There is a fine line between genius and madness. Intense passion for a project displayed by one can bring scorn from others who don’t contain the same enthusiasm for the craft. The hours spent tinkering with the object of their obsession can often be viewed as wasted time by the outside world. In The Bargain and the Butterfly, Los Angeles-based Ghost Road Company (under the direction of Katharine Noon) navigates the intersection of sanity and insanity in a new play based on Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story The Artist of the Beautiful. Will the object of watchmaker Annie’s obsession result in praise from those who’ve watched her constant tinkering? Or will Annie be destined to spend the rest of her days high on Zoloft? Find out at South Coast Repertory Theater’s showing of The Bargain and the Butterfly this week only.
Thu., June 12, 7 p.m.; Fri., June 13, 8 p.m.; Sat., June 14, 3 & 8 p.m.; Sun., June 15, 3 p.m., 2014
