In his new play, UT Dallas drama professor Fred Curchack interacts with videos of his wife, his mother, his daughter and his granddaughter on his quest to find the secret of life.

Grandpa’s Home Videos, a solo piece that Curchack also wrote, premiered last month in  Petaluma, Calif., and will be  playing in Dallas for three weeks at the Bath House Cultural Center.

Curchack describes the semi-autobiographical Grandpa’s Home Videos as “a contemplation of the nature of ‘self’ and how individual identity develops, evolves and ultimately falls away. It uses video, songs and comedy to confront the fundamental illusion that is the source of so much confusion in our lives.” 

“I interact with videos of my first grandchild, her mother Alia, and my 89-year-old mother, Norma,” Curchack continues. “My wife/artistic collaborator, Laura Jorgensen, plays three roles – herself, my mother and the voice of the baby, who tries to get Grandpa Fred to realize the unreality of all of his beliefs.”

The drama is the latest in a long series of original theatre pieces – 50 ensemble works and 27 solos works – that Curchack has created in his career on the stage.  His performances have been featured at dozens of international theater festivals, and in 2010, he received a special award from the Dallas-Fort Worth Theater Critics Forum for being a “Renaissance theater artist.” 

“Grandpa’s Home Videos” runs March 11-26, on Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. at the Bath House, 521 E. Lawther Dr. Tickets are $15. For reservations, call 972-740-2769.