with timely references and a jazz music, the play tells a true American success story. Alcoholics Anonymous has saved thousands of lives and a play honoring the program’s discovery is simply a reminder of the disease of alcoholism and the many resources we have today to help people in their path for recovery.
The play will be at the Side Door Theatre until June 13. For showtimes, prices and upcoming shows visit http://www.trustus.org/show.php?show_id=80.