See You in a Minute by Jacob Juntunen

Okay, so, Kathryn has left New York City and returned to her childhood home in St. Louis to take care of her parents during the pandemic. Not the pandemic you’re thinking of. This is 2041. But her dad just wants to eat sandwiches and play puppets with Kathryn like she’s a kid. Her mom is pissed that the smart city won’t let them out of the house. And Kathryn’s boss wants her back in New York to sell high school...
Okay, so, Kathryn has left New York City and returned to her childhood home in St. Louis to take care of her parents during the pandemic. Not the pandemic you’re thinking of. This is 2041. But her dad just wants to eat sandwiches and play puppets with Kathryn like she’s a kid. Her mom is pissed that the smart city won’t let them out of the house. And Kathryn’s boss wants her back in New York to sell high school group tickets to a century-old snoozefest of a play. And Kathryn? What does she want? Well, she doesn’t want to explode her carefully built theatre career as Education Director at the longest-running off-Broadway theatre, that’s for sure. But her parents took care of her in 2020 during that first pandemic, so she’s got to do right by them, doesn’t she? Besides, Kathryn’s doing fine at home, right? This whole mess isn’t bringing up any unresolved feelings, is it? Nothing worth mourning, anyway. Right?
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See You in a Minute

Recommended by

  • Playwrights Foundation:
    30 Apr. 2024
    “ The community of National Committee readers for the 46th Bay Area Playwrights Festival advanced SEE YOU IN A MINUTE as a Semi-Finalist at Playwrights Foundation. We appreciated the play's dramaturgical focus on tender and realistic details within the family dynamic, such as inside jokes and information felt touching and true. We found the writing makes clear and intentional theatrical gestures, which are used in interesting and creative ways. We hope this play is considered for further development and investigation, and finds dedicated collaborators in this play’s journey towards production. #BAPF46 ”
  • Eric Satterfield:
    1 Nov. 2023
    “ This play is an engaging and thought-provoking piece that draws the audience into a world both familiar and markedly different, questioning the resilience of family ties and the complex balance between personal and professional aspirations. "See You in a Minute" offers a compelling narrative that resonates deeply, sparking introspection on the intricacies of human connections and the impact of individual choices.
    ”
  • Daniel Smith:
    22 Sep. 2023
    “ "See You in a Minute" represents a significant artistic achievement, combining the theatricality and political stakes of the playwright’s early work with a dramatic structure that deftly responds to concerns of past, present, and future. It will be tempting for critics to call it a “quiet masterpiece” full of “emotional truth,” phrases used by characters in the play to describe Thornton Wilder’s "Our Town." The play asks its audience to think about individual choices in situations where structural issues make ethical decisions all but impossible. ”

Character Information

2 women / 1 man / 1 flexible

KATHRYN: (she/her) 26 years old.

JOSEPH: (he/him) Kathryn’s dad.

DEB: (she/her) Kathryn’s mom.

KRIS: (they/them) Kathryn’s boss, the Artistic Director of a large New York City non-profit theatre. They're older than Kathryn, but beyond that, you decide.

Any race, ethnicity would work for any of these parts.

  • Kris
    Any,
    Any
    ,
    Any
    Older than Kathryn. Kathryn’s Super Woke™ boss who is the Artistic Director of a large New York City theater. Kris has a shrewd business sense for running an arts organization, but takes on a parental aura in their relationship with Kathryn.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      Any age
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Any gender
  • Kathryn
    20s,
    Any
    ,
    She/her
    An ambitious theater maker, and also an emotional mess, who is navigating her workload (virtually), during an unscheduled stay at her childhood home.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      20s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female
  • Joseph
    Middle Aged,
    Any
    ,
    He/His
    Kathryn’s father. A college history professor with a robust love for his family and sandwiches. He is also a goofy dad that still gets a kick out of playing make-believe puppets with his daughter.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      40s, 50s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Male
  • Deb
    Middle Aged,
    Any
    ,
    She/her
    Kathryn’s mother. An engineer with a dry sense of humor and an analytical mind. She is a logical and loving mom who feels more comfortable in conversation than in play.
    Can be played by:
    • Age: 
      40s, 50s
    • Race/Ethnicity: 
      Any race/ethnicity
    • Gender: 
      Female

Development History

  • Reading
    ,
    Tantrum East
    ,
    2023

Production History

  • Professional
    ,
    Contraband Theatre
    ,
    2023

Awards