The raw, savage mythology of the American West will be dramatized in Sam Shepard’s “A Lie of the Mind,” playing at Southwestern  Oregon Community College.

The play opens Friday and continues through March 8. Curtain time is 7 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, with a 3 p.m.  matinee on Sunday, March 2. General admission is $8; seniors $6, with complimentary admission to students. For reservations, those interested can call 888-7469.

The play is the hallucinogenic story of two rural families as the marriage that joins them is torn apart by a series of violent, yet comically mistimed events. It is a tale punctuated throughout by errant behavior: deep aphasia, dementia, domestic abuse and gunplay. Like many of Shepard’s works, the characters in “A Lie of the Mind” also function as American allegories: cowboys, Hollywood, war heroes, patriotism and the hunter-gatherer mentality are all examined with Shepard’s peculiar blend of humor and irony.  Ultimately the play affirms — if rather perversely — the power of family in shaping lives, according to a press release.

The 1986 production, directed by the playwright, won the New York Drama Critics Circle Award, the Outer Critics Circle Award and the Drama Desk Award.  The New York Times praised the production as “... the unmistakable expression of a major writer nearing the height of his powers.”

The Southwestern production features Nathan Andreasen, Alecia Gatlin, Levi Goodman, Amy Katrina, Sean Kelly, Mimi Maddess, Annie McAleer and Robert Marchant. It is directed and designed by Robert Clingan, whose previous work includes “Proof,” “Nickel and Dimed,” “Hamlet” and “Waiting for Godot.” For more information, those interested can call 888-1578 or visit http://www.socc.edu/dept/theatre.

“A Life of the Mind” contains imagery and language that may be offensive and is not suitable for children.