Down in the Holler by Val Dunn

Deep in a holler of the Shenandoah Valley, Juniper prepares to spend a perfect life in a perfect cabin with her perfect partner, Blake. Until Maeve appears. Telling tall tales and crooning high lonesomes, Maeve beguiles Juniper return to Gin - a past self who once lived and loved in this here house. As Juniper attempts to exorcise her pursuit of passion and maintain the stable life she's created with Blake...
Deep in a holler of the Shenandoah Valley, Juniper prepares to spend a perfect life in a perfect cabin with her perfect partner, Blake. Until Maeve appears. Telling tall tales and crooning high lonesomes, Maeve beguiles Juniper return to Gin - a past self who once lived and loved in this here house. As Juniper attempts to exorcise her pursuit of passion and maintain the stable life she's created with Blake, Down in the Holler witnesses a collision of class and queerness, ultimately asking how we reconcile who we were and who we thought we would become.
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Down in the Holler

Recommended by

  • Nora Pearson:
    3 Mar. 2024
    “ I haven't been able to stop thinking about this play since I read it in 2021. It's haunting, erotic, and tense, and really wonderfully balances realism with the (surreal, ghostly) experience of being haunted and drawn in by an intense relationship from your past. I truly hope I get to see this performed someday! ”
  • Shaun Leisher:
    9 Aug. 2023
    “ I am absolutely wild about this play. It's a hot, steamy ghost story about letting go. Can't wait to see a production that really leans into the stage magic that is possible here. ”
  • Kari Barclay:
    29 Jan. 2021
    “ I saw a reading of this at MirrorBox's Out the Box series, and I cannot recommend it highly enough. Down in the Holler has a rich theatrical language, dialogue that crackles, and rural queer representation that make for a powerful performance event. A theater would be lucky to produce this. ”
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Character Information

If you have the opportunity to cast lesbian and/or queer actors that would be ideal.

  • Maeve
    an indiscernible age anywhere from 20 to 30
    a romantic; volatile and beguiling; a local
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      White
    • Gender: 
      Female, Non-binary
  • Juniper
    early thirties
    an artist who has worked hard to reinvent herself
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      White
    • Gender: 
      Female, Non-binary
  • Gin
    early twenties
    Juniper's memory of who she used to be; scrappy, caring; doesn't always pronounce the g's on the ends of ing words
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      Teens, 20s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      White
    • Gender: 
      Female, Non-binary
  • Blake
    late thirties
    environmental lawyer; the dyke you need but rarely find; a very capable Taurus
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      30s, 40s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female, Non-binary

Development History

  • Reading
    ,
    Mirrobox Theatre
    ,
    2021
  • Reading
    ,
    Juniper Productions
    ,
    2018
  • Reading
    ,
    Play Penn
    ,
    2018
  • Workshop
    ,
    Writers on the Rocks
    ,
    2017
  • Workshop
    ,
    The Foundry (a Philadelphia Playwrights Lab)
    ,
    2017

Production History

  • Professional
    ,
    Trustus Theatre
    ,
    2023

Awards

Winner
,
Trustus Playwrights Festival
,
Trustus Theatre
,
2020
Runner Up
,
Jane Chambers Award for Excellence in Feminist Playwriting
,
ATHE
,
2020
Semi-Finalist
,
Bay Area Playwrights Festival
,
Playwrights Foundation
,
2018