To kick off its 25th season, The Garage Theatre will present the world premiere of Tragedy Giftshop by Ryan McClary, directed by Matthew Anderson.

Tragedy Giftshop is set in Townesville, USA, a small community paralyzed by a recent school shooting. As these citizens are busy putting the shattered pieces of their lives back together, a new business comes to Main Street; a franchising gift shop professing to be a balm for the all-too-common American tragedy: the mass shooting. As they grapple with the hard facts – and intersections – of grief and consumerism in modern-day America, the folks of Townesville search for answers, comfort, and even community, at the Tragedy Giftshop.

Director Matthew Anderson brings together a stellar ensemble cast of returning Garage favorites, plus new faces from the Long Beach community including several students from the nearby Renaissance High School for The Arts. This is the fourth play McClary has premiered at The Garage Theatre, and his second time working with director Matthew Anderson. McClary’s past Garage Theatre accomplishments were 2022’s Private Lives of Imaginary Friends, 2015’s Wet Hot American Summer… The Play?, and 2013’s Ravens & Writing Desks co-written with Angela Lopez.

Attendees are cautioned that the performance deals with the topics of gun violence, grief, contains strong language, and is intended for mature audiences only.