The Controller (or a play about a marriage)

by Stacey Isom Campbell

When a misogynist accuses Bri of cheating at a video game, she goes to extreme measures to clear her name. In doing so, she may lose her marriage. In the end, Bri must choose whether or not to exact revenge on her accuser. The Controller is an inquiry into how we reconstruct identity—and how narrative, whether digital, theatrical, or relational, can be a site of both rupture and repair. It asks—how do you...

When a misogynist accuses Bri of cheating at a video game, she goes to extreme measures to clear her name. In doing so, she may lose her marriage. In the end, Bri must choose whether or not to exact revenge on her accuser. The Controller is an inquiry into how we reconstruct identity—and how narrative, whether digital, theatrical, or relational, can be a site of both rupture and repair. It asks—how do you maintain your sense of self when the core things that defined you are taken through chronic illness and public shame?

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The Controller (or a play about a marriage)

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  • Minh-Anh Day: The Controller (or a play about a marriage) by Stacey Isom Campbell
    “

    THE CONTROLLER is an amazingly fast-moving yet tender play. Bri has to navigate huge challenges in both of her worlds, from misogyny and hate mobs in video game golf to her illness and crumbling marriage in the real world, and we get to witness Bri grow in a wonderful and completely believable way. The achingly beautiful scenes between her and her husband are perfectly counterbalanced by the wildly entertaining revenge plot cooked up by her and Sakura. It's impossible to put down once you start reading it, and when you're done, you'll feel like you've known these characters for years.

    THE CONTROLLER is an amazingly fast-moving yet tender play. Bri has to navigate huge challenges in both of her worlds, from misogyny and hate mobs in video game golf to her illness and crumbling marriage in the real world, and we get to witness Bri grow in a wonderful and completely believable way. The achingly beautiful scenes between her and her husband are perfectly counterbalanced by the wildly entertaining revenge plot cooked up by her and Sakura. It's impossible to put down once you start reading it, and when you're done, you'll feel like you've known these characters for years.

    ”
BRI/PAR-CROSSED LOVER
40s, female, American. A graphic novelist and professor until a year ago, when her chronic illness forced her to quit.

TRAVIS
40s, male, Bri's husband, American.

SAKURA SHADOW/SPUDS
20-30s female. She's the badass game designer turned retribution seeker for women gamers and the narrator of this play. She plays golf as Spuds, a 50s Scotsman. She uses her normal voice without an accent. However, the syntax and rhythm change when she's Spuds.

NOTE: aim for an ethnically diverse cast.

Awards

  • Henley Rose Playwright Competition
    Yellow Rose Productions
    Finalist
    2024
  • Seven Devils Playwrights Conference
    Seven Devils
    Finalist
    2023