Feldstein Family Law Group thinks inside the box-office

• Family Law

After at least 20 years of collectively learning to “think outside the box,” some Mississauga business owners are pushing that concept even further. The Feldstein Family Law Group is turning that concept inside-out.

Managing partner Andrew Feldstein decided to help promote ,“Divorce Party the Musical,” the new theatrical production currently playing at Mississauga’s Stage West Theatre, as a way of promoting his business. The show opens Sept. 20.

Thinking outside the box is good. But thinking inside the box-office is ever better.

By going to the Feldstein Family Law Group website, getting the discount code, and putting in the code when they buy tickets online here, theatre lovers will be able to get a 10 per cent discount on the show.

When approached by the show’s producers last spring, Feldstein said, “Yes,” after mulling it over for three weeks. Was this a risky move, to sponsor a show that pokes fun at what he does for a living?

“The show depicts both the husband’s and the wife’s point of view in divorce. It doesn’t bash lawyers either,” says Feldstein.

“The show is risqué in parts, but helping to promote it was not risky. For me, risky was passing on the opportunity to promote the show,” he says. The show is intended for adult audiences only, however.

“Fact is, the show was coming to Mississauga and they were going to find a marketing partner. I wanted that to be my firm,” adds Feldstein. The same production is also playing in West Palm Beach and Fort Lauterdale, Florida, this fall.

Divorce is a fact of life. In Canada, the divorce rate is currently at 38 per cent, with “grey divorce,” couples aged 50 to 60 being the fastest-growing divorce segment, around 48 per cent. As people live longer, they are unwilling to spend 20 or 30 years with a person who they feel is not right for them.

“Divorce is a very stressful time because our dreams have been broken. All our client meeting rooms have Kleenex boxes. And it is a mistake to think that only women cry when their relationship falls apart,” says Feldstein.

In “Divorce Party the Musical,” the story focuses on Linda, who is reeling from the fact that her husband left her. With the help of three friends who throw her a party, Linda is then able to move on with the next chapter of her life.

Increasingly, separating couples are improvising their own ‘divorce rituals’ including throwing away wedding rings, lighting candles, beating drums, ceremonial cutting of cords, and dinner and dancing.

“Divorce parties are important rituals that help people move forward with their lives,” says Dr. Amy Botwinick who is a divorce coach and co-creator of the show.

The play makes an important point, says Stephanie Ansky, lawyer at Feldstein Family Law Group in Markham, because the person who decides to leave first has a distinct emotional advantage.

“The person who hasn’t left the marriage first has to deal with both physical loss and emotional loss of their spouse,” explains Ansky. She adds that the stages of divorce are similar to the four stages of dying: anger, bargaining, depression, and finally acceptance.

“Divorce is not a laughing matter, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t laugh when we get a chance, on the way to a new happier life,” says Mary Tersigni, lawyer at Feldstein Family Law Group.

“The stress of both men and women is off the scale during divorce. If we can make them laugh for a few hours, that’s a good thing,” says Shilpa Mehta, lawyer at Feldstein Family Law Group.

“Divorce Party the Musical” runs until Nov. 25 at Stage West.

Shilpa Mehta and Mary Tersigni are lawyers at Feldstein Family Law Group, Mississauga.  They can be reached at smehta@feldsteinfamilylaw.com and mtersigni@feldsteinfamilylaw.com  or (905) 431-2214. Click on www.Separation.ca