Plays by David James Parr
Theater is a living, breathing animal with a pulse, an appetite, a breath all its own. It is where we gather together in the dark to shine a light on what we think we know. Each moment is like a heartbeat: fleeting, urgent and necessary for life.
Eleanor Rigby Is Waiting
7 Strangers. 2 Hours. 1 Chance to Connect.
As Hurricane 'Eleanor' hits Manhattan, the unforgettable quirky, hilarious, & perfectly lonely characters of the acclaimed Off-Broadway romantic comedy-drama Eleanor Rigby Is Waiting by award-winning author David James Parr cross paths and destinies.
This interconnected portrait of love, lust, and longing in our modern times, features a cast of powerhouse actors & a dynamite original soundtrack played by a live DJ.
Slap & Tickle
What happens in the dark doesn’t always stay in the dark.
Slap&Tickle illuminates a generation that came of age in the wake of the AIDS crisis and before the ubiquity of social media, spotlighting the ways queer people found connection in bathhouses, public parks, chat rooms, and—like in the play’s setting—a sex club on the verge of closing in 2010.
That year marked a turning point for the LGBTQ community, with the legalization of gay marriage, the advent of PrEP, and the launch of GRINDR. The political and cultural landscape shifted, and the play captures this extraordinary moment through a mosaic of characters whose stories reflect the hopes, fears, and humor of a community in transition.
Insightfully candid and darkly funny, this innovative play examines how politics, drugs, HIV and social media dramatically changed the landscape for a generation of LGBTQIA+ people in America.
The show, which has been successfully produced all over the U.S., adopted an immersive twist and premiered at The Eagle Club NYC in the Spring of 2023. Please check out the link below for in-depth info and updates on the show.
Pluto Is Listening
How far would you go to escape your past?
Pluto Is Listening is a life-affirming coming-of-age tale shifting through overlapping times and dimensions, and portraying the everlasting power of a friendship between 2 outsiders, non-binary Benjamin McCoy and their best friend Grace Grady, orbiting around the blurred lines of past, present and future.
Along the 20-year trajectory, the story explores themes of gender identity, mental health, and substance abuse - asking the question: how far would you go to escape your past?
This twisty time-tripper’s production at FRIGID New York in the Under St Mark’s Theatre, directed by Sophie Sam, won the 2024 BroadwayWorld Award for Best Production of an Off Off Broadway Play.
Stranger Interludes
Family breaks you. Strangers fix you. Memory saves you.
Stranger Interludes is a contemporary dark comedy about gender inclusivity, drug addiction, and mental health, centering on a much-married would-be stage actress recently diagnosed with early dementia, her three dysfunctional and estranged children, a drifter with a secret past searching for family, and the mysterious young man hired to write the matriarch's memoir.
Stranger Interludes brings a candid and modern perspective to classic themes to create a thrillingly unique theatrical piece. It is currently in development for an off-Broadway run.
Mimi at The 44th Parallel
Are we the authors of our own lives, or are we just playing the parts?
Nothing is quite as it seems at The 44th Parallel Lounge in remote Ontario where young pianist JIMMY DUNCAN goes in search of the father who abandoned him before he was born, despite the protestations of his high-strung fiancée, BITSY, and his rueful, volatile mother, ELIZABETH.
Instead of his father, however, Jimmy discovers MIMI, the quirky, agoraphobic partner of the bar’s bitter, alcoholic owner, J.D.— who may just hold the key to all of their destinies. Mimi at The 44th Parallel is a contemporary romantic comedy tinged with sci-fi about first loves, second chances and third acts in life.
Top 10 Finalist at the 2019 Austin Film Festival Playwriting Competition!
Later with Vivi Stone
You never know what life has in store for you. Or how much it will cost.
In the summer of 1987, the Reagans rule the White House, Dynasty rules the airwaves, and an unlikely bond forms between lonely jewelry salesman Mark Cross and legendary sitcom star Vivi Stone, both caught at a crossroads in their lives.
Mark has just turned 30, moved to Manhattan and trying to reinvent himself after a life-changing diagnosis; Vivi has just been cancelled after a very public on-air breakdown following the suicide of her only daughter and is looking for resolution and redemption.
Later with Vivi Stone is a story about courage and humor in the face of tragedy.
Albee Damned
It’s all fun and games until someone gets curt.
In the comedic drama Albee Damned, a quartet of Game Night variations play out across four different decades, following a central couple — introverted extrovert Lloyd and extroverted introvert Liz — as they negotiate issues of gender fluidity, marital monogamy, and familial propriety with a changing roster of friends, competitors and partners.
In 1977 at the height of the sexual revolution, a Game Night infused with marijuana and ludes causes temptations to shift for four twentysomething friends (LLOYD, LIZ, BREE and RANDLE) indulging in a round of Twister that gets increasingly twisted in the so-called sexual revolution.
In 1985 knee-deep in yuppie Reagonomics, a jangly symphony of sonorous sound and a loose California Kingsnake punctuate a tense game of Trivial Pursuit that becomes less trivial and more substantial when LLOYD and LIZ snort significant substances on their 7th year wedding anniversary and blow off more than steam with BOB and JENNY, newfound friends tentatively negotiating their own relationship.
In 1999 on the uncertain cusp of Y2K, a New Year’s Eve Game Night fueled by resentments, secrets and a bottle of Ouzo goes horribly awry when LLOYD and LIZ engage in a cutthroat game of Charades with their old friend BOB and his new, younger partner GINNY, who bears a striking resemblance to a past love and a new beginning.