Djarum Vanilla

by Cary Simowitz

Alliance/Kendeda Finalist; Developed at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
November 2014. Missouri. The Darren Wilson verdict is imminent. Protests are becoming a daily part of life in Ferguson. The nascent Black Lives Matter movement is gaining national traction as racial tension in Missouri reaches a boiling point. To make matters worse, rumors perpetuated by the media are spreading about the...

Alliance/Kendeda Finalist; Developed at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
November 2014. Missouri. The Darren Wilson verdict is imminent. Protests are becoming a daily part of life in Ferguson. The nascent Black Lives Matter movement is gaining national traction as racial tension in Missouri reaches a boiling point. To make matters worse, rumors perpetuated by the media are spreading about the possibility of a race war igniting between a group of black teenagers and Bosnian immigrants.

Meanwhile, ten miles away from Ferguson at an aging gas station/autobody shop, an unlikely friendship is fostered between a twenty-one-year-old black man named Malcolm and a poverty-stricken, seventeen-year-old white girl named Bex after the pair discover a secret hidden beneath the front seat of an abandoned Maserati. In the coming weeks, Malcolm and Bex are forced to test the boundaries of their friendship as the two are confronted with the harsh reality of living in a changing, unjust America.

read more
  • Inquire About Rights
  • Recommend
  • Download
  • Save to Reading List

Djarum Vanilla

Recommended by

  • Alex Kingsley: Djarum Vanilla by Cary Simowitz
    “

    I had the opportunity to see the workshop of this play at the Kennedy Center, and it was fantastic! Poignant, timely, and authentic.

    I had the opportunity to see the workshop of this play at the Kennedy Center, and it was fantastic! Poignant, timely, and authentic.

    ”
  • Inna Tsyrlin: Djarum Vanilla by Cary Simowitz
    “

    The more I found out about the friendship between Malcolm and Bex, the more I wanted to be a third wheel to them. This play gave me so many moments to experience the racial tensions of America in ways that I hadn't previously considered and for that I'm grateful to Cary. A beautiful piece of writing weaved skillfully, with humor and heart.

    The more I found out about the friendship between Malcolm and Bex, the more I wanted to be a third wheel to them. This play gave me so many moments to experience the racial tensions of America in ways that I hadn't previously considered and for that I'm grateful to Cary. A beautiful piece of writing weaved skillfully, with humor and heart.

    ”
  • Kara Emily Krantz: Djarum Vanilla by Cary Simowitz
    “

    I'm a wild proponent of oddball pairings, and the two main characters here are a dream for that quirky, raw, intensely personal but occasionally tumultuous connection that can happen between people - especially those who are personally going through intense transformation and struggle. How can we be there for someone else without a strong foundation of our own? How can we compassionately be present for another when we are demanding (and needing) the same understanding? Very topical and 'of the times' while also an intimate portrayal of intimate story.

    I'm a wild proponent of oddball pairings, and the two main characters here are a dream for that quirky, raw, intensely personal but occasionally tumultuous connection that can happen between people - especially those who are personally going through intense transformation and struggle. How can we be there for someone else without a strong foundation of our own? How can we compassionately be present for another when we are demanding (and needing) the same understanding? Very topical and 'of the times' while also an intimate portrayal of intimate story.

    ”
View all 4 recommendations

Development History

  • Workshop, Alliance/Kendeda National Graduate Playwriting Festival, 2020
  • Workshop, John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in association with NNPN and the National Center for New Plays at Stanford University, 2018

Awards

  • 2020 Alliance Kendeda Finalist Play
    Alliance Theater
    Finalist
    2020
  • 2016 Dramatics Club of St. Louis Award
    Washington University in St. Louis, Department of English
    Winner
    2016
  • 2016 Leota Diesel Ashton Prize in Playwriting
    Washington University in St. Louis
    Winner
    2016
  • Panndora Productions 10th Annual New Works Festival
    Panndora Productions
    Honorable Mention
    2016
  • 2017 Tim Robbins Award in Playwriting
    UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television
    Winner
    2017