Stoneham Theatre presents Buddy Cop 2, written by The Debate Society, in association with the Ontological Theater; directed by Weylin Symes. Performances run October 20-November 6: Thurs. (7:30 pm), Fri. (8 pm), Sat. (3 pm & 8 pm), Sun. (2 pm). Tickets: $44-$48 regular admission; senior discounts apply; all student tickets $20. Student/senior discount matinees available. [Special pay-what-you-can performances every Thursday of the run.] Stoneham Theatre, 395 Main Street, Stoneham. Wheelchair accessible. For advance tickets and information, visit or call the Box Office at 781-279-2200 (hours Tues.-Sat., 1-6pm) or log onto www.stonehamtheatre.org.

Brooklyn-based The Debate Society - otherwise known as Hannah Bos, Paul Thureen, and Oliver Butler - had their hands full when in the Spring of 2010, their new Buddy Cop 2 production, developed in collaboration with the Ontological Theater, opened to rave reviews. With lines waiting to get in, one can only wonder: why would New York City slickers crave to catch a play about some small town police officers making do in Shandon, Indiana?

Midwest cops work up a big sweat playing on-the-job racquetball while coordinating special Christmas arrangements for a local dying girl's final wish. What would prompt citified "devised theatre" practitioners to zero in on such a hokey premise?

For one thing, Shandon, Indiana is definitely not Mayberry. Set in a recreation center turned police station (it's been like that for a few years!), Buddy Cop 2 keeps the audience bouncing around a plot that is in a perpetual state of unease, with quirky twists and turns that end up leaving everyone hanging. There's mystery, flirtation, guffaws, compassion, Christmas spilling over into the new year, and a dark cloud looming overhead, that very much sounds like a helicopter. And sweat, lots of sweat.

In true collaborative fashion, The Debate Society will be on hand in Stoneham during the first week of production. When asked how Buddy Cop 2 came to be born and to fascinate audiences, Paul Thureen replies that "Oliver [Butler] had wanted to do an athletic racquetball play, Hannah [Bos] had wanted to do an 80's cop play and I had wanted to do a super sad Christmas play. For a long time we thought those would be three different plays." Oliver Butler then chimes in: "With us, it's not like everything has to be equal parts or that this was some kind of democratic compromise . . . it just hit us all that THIS was the way these ideas needed to come together." "...and make a baby," Hannah Bos adds.

Stoneham Theatre's Producing Artistic Director Weylin Symes directs the New England premiere of this madcap piece, which features Melissa Baroni (as Officer Darlene Novak) and Paul Richard Yarborough (as Officer Terry Olsen) who occupy this racquetball court-ish police station over 90% of the time. Jerry Bisantz (as Officer Don McMurchie) and Emily Sheeran (who doubles as the dying Skylar and Brandi, the Governor's daughter) round out the cast. The Debate Society is excited about making the trek to spend a week in Massachusetts, since Stoneham Theatre is only the second professional U.S. company outside of New York City to dare tackle their off-kilter play.