Summertime

by Mark Rigney

Summertime tracks the Kohl family, a nominally successful upper middle class clan dealing with an impending political crisis in which the United States Congress, in its infinite wisdom, has outlawed both medicine and medical practitioners in an attempt to deal with a burgeoning population crisis.

Twentysomethings SUMMER LANE and JESSE KOHL are welcoming a new baby into this inhospitable landscape, while Jesse’s...

Summertime tracks the Kohl family, a nominally successful upper middle class clan dealing with an impending political crisis in which the United States Congress, in its infinite wisdom, has outlawed both medicine and medical practitioners in an attempt to deal with a burgeoning population crisis.

Twentysomethings SUMMER LANE and JESSE KOHL are welcoming a new baby into this inhospitable landscape, while Jesse’s parents, TOM and SARAH KOHL, are grappling with both Tom’s professional irrelevance (he’s a pundit) and Sarah’s slide into paranoid dementia. AUNT PRU, forever ensconced in the family armchair, provides bleak commentary at every turn, even after the arrival of a MEDICAL MALFEASANCE INSPECTOR, who threatens to send the entire Kohl household to prison for daring to try to take care of themselves (using every privileged means at their disposal).

As the outside world falls apart, only Summer rises to the challenge, ditching her sunny, optimistic persona in an all-out war to protect herself and her baby. A dark, hilarious take on the cost of having faith in the system, Summertime takes readers and audiences where we all hope we never have to go.

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Summertime

Recommended by

  • Sam Collier: Summertime

    This powerful and timely play explores a future America in which all medical care is banned. I was lucky to see the production at UC Davis during the Ground and Field Theatre Festival. The snappy dialogue, clever social commentary, and excellent pacing make this a terrific play for this cultural moment.

    This powerful and timely play explores a future America in which all medical care is banned. I was lucky to see the production at UC Davis during the Ground and Field Theatre Festival. The snappy dialogue, clever social commentary, and excellent pacing make this a terrific play for this cultural moment.

Character Information

The actor playing Inspector Wolf also plays: the News Anchor, the President, the Plumber, the Exit Inspector, and the Alien.
  • Tom Kohl
    Character Age
    Fifties
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Male
  • Sarah Kohl
    Character Age
    Fifties
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Female
  • Inspector Wolf
    Character Age
    Twenties
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Any
  • Aunt Pru
    Character Age
    Sixties or older
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Any
  • Summer Lane
    Character Age
    Twenties
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Female
  • Jesse Kohl
    Character Age
    Twenties
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Male

Production History

  • Type University, Organization Ground and Field Festival, in conjunction with UC-Davis (Davis, CA, Oct. 2018, under the direction of Tom Burmester), Year 2018