Lobster Man (Full-length version)

by Jonathan Cook

*FINALIST - 2024 Ashland New Play Festival
*SEMI-FINALIST - 2023 Princess Grace Award
*SEMI-FINALIST - 2023 SE Texas Festival of New Plays
Mark and Christa, two survivors of a post-apocalyptic world, struggle with whether they are the last two people alive. As her health deteriorates, Christa urges Mark to travel and explore in hopes to discover others, but Mark is reluctant to leave their comfort zone. When a...

*FINALIST - 2024 Ashland New Play Festival
*SEMI-FINALIST - 2023 Princess Grace Award
*SEMI-FINALIST - 2023 SE Texas Festival of New Plays
Mark and Christa, two survivors of a post-apocalyptic world, struggle with whether they are the last two people alive. As her health deteriorates, Christa urges Mark to travel and explore in hopes to discover others, but Mark is reluctant to leave their comfort zone. When a mysterious stranger arrives at their residence one day, Mark is unprepared for the invitation he offers Christa.

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Lobster Man (Full-length version)

Recommended by

  • Lainie Vansant: Lobster Man (Full-length version)

    This post-apocalyptic play is surprisingly optimistic about the human condition. I love a play about community care and how much we need each other, and this one certainly fits the bill. This is lovely, challenging work for actors. Check it out!

    This post-apocalyptic play is surprisingly optimistic about the human condition. I love a play about community care and how much we need each other, and this one certainly fits the bill. This is lovely, challenging work for actors. Check it out!

  • Lisa Dellagiarino Feriend: Lobster Man (Full-length version)

    This post-apocalyptic play flies by, thanks mostly to the great dialogue and wonderful characters. It's about the need for human connection (I loved how they kept touching each other when they realized they weren't alone in the world - completely platonically, just a desperate human need for touch), and the play also serves as a beautiful example of how the arts (pictures, music, stories) are lifelines, not luxuries, when everything falls apart. This play is beautiful and tragic, sad and hopeful all rolled into one. Plus, with one location and a small cast, it could &should be easily staged...

    This post-apocalyptic play flies by, thanks mostly to the great dialogue and wonderful characters. It's about the need for human connection (I loved how they kept touching each other when they realized they weren't alone in the world - completely platonically, just a desperate human need for touch), and the play also serves as a beautiful example of how the arts (pictures, music, stories) are lifelines, not luxuries, when everything falls apart. This play is beautiful and tragic, sad and hopeful all rolled into one. Plus, with one location and a small cast, it could &should be easily staged everywhere.

  • Paul Donnelly: Lobster Man (Full-length version)

    Two lonely survivors build a connection in a vividly rendered post-apocalyptic world. This play is a profound and gripping exploration of that need for connection and of dealing with grief and loss. The hypnotic and hallucinatory figure of Lobster Man heralds an irrevocable transition and leaves one of the survivors to fulfill a life sustaining promise. Mark and Christa are boon companions, to us as well as to each other, and it is exhilarating to share their well-crafted journey.

    Two lonely survivors build a connection in a vividly rendered post-apocalyptic world. This play is a profound and gripping exploration of that need for connection and of dealing with grief and loss. The hypnotic and hallucinatory figure of Lobster Man heralds an irrevocable transition and leaves one of the survivors to fulfill a life sustaining promise. Mark and Christa are boon companions, to us as well as to each other, and it is exhilarating to share their well-crafted journey.

View all 5 recommendations

Character Information

  • Mark
    A lone Wanderer who saves Christa in the wasteland. As their relationship grows, he becomes overly protective. He would do anything for her.
    Character Age
    30's-40's
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Male
  • Christa
    A survivor of the wasteland. Full of hope with a free-spirited attitude. She eventually begins to suffer from unexplainable headaches, leading to her health deteriorating.
    Character Age
    30's
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Female
  • Lobster Man
    Wears a red suit, leather gloves, a derby hat, and a nondescript mask.
    Character Age
    Any
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Any

Development History

  • Type Reading, Organization Trinity Theatre Company (San Diego, CA), Year 2023
  • Type Workshop, Organization Wild Imaginings (Waco, TX) , Year 2023

Awards

  • Princess Grace Award
    New Dramatists
    Semi-Finalist
    2023
  • Best Play
    SE Texas Festival of New Plays
    Semi-Finalist
    2023