Back to the Drawing Board

Can submitting cartoons to the New Yorker magazine result in true love or a dream career? Two cartoonists are about to find out in this middle-aged romantic comedy complete with projected cartoons for a unique theatre experience.

All Nighter

It’s finals week at a small liberal arts college in rural Pennsylvania. A tight-knit group of roommates pull one last all-nighter to complete their final assignments. Holed up in an old ballroom, the hours pass, the pressure mounts, and the truths that have always bound this group together are put to the test. What will be left when the sun rises?

The Flatlanders

After fourteen years of living together, Ronnie and Michael decide to get married at an inn in the Pocono Mountains. They are forced to break into a stranger’s cabin when their car slides off the road in a blizzard. With no phone, internet, or television they are forced to do something they haven’t done in years: actually talk to each other. During the course of the evening they begin to question whether or not to actually go through with the wedding.

The Magnolia Ballet

Z, a gay teenager, and his father live together in a crumbling old house in rural Georgia. When Z discovers a trove of mysterious love letters among his late grandfather’s belongings, he goes on a journey of self discovery that just may have the power to wake the dead. THE MAGNOLIA BALLET is a Southern Gothic fable about a Queer Black boy, his father, and the ghosts that live in the walls of their old family home.

At the Wake of a Dead Drag Queen

Courtney Berringers would like to welcome you to her wake! But—make no mistake—this ain’t your grandma’s funeral. AT THE WAKE OF A DEAD DRAG QUEEN is an imaginative one-act play that uses magical realism, mythology, drama, and drag to tell the story of a pair of drag queens living (and dying) in rural Georgia in 2004. From African Gods and Goddesses to Trina and Whitney Houston, AT THE WAKE OF A DEAD DRAG QUEEN explores identity, illness, and the celebration of Black, queer life in the rural south. Come party at the wake. Bring your own heels!

Wild Heart

An inspiring score of powerful pop hits drives this witty, fast-paced retelling of the iconic story of Joan of Arc, a 17-year-old girl who changed the world. In this pop-rock adaptation, Joan is a warrior for everyone. From her small town to the intricacies of French court to the fields of battle, she led the charge to end a war that started before she was born and overthrow the greatest military power in the world—THAT is punk rock! She talked to angels, stood up to princes, argued with canon lawyers, and held her own in the face of public execution by fire. She led an army with no experience because she was absolutely convinced that if she didn’t save the world, nobody would. Joan is a hero perfect for anyone who has been born into a system that seems broken beyond repair, dares to imagine a better future, and works hard to bring that future into existence.

Full of defiant, chart-topping anthems by P!nk, Kelly Clarkson, Andra Day, Weezer, Melissa Etheridge, and more, WILD HEART affords powerful leading male and female roles and a richly developed ensemble full of saints, townspeople, followers, and detractors. In this revolutionary new musical by acclaimed writer Chelsea Marcantel, join Joan as she defies the odds, demands the respect of her nation’s leaders, and fights imperviously for freedom.

Creditors

CREDITORS is the suspenseful tale of two men who meet at a seaside resort in Sweden—a sculptor and a mysterious stranger—only to discover that they have something unexpected in common; a woman. In Wright’s adaptation of Strindberg’s forgotten masterwork, all three characters engage in a deadly game of wits, opening old wounds and inflicting fresh ones. Written in 1888, the play still bears its ferocious sting, and is reminiscent of the most contemporary erotic thrillers with its blend of toxic desire and wicked intent.

Pen Pals

PEN PALS is an epistolary play that tells the story of the extraordinary friendship between two ordinary women. Bernie, from Newark, New Jersey, starts writing to Mags, who lives in Sheffield, England, when she’s 14-years-old and their correspondence continues for the next five decades.

The play is essentially an extended flashback where the women read the letters they sent to each other over the past 50 years. Without the aid of costumes, make-up, or wigs, the actors age before the audience’s eyes as they tell the stories of their lives.

Jane Austen in 39+ Minutes

An abridged version of James’s JANE AUSTEN IN 89 MINUTES with optional scenes to extend its length.

In this uproarious, clever, engaging comedy, narrator Jane Austen and a madcap cast of ladies and gents deliver condensed versions of all six of Jane Austen’s beloved novels at a lightning pace, including modern day zingers about Austen’s fame—and fandom. Jane Austen enthusiasts will be delighted, although no knowledge of her work is required to enjoy the play, which basks in the glory of Austen’s major works, while also poking fun at their pitfalls—a hilarious and loving homage to the celebrated English writer whose insightful wit and romantic stories are treasured across the world today.

The Hummingbirds

Been unemployed too long? Welcome to a very special office of the Unemployment Bureau! Here you will work with two very special unemployment counselors to place you into a job today. It may not be a job you are qualified to do, or a job that’s safe for anyone to do, but you will have to do it. Because if you can walk, you can work!

The play also concerns domestic terrorism, strippers, and weaponized hummingbirds.