Koalas

"You don't play soldier. You become one."

production photo

SYNOPSIS

GENRE: Tragi-Comedy

LENGTH: Full-Length

The only thing more territorial than the escaped koala living in Ray Slinger’s backyard is Ray himself. His sense of protectionism goes into overdrive when Nate (Natalie), his transgender son, pops in for a stay and, John, his unemployed brother, shows up with a suitcase full of woe. When John discovers that Ray is about to lose his visitation rights, he teams up with Ray’s neighbor, Gabby, and goes about trying to convince Nate that Ray is worthy of his time. Their plan backfires when the duo stumbles onto something that hits Ray a little too close to his heart. Can this twentieth-century man survive the dawning of the twenty-first? Koalas is a full-length tragi-comic play that explores the changing definition of what it means to be a man. It has a unit set and a cast of 5 including one Andrew Lloyd Webber-loving koala.

TOTAL CAST: 5

Male: 3 Female: 1 Gender-Neutral: 1

SPECIAL CASTING NEEDS:

Requires a child actor, any gender, capable of playing a 10 year-old

HONORS

  • O'Neill National Playwrights Conference - Finalist
  • Princess Grace Playwriting Fellowship - Finalist
  • Playwrights First Award - Top Five Plays
  • Goodman Theatre's Playwrights Unit - Finalist

DEVELOPMENT HISTORY

  • 16th Street Theater - World Premiere
  • Palm Beach Dramaworks - Workshop
  • The Blank Theatre - Workshop
  • Chicago Dramatists - Reading
  • Seven Devils Playwrights Foundry - Workshop
  • Portland Stage Company - Workshop
  • Something Marvelous - Workshop