The Pall of Medusa: A new Elizabethan Tragedy. Fearing a sea invasion from Ephesus, the royals of Corinth seek Medusa, an Aeolian sea witch, asking her to summon up a storm to sink the enemy fleet. But when her price proves too high for convenience, and the common folk begin to think foreigners might not be so bad, the King and Queen decide to renegotiate their relationship with her.
The Pall of Medusa received a staged reading with Greenhouse Theater as part of their “Breaking Ground” theater fest in February, 2019.
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Five Robots Working That Hustle: (short play) Five robots meet to discuss productivity and play petty status games. As time goes on, complications develop in their relationships, their rules of order, and their software.
Five Robots Working That Hustle received its premier with Saint Sebastian Players’ Ten-Minute play festival, June 2018.
Five Robots Working That Hustle received its sophomore production as part of Otherworld Theatre’s fourth annual PARAGON play festival, November 2018.
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Werewolf: (One-act play) Bodkin, Vraimont, and Shelley are concerned about the growing number of werewolf attacks in America, but their daily lives continuously distract them from doing anything about it. Bodkin is still looking for a job, Shelley feels imprisoned by the monotony of the rat race, and Vraimont is spiraling, unnoticed. Sadly, everyone else in the city seems equally distracted. How long will it take, how bad will it get, before any individual decides to do something? And by then, will it matter?
[Download a Sample Here]
Werewolf is scheduled to receive its first reading with Unheard Of Company’s Summer Reading Series, August 2019.
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The Wayward War: A new Elizabethan History. A prequel to The Wayward Women, The Wayward War tells the story of Penti Celia’s ascension as Duchess of Amosa. Celia’s mother, Penti Marria, reveals before her death that her bastard daughter Nolia has an equal right to the throne of Amosa. Suddenly torn apart by differing ideals, the sisters cannot rule together, nor will either submit to the other’s reign. Allies are set against each other, and friends are forced to watch friends die in a match of freedom against order.
The Wayward War is scheduled to premier with Odd’s Bodkins in early 2020.
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The Pretension of Richard IV, Part 1: A new Elizabethan History. After Henry VII had ousted Richard III, maligning his memory for centuries to come, he settled confidently into his seat of power. It was not long, however, before a new challenger to the throne appeared. Claiming to be the surviving youngest of the Princes in the Tower, a man calling himself Richard IV emerged and began securing alliances around Europe. Margaret of Burgundy, one of the few remnants of the line of York, used the prince to shore up support for the White Rose, sewing discord and uncertainty all over. With unclear information moving swiftly though, it is uncertain who is supporting whom, who has the better claim, or even who this Richard IV really is. Drawing strong inspiration from Richard II, Henry IV part 1, and Henry VI part 2, The Pretension of Richard IV challenges us to commit despite uncertainty, as certainty is never promised.
[Download a Sample]
The Pretension of Richard IV, Part II: A new Elizabethan History. Richard regroups and strikes at London from the west, gathering Jane’s Corkish pirates and the simple villagers of Cornwall to march for his cause. He is thoroughly outmatched by the forces of Henry VII, however, and it isn’t long before the King has him cornered. But Henry doesn’t just want to defeat this supposed pretender: he wants to utterly humiliate him and take from him everything he holds dear.
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The Passion of Boudicca: Queen Boudicca wished to maintain rule over the Iceni (who lived roughly in the Suffolk region) after the death of her husband, King Prasutagus. The Romans felt they were now the rightful owners of the region, and supported this argument by sacking her town, scourging her, and sexually assaulting her daughters. Boudicca countered this point by gathering the local tribes and completely wrecking the Roman army for several years. Taking its inspiration chiefly from Coriolanus and As You Like It (with a tiny sprinkling of King Lear and Henry VI, and particles of others), The Passion of Boudicca pits Pride against Love, Law against Integrity, and Nature against Individuality.
[Download a Sample]
The Passion of Boudicca received its world premier with We Three in September, 2017.
The Passion of Boudicca is scheduled to be remounted with We Three in August, 2020.
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Butcher Boggle: A brief allegory about moral relativism. Boggle, a butcher’s assistant left to mind the shop, does not know how to react to his caste system’s revolution, nor the resulting counterrevolution, but soon learns that the one thing zealots hate more than their enemies is someone who refuses to pick a side.
Butcher Boggle debuted as part of Otherworld Theatre’s 2nd Annual PARAGON Play festival at The Public House Theatre, October, 2016.
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The Wayward Women (or: Nothing to Do): A new Elizabethan Comedy. Cordelius, a banished lover, and his bondman Julian wash up on a strange land, where women rule and men are the gentler sex. Duchess Penti Celia welcomes them to the Festival of the New Moon, but the celebrations are marred by the hilarious dueling (physical, verbal, and psychological) of the wastrel knights Dame Anu (the virtuous) and Dame Grendela (the flatulent).
[Download a Sample]
The Wayward Women received its debut performance with We Three in Chicago, IL, 2016.
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A scene from The Wayward Women appeared on Poetry Talk September 13, 2016, in Chicago, IL.
The Wayward Women was remounted in rep with The Passion of Boudicca with We Three in September, 2017.
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The Wayward Women received its Milwaukee Debut with TheaterRED July, 2017.
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Countess Bathory: A Elizabethan Tragedy. Inspired by Shakespeare’s Richard III and Richard II, Countess Bathory takes all of the exaggerated rumors and legends as fact, depicting Elizabeth has a mad tyrant, fighting desperately to control her passions.
[Download a Sample]
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Countess Bathory received its debut performance with We Three in Chicago, IL, 2016
Countess Bathory received a staged reading with The Unrehearsed Shakespeare Company in Chicago, IL, 2014.
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Steampunk Christmas Carol 2014
Steampunk Christmas Carol 2015
A Steampunk Christmas Carol: Tinker Tim, Barb Ratchet, and Mad Madam Fizzlewig are just a few of the Tesla-inspired alterations to this retelling of the Dickens classic. Others include a steam-powered narrator, a swash-buckling Ghost of Christmas Present, and a brief homage to Frankenstein.
[Download a Sample]
A Steampunk Christmas Carol received its debut performance with EDGE Theatre in Chicago, IL, 2014. EDGE remounted the show in 2015, 2016, and 2017.
A Steampunk Christmas Carol received its international debut in 2018 with the Nelson Repertory Theater in Nelson, New Zealand.
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Almost Got Him Sherlock, October 2014
Almost Got Him Sherlock: A 90-minute adaptation, commissioned by EDGE Community Theatre, Chicago. When five of Holmes’ fiercest adversaries come together, they decide on the ultimate wager: who has the best Almost-got-him Sherlock story?
[Download a Sample]
Almost Got Him Sherlock received its debut performance with EDGE Theatre in Chicago, IL, 2014.
Almost Got Him Sherlock received its sophomore performance (as “Sherlock Holmes: Almost Got Him“) at the Devonshire Playhouse in Skokie, IL, 2017.
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A Thousand Times Goodnight: An Elizabethan-style Comedy based on 1001 Arabian Nights. The play follows Scheherazade, a Persian maiden (one of few left) who volunteers to wed the bloodthirsty Sultan (a tyrant with a broken heart), in the hopes of remolding him to a better king. Featuring plays-within-the-play (Aladdin, Ali Baba, and Sinbad), A Thousand Times Goodnight draws its inspiration chiefly from Taming of the Shrew and A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
[Download a Sample]
A Thousand Times Goodnight received its debut performance with TheaterRED in Milwaukee, WI, 2013.
A Thousand Times Goodnight was produced in Chicago by the Unrehearsed Shakespeare Company in Chicago, IL, 2015
A Thousand Times Goodnight received a staged reading with the Unrehearsed Shakespeare Company in Chicago, IL, 2013.
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King Saul Part I: An Elizabethan-style History play, The First Part of King Saul follows the biblical monarch from his ascension through war, to his fall into madness, and his ambivalent relationship with the legendary giant-slayer, David.
[Download a Sample]
King Saul Part I received a staged reading with the Unrehearsed Shakespeare Company in Chicago, IL, 2013.
King Saul Part II: An Elizabethan-style History play, The Second Part of King Saul follows the biblical monarch in his march toward death, as well as the power struggles that follow his inevitable fall.
[Download a Sample]
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O Cult: (ten-minute play) A cult’s middle-manager gently disciplines a polite though problematic recruit.
O Cult was first staged as part of the Bring Your Own Play festival at Western Illinois University, 2013. It was premiered in Chicago by Blunt Objects Theatre, 2014.
Private Police: (ten-minute play) A stolen purse results in an unusual arrest.
Private Police was first staged as part of the Bring Your Own Play festival at Western Illinois University, 2013.
Drugged: (ten-minute play) Two old men lament the loss of better times. Inspired by a real e-mail-forward.
Drugged was first staged as part of the Bring Your Own Play festival at Western Illinois University, 2011.
World’s First: (ten-minute play) In an amorphous, timeless cave, three companions live in fear of the unknown outside. World’s First was written in collaboration with Drew Hampton.
World’s First was first staged as part of the Bring Your Own Play festival at Western Illinois University, 2011.
The Fetucidal Fiend: (twenty-minute play) In the wine cellar of a wedding, a pair of one-time paramours deal with the aftermath of their previous tryst.
The Fetucidal Fiend was first staged as part of the Bring Your Own Play festival at Western Illinois University, 2010.
Street Connection: (ten-minute play) An old woman tries to purchase “one marijuana” from a teenaged dealer, but communication quickly becomes a problem.
Street Connection was first staged as part of the Bring Your Own Play festival at Western Illinois University, 2009.
’til Death Again: (ten-minute play) A dream couple are about to wed, when an adorable loser from the bride’s past crashes up the party.
’til Death Again was first staged as part of the Bring Your Own Play festival at Western Illinois University, 2009.
On Either Side Of Him: A Stoppard-type treatment of the two thieves that were crucified with Jesus, Ari and Zed wake up in a swiftly shifting desert dreamscape, confronted with philosophical and possible fake memories as they slowly approach their deaths. [This play is out of print]
On Either Side of Him received its debut performance as part of Black Hills State University’s season in 2007.
Chimera: (one-act play) Irene, an American, is visiting her old college friends in Scandinavia. A cliche romantic comedy is set to play out, until Irene falls off the stage. She spends the rest of the time trying to convince her friends that they are in a play.
Chimera was first staged as part of the Black Hills Arts Festival with Black Hills State University, 2006.
Chimaera: (one-act play) The “director’s cut” of Chimera, this version features a brief ‘intermission’ discussion between Irene and the laconic Alvar.
The Suspicious Slaying of Santa, or Mister Kringle Says Goodnight: A classic who-dun-it featuring Kringle as an abusive lounge singer, Rudolph as an edgy stage manager, and Frosty as a drunken handyman, to name a few. [This play is out of print]
The Suspicious Slaying of Santa received its debut performance at the Wild West Winners Casino in Deadwood, SD, 2005.
Jaceo: An early attempt at verse, Jaceo follows a wealthy merchant’s son and the would-be inheritors who plot against him. [This play is out of print]
Feeding the Ducks: (ten-minute play) A pair of socially disconnected children feed the ducks, waiting for their parents and reflecting on their own upbringing. [This play is out of print]
CURRENTLY WRITING
Cartimandua, the Queen who Knelt: Whilst the legendary Boudicca was rebelling, Cartimandua was playing the game, keeping the Romans in check through politics. Her centrism does not inspire love, however, and both commoners and nobles seek to dethrone her. Chief among her detractors is her own husband Venutius, who spies opportunity in unrest. For the most powerful queen in ancient Britain, the greatest foe is not the evil empire encroaching, but the revolutionaries within.
Tokens Only: A small but successful new theater company is ready to make a statement with their upcoming production of Othello. Unfortunately, their title actor has had to drop, leaving the ambitious Iago and the weirdly unenthusiastic director to scramble for a replacement.
Virtuous Terror: A Brechtish play about the Terror, focusing on the most controversial figure in French history.
The Mouse That Slew the Robin Hood: Molly the Mouse is on the run from the misguided cronies of both Robin Hood and the Sheriff of Nottingham after slaying the legendary hero – accidentally.
TankerBell: A mashup that pits freedom and community against one another, asking how to make good out of evil (and vice versa).
Julian & Maria – A new Elizabethan Romance. Julian, a friar nearing middle age, and Maria, a recently re-married widow, find themselves drawn to each other. When each abandons their institutions to be secretly wed, they soon discover that much of what drew them together was an illusion. Too mature for passionate parting, their attempts for a fiery end burn out, and they are left with penurious lives, gotten in exchange for nothing.
The True Promethean Fire: A Christmas-Carol-Frankenstein Mashup, With A Little Shakespeare Thrown In For Good Measure: The title says it all.
Thirteenth Night – The Steward Revenged: Fakespeare Fan-Fic.
Much Ashrew About Taming: Fakespeare Fan-Fic.
How Shylock Got His Groove Back: Fakespeare Fan-Fic.