A Driving Beat by Jordan Ramirez Puckett

2,000 miles, a cross-country car ride
adopted son and mother travel side by side
white woman, brown son in the same space
9 states to the hospital, the teen’s birthplace
4 days, if all goes according to plan
5 nights, of doing all that they can
to find his birth mom, identity, or home
but by the end of their journey
will any answers be known?
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A Driving Beat

Recommended by

  • Shelby Seeley:
    23 May. 2023
    “ heartfelt mother-son relationship that asks questions about identity, race, and family with an ending I didn't see coming! ”
  • Katherine Gwynn:
    9 May. 2023
    “ a tender play about a mother and son at odds with trying to both discover and cling to their past--warm until the very end, despite it all. ”
  • Cheryl Bear:
    22 Feb. 2021
    “ A beautiful, heartfelt journey of the search for identity and the relationship of a mother to her son that moves you. Well done. ”
View all 18 recommendations

Character Information

  • Mateo
    14,
    Filipino, Filipino American, Filipino-American
    ,
    Cis Man, Male
    Brown skin, on the verge of fifteen, a yearning son, speaks his truth in rhymes
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      Teens, 20s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Asian, Pacific Islander, or Asian American
    • Gender: 
      Male
  • Diane
    45,
    White
    ,
    Cisgender Female, Female
    White skin, forty-five, a protective mother, a verbal steamroller
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      30s, 40s, 50s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      White
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • Reina
    32,
    Latina, Latino, Latinx
    ,
    Cisgender Female, Female
    Brown skin, thirty-two, a healer, listens more than she speaks
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s, 30s, 40s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Latinx/o/a or Hispanic
    • Gender: 
      Female

Development History

  • Reading
    ,
    The Los Angeles Queer New Works Festival (canceled due to Corona Virus)
    ,
    2020
  • Reading
    ,
    Athena Project
    ,
    2019
  • Residency
    ,
    HBMG Foundation
    ,
    2018

Awards