53% Of by Steph Del Rosso

The president is coming to town, and the ladies of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania are beside themselves planning for the big event. Later, their husbands drink beer and talk smack. Much later, a group of 20-somethings gather in Brooklyn to plan a fundraiser...or is it a march? Or is it a ritual to absolve their own guilt? A play about complicity and the violence of the status quo, 53% OF asks what happens when we stop...
The president is coming to town, and the ladies of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania are beside themselves planning for the big event. Later, their husbands drink beer and talk smack. Much later, a group of 20-somethings gather in Brooklyn to plan a fundraiser...or is it a march? Or is it a ritual to absolve their own guilt? A play about complicity and the violence of the status quo, 53% OF asks what happens when we stop equating white womanhood with goodness, and ignorance with innocence.
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53% Of

Recommended by

  • Cary Simowitz:
    23 Jan. 2021
    “ An arresting, surprising, powerful play! ”
  • Rebecca Hodge:
    5 Aug. 2019
    “ This is a play that is intensely hilarious but doesn't pull its punches for a moment. Deeply theatrical while also all too real, 53% Of implicates white women - and not just those who are part of the statistic the title refers to. This play knows theatre audiences and stares them right in the face (quite literally at one point). I was honored to see a reading of this play at the Kennedy Center, and it floored me then. It deserves to floor so, so many more. ”
  • Shaun Leisher:
    28 Jun. 2019
    “ Theatre can't just be fluff spectacles and when it does tackle serious topics it can not just be about white people learning to not be racist and saving people of color. The stage sorely needs plays like this that are about messy conversations that need to be had. I'm finding it hard to recall a play that delves into white guilt as inventive and with as much courage as Steph Del Rosso does with this piece. ”

Development History

  • Reading
    ,
    Oregon Shakespeare Festival
    ,
    2021
  • Workshop
    ,
    UC-San Diego
    ,
    2018
  • Workshop
    ,
    Ojai Playwrights Conference
    ,
    2018

Production History

  • Professional
    ,
    Alliance Theatre (Cancelled due to Covid-19)
    ,
    2020

Awards

Winner
,
Alliance/Kendeda National Graduate Playwriting Competition
,
Alliance Theatre
,
2019
Runner Up
,
Paula Vogel Award in Playwriting
,
KCACTF
,
2018