Rage Play by Nandita Shenoy

Kilroys List 2020. Three women stand over the man they’ve killed, struggling to understand how it happened and why he keeps coming back to life. Again and again and again. In response to the #MeToo movement, this black comedy examines the costs women pay in fighting against sexism and patriarchy as well as the ways they may be complicit in an oppressive system. Through their purgatory, the women aim for...
Kilroys List 2020. Three women stand over the man they’ve killed, struggling to understand how it happened and why he keeps coming back to life. Again and again and again. In response to the #MeToo movement, this black comedy examines the costs women pay in fighting against sexism and patriarchy as well as the ways they may be complicit in an oppressive system. Through their purgatory, the women aim for liberation…and maybe even a little sweet revenge.

This play was to have premiered on March 30th, 2020 but was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Recommend
  • Download
  • Save to Reading List

Rage Play

Recommended by

  • Michael C. O'Day:
    19 Apr. 2022
    “ A dazzling, ferocious mix of RASHOMON, Ionesco, and Third-wave feminism. Shenoy isn't content just to comment on our culture of sexual violence, and our fumbling ways to come to terms with it. Instead, she takes on the narratives we tell ourselves to justify our actions, the narratives we use to conveniently judge others, and ultimately, the ethics of narrative itself - all without ever losing sight of the piece's moral core of anguished outrage. Funny, scary, and vital. ”
  • Cheryl Bear:
    24 Sep. 2021
    “ A powerful look at the rage involved in fighting a system of sexism and patriarchy that never seems to die. Well done. ”
  • Vince Gatton:
    18 May. 2021
    “ To say that Nandita Shenoy’s RAGE PLAY is timely and powerful and important would be entirely true, but that would give unfairly short shrift to how flat-out hilarious and wildly entertaining it is. Starting with a bang and letting up only in the most unexpected ways, this violent and absurdist ride is thought-provoking, deceptively simple, and playfully theatrical in the best sense; any production promises to be a helluva workout for its actors, its fight choreographer, and its audience. May there be many. ”
View all 4 recommendations

Character Information

3W, 1M

  • Ay
    30s-40s,
    BIPOC
    ,
    Female / Female-Identifying
    Smart, ferocious, and angry; in the world of the theater, she would be a creative, most likely a writer.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      30s, 40s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any actor of color
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • Bea
    30s-40s,
    BIPOC
    ,
    Female/Female identifying
    Diplomatic, systematic, thoughtful; in the world of the theater, she would be a stage manager.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      30s, 40s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any actor of color
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • Cece
    20s-30s,
    Any
    ,
    Female/ Female identifying
    Delicate, strong-willed, emotional; in the world of the theater, she would be an actor who played ingénues.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • Man
    40s,
    White
    ,
    Male
    A chameleon, a composite, the antagonist who wants to be liked; in the world of the theater he would be a producer or artistic director and every entitled white man who insists he is a “good guy” and that guy in every other industry as well.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      30s, 40s, 50s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      White
    • Gender: 
      Male

Development History

  • Reading
    ,
    EnGarde Arts
    ,
    2019
  • Workshop
    ,
    Flux Theatre Ensemble
    ,
    2018

Production History

Awards

Kilroys List 2020
,
The Kilroys
,
2020