PEGASUS' 'REEFER MADNESS' HAS A NEW SUBPLOT

Shh! Don't tell Nancy Reagan, but Pegasus Theatre is doing a play that
makes fun of anti-drug campaigns. Playwright Sean Abley has adapted to
the stage Reefer Madness, the 1930s movie advertising the dangers of
marijuana, later a hippie favorite for its inadvertent laughs.

Although the spotlight on the War on Drugs may have dimmed a bit since
Mrs. Reagan left the White House, there's still the possibility that
some people may find the show offensive.

"Is it a risky show?" asks Pegasus artistic director Kurt Kleinmann.
"Someone once told me that every show we do is risky. Since we do
comedy, people might not notice, but there's almost always something
going on in the way of a message."

Mr. Kleinmann says that to him Reefer Madness is not so much pro-drugs
as anti-extremist. It portrays young people going forever astray
because of one puff on a marijuana cigarette.

"Sometimes things aren't quite as evil as they are made out to be -
marijuana has medicinal uses, for instance. Sometimes, when people go
to extremes, the truth gets buried," he says.

Mr. Abley hasn't simply lifted his dialogue from the film. He's added
a new subplot to keep those who know the movie entertained.

Mr. Kleinmann says he's not worried about the possibility of Pegasus
getting labeled the head shop of Dallas theaters.

'We've been labeled other things," he says. "As long as people come
see it, we're here next month to present something else."

Checked-by: "Rich O'Grady"