Plastic Nest

by Tracy Held

When a married couple moves into their first house together, they have to find a way to renovate the home and let go of the past while a pair of nesting scrub jays outside their window struggles to care for their chicks in a neighborhood littered with trash.

This play was developed through the Carnegie Mellon University Dramatic Writing program New Works series, The Reading Series in Los Angeles, the HBMG...

When a married couple moves into their first house together, they have to find a way to renovate the home and let go of the past while a pair of nesting scrub jays outside their window struggles to care for their chicks in a neighborhood littered with trash.

This play was developed through the Carnegie Mellon University Dramatic Writing program New Works series, The Reading Series in Los Angeles, the HBMG Foundation's National Winter Playwrights Retreat, and CMU's School of Drama ColLABo design residency.

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Plastic Nest

Recommended by

  • Cheryl Bear: Plastic Nest by Tracy Held
    “

    A beautiful metaphor for nesting, the complexity of connection and the struggle to survive. Engaging and effective, a truly wonderful and impactful work!

    A beautiful metaphor for nesting, the complexity of connection and the struggle to survive. Engaging and effective, a truly wonderful and impactful work!

    ”
  • Paul Vintner: Plastic Nest by Tracy Held
    “

    Vivid piece on how loss, sudden change, and the idea of moving forward/moving on can affect one’s psyche played out by a man and wife as well as a family of birds. Society’s disregard for the environment is reflected by the newlywed couple’s disregard for each other’s needs and the birds’ cheery yet clear struggle for survival. Shows us what might happen when expectations go unfulfilled and the world we build for ourselves betrays us.

    Vivid piece on how loss, sudden change, and the idea of moving forward/moving on can affect one’s psyche played out by a man and wife as well as a family of birds. Society’s disregard for the environment is reflected by the newlywed couple’s disregard for each other’s needs and the birds’ cheery yet clear struggle for survival. Shows us what might happen when expectations go unfulfilled and the world we build for ourselves betrays us.

    ”
  • Eugenie Carabatsos: Plastic Nest by Tracy Held
    “

    A quirky yet realistic portrait of the dissolution of a relationship. Plastic Nest explores how our desire to preserve our pasts can affect our future. A fun, relatable, and soulful play that would be a joy to watch onstage!

    A quirky yet realistic portrait of the dissolution of a relationship. Plastic Nest explores how our desire to preserve our pasts can affect our future. A fun, relatable, and soulful play that would be a joy to watch onstage!

    ”
View all 10 recommendations

Development History

  • Residency, ColLABo, Carnegie Mellon University School of Drama, 2024
  • Reading, HBMG Foundation National Winter Playwrights Retreat, 2018
  • Reading, HMBG Foundation, 2018
  • Reading, The Reading Series, Los Angeles, 2017
  • Workshop, Carnegie Mellon University, MFA Program Workshop, 2015

Awards

  • Bay Area Playwrights' Festival
    Playwrights Foundation
    Semi-Finalist
    2018