By Dawnell Smith
Sarah MacMillan: in Out North's "Sweet." Photo: Out North.Forgive me, I’m out of practice. But wow.

Check out the full house, the all-female theater ensemble, the dual lines and lives within the script; watch how everyone in the audience rises to their feet when the room goes black for the last time.

Seeing Out North this crowded brings tears to a theater hag's eyes, even more so because of the good writing and acting. The latest play by Schatzie Schaefers is far from perfect, but "Sweet" deftly teeters between the real and surreal, the damned and the saved.

The play centers on a drug dealer named Jackie (Sarah MacMillan) who wants to make a buck and salvage her conscience at the same time, even claiming to make the purest, safest stuff on the market as a "designer drug manufacturer" with a slew of messed up friends.

It's not difficult to see who's fooling who; "Sweet" isn't so much about discovery as acceptance.

On Saturday night, MacMillan nailed the part of the hard luck dealer with a heart of gold, deliciously channeling Tim Curry's Dr. Frank-N-Furter during the dream sequences. Her charisma filled the stage without smothering it.

The rest of the cast includes Anchorage regulars Jill Yarbrough (Thurzo/Pam) and Kristina Church (Fixco/Karla) along with newcomers Shannon Page (Bucket Girl/Anita), Sheila Sweet Major (Dio) and Judy Eastwood (Seth). Madeline Klever (Virgin/Miller) also makes her Out North debut in the play.

Real-life hair stylist Jamie Pauley even stole a few scenes as a "not quite clean" former junkie name Betsy who wants to be a beautician. Her spot-on comic timing helped comb out the tangles, for sure.

Both the set and lighting allowed for shifts in time and place without slowing the pace and the costumes did much the same.

Though sluggish here and there, "Sweet" ably tackles the complexity of addiction, recovery, violence and friendship. The characters come across as rounded rather than symbolic, even as the symbolism of words and gestures builds.

But the outlandish material stays grounded to the core story thanks to director Tami Lubitsh, who runs a drama therapy project called Off the Rocks, An Akeela program for women in recovery.

Schaefers wrote the play for the group after spending about a year participating with them, making her script a creative act between those who shared their stories and those who re-envisioned them.

"Sweet" continues at 4 p.m. Sunday, February 8, and again at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 4 p.m. on Sunday, February 13 to 15, at Out North on 3800 DeBarr Road. Tickets cost $13 online and $15 at the door (www.outnorth.org), but keep in mind that the show sold out the first two nights.