Plays Written by Adrienne Dawes
TEEN DAD
AM I WHITE
HAIRY & SHERRI
DENIM DOVES
CASTA
THIS BITCH: ESTA SANGRE QUIERO
END OF THE DAY, EP 1
Synopses:
Teen Dad – (2M, 3F) Abby, a precocious emo-goth teenager, orchestrates a surprise reunion for her mother Tanya and birth father Tom, with the help of her mom’s fiance/healer John. Hoping to provoke long-lasting reconciliation between her parents before her high school graduation, Abby’s plans completely derail when Tom arrives with his new girlfriend Alisha. Can this family confront their past traumas, “deal and heal?”
Am I White – (2M, 3F) When Neo-Nazi terrorist Wesley Connor returns to prison after a failed bomb plot, he is confronted with the two identities that threaten his position within the White Order of Thule most: fatherhood and his mixed-race heritage.
Hairy & Sherri – (2F, 3M) Hairy and Sherri (Sharon) are an “adorkable” interracial couple living in gentrified East Austin. When they very graciously and publicly open their home to Ryshi, a 12-year-old former foster care youth with special needs, Hairy and Sherri are confronted with the ugly realities of their marriage and “good” intentions.
Denim Doves – (9F, 2M, 1 GNC or NB) by Adrienne Dawes (Music by Erik Secrest, Lyrics by Cyndi Williams, created with Salvage Vanguard Theater)
Tucked safely into the woods of what was once Belle, MO, a modest compound is home to five sister wives and their reluctant Husband. While the wives enjoy many freedoms, they have one simple and sacred task: a wife must produce the next heir, or they all risk being cut from the braid. When a new wife mysteriously arrives the night of the Seedling, she disrupts their semi-annual procreation ritual. Will this new wife’s radical ideas, ancient riot grrl songs, and acid wash denim compromise the safety and sanctity of this devout compound?
Casta – (8+) “Casta” is inspired by a series of casta paintings by Miguel Cabrera, a mixed-race painter from Oaxaca. Casta paintings were a unique form of portraiture that grew in popularity over the 18th century in Nueva España that depicted different racial mixtures arranged according to a hierarchy defined by Spanish elites. When a lowly apprentice is commissioned to paint a casta series for a wealthy patron, he tries to conform his work to a set hierarchy but finds the images revolt, illuminating a complex portrait of fluid Latinx identities.
This Bitch: Esta Sangre Quiero – (5M, 6F flexible) by Adrienne Dawes (Music by Eric Johnson, Lyrics by Adrienne Dawes and Lope de Vega (adapted by khattieq) – When Diana, a ruthless and power-hungry Pilates influencer, learns her social media manager Teodoro is hooking up with her makeup artist Madeinusa, it sparks bitter jealousy. Even though it would be social suicide for her to date someone with zero followers, Diana finds herself falling madly in love but if she can’t have Teodoro . . . no one can! “This Bitch: Esta Sangre Quiero” is a big, bawdy, bilingual Gen Z comedy inspired by Lope de Vega’s Golden Age epic “El perro del hortelano.”
End of the Day, Ep 1 – (2M, 2F) Tud, Myleigh, and Lancelot are perhaps the only surviving contestants of a British reality dating show broadcast during a massive extinction event. Isolated from the outside world, they dance between denial and acceptance, searching for love and meaning in a pointless, absurd existence. Inspired by absurdist theatre, Sims 4, and Love Island UK, “End of the Day, Ep 1” is the first stand-alone “episode” (or full-length play) of an eight-play cycle that examines the unique anxieties, uncertainties, and frustrations of trying to find love in the “coronial age.”
Bio:
Adrienne Dawes (she/her/hers) is an award-winning playwright, screenwriter, and teaching artist originally from Austin, TX. Her plays have been developed/ produced by Salvage Vanguard Theater, New Harmony Project, The Fire This Time Festival, Theatre Lab at FAU, Queen City New Play Initiative, Stages Repertory Theatre, Teatro Milagro, National Black Theatre, and English Theatre Berlin, among others. Adrienne received her BA from Sarah Lawrence College and studied sketch & improv at the Second City Training Center in Chicago. Recent honors include: Walter E. Dakin Fellow at the Sewanee Writers’ Conference, Alice Judson Hayes Fellow at Ragdale Foundation, and artist residencies with Colt Coeur, PlySpace, & Crosstown Arts. Adrienne is currently a staff writer on an upcoming Hulu/ABC limited series.
Website: www.adriennedawes.com