SOUTH PORTLAND — The New England premiere of “Deer” by Aaron Mark will be presented Jan. 10-27, at Mad Horse Theatre Co., 24 Mosher St.

Ken and Cynthia have been married for 30 years. Ken and Cynthia drive to their vacation home for the weekend. Ken and Cynthia hit a deer. Ken seriously just wants to spend the weekend alone with his wife, but Cynthia will not abandon their bloody new pet. As the deer begins to take over their lives, secrets surface, sanity slips and some things may be more alive than they seem.

“Deer” is directed by company member Stacey Koloski, who describes the play this way: “Aaron Mark’s ‘Deer’ has a deceptively simple and mundane premise, but starts with a bang and spirals into myriad unexpected directions — some hilarious, some terrifying. Anyone in a relationship, anyone who has trouble saying no, anyone who has a breaking point (and let’s face it — everyone does) may likely find something uncomfortably familiar in the characters of Cynthia and Ken. ‘Deer’ is equal parts funny, shocking, and relatable — which I think is a good mix of magic for any Mad Horse production.”

The cast includes company member Christine Louise Marshall and guest artist David Heath. The deer is created by Maine artist Bridget McAlonan. The production crew includes: Jennifer Halm-Perazone, stage manager; Janice Gardner, production manager; Jake Cote, sound design; Corey Anderson, lighting design; Emily Dixon,set design; Anna Halloran, costume design; Hollye Seddon, props; and Sophie Kaplan, assistant stage manager.

Playwright Aaron Mark is writer/director of the independent feature films “Random Unrelated Projects” and “Do Not Duplicate.” He wrote “Deer” after a friend returning to New York from a weekend away at her house in the Poconos hit a deer.

“Mark takes us down a number of bizarre and grotesque paths, finding humor in possibilities that are alarming and marvelously distasteful. Strangely enough, the more we play along with this creepy joyride, the more resonant and valid it feels…Deer channels sinister wisdom, the kind of frustration that fuels giddy, mind-bending humor.” — Sharp critic: Christopher Soden

Performance times are at 7:30 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, and at 2 p.m. Sundays. There will be an opening night reception immediately following the Friday, Jan. 11, performance. Everyone is invited to stay after the show, enjoy light snacks and mingle with the cast, crew and fellow theater lovers.

A talkback is scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 20, immediately following the matinee. This is an opportunity to discuss the play with the director and actors.

Tickets are $23 for adults and $20 for seniors. If you are under 25, tickets are pay-what-you-can for all performances. As always, Mad Horse offers pay-what-you-can performances for all ages during two Thursday performances and one Sunday matinee. Pay-what-you-can dates for “Deer” are Thursday, Jan. 10, Sunday, Jan. 13 and Thursday, Jan. 17. Pay-what-you-can tickets are only available at the door on a first-come, first-serve basis.

Reservations are strongly recommended. For more information or to purchase tickets, go online at www.madhorse.com or call 207-747-4148.