When We Fall

7.7 billion people on earth and everyone is lonely. Perhaps. Trina definitely is, even though tonight is her birthday and she’s going to party like it’s 1982. But when Andrew and Clare turn up as Superman and Little Bo Peep, the ache of loneliness fills the night. Even Dalir senses it from the roof top, somewhere between London and Pakistan, and now he has to do something about it.

A new play...
7.7 billion people on earth and everyone is lonely. Perhaps. Trina definitely is, even though tonight is her birthday and she’s going to party like it’s 1982. But when Andrew and Clare turn up as Superman and Little Bo Peep, the ache of loneliness fills the night. Even Dalir senses it from the roof top, somewhere between London and Pakistan, and now he has to do something about it.

A new play about learning to fly, telling stories, and finding friendship in unexpected places.
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When We Fall

Recommended by

  • Jared Michael Delaney:
    27 Sep. 2022
    This play, a meditation on the loneliness we can feel with our partners, our communities, within ourselves, is lovely, sad and very real (with a touch of otherworldliness for good measure). I highly recommend this piece.
  • Mora V. Harris:
    21 Jun. 2021
    I am so impressed by the elegant way this play is structured to allow us into such intimate and subtly heartbreaking moments on stage. It feels effortless and dreamlike, but is so expertly done. Gibson explores the feeling of loneliness in a crowd here with such nuance and sensitivity. I was very drawn to the way this play makes you feel the anxiety of being trapped at a party where you don't know anyone, but also presents these beautiful opportunities for escape through connection and honesty between the characters. An unusually delicate and aching piece of theatre.
  • Nick Jonczak:
    11 Jul. 2020
    WHEN WE FALL feels as intimate as it does dangerous. Gibson's skillful use of the rooftop and bathroom establish an ever-present sense of foreboding and quiet menace that draws me into the space and into the lives of these characters. Her acute sense of rhythm make Trina, Clare, Andrew, and Dalir feel familiar and somehow undiscovered -like I might never learn all of their secrets. In the end I'm left with a kind of painful hope that feels true to our world, which adds to the grounding magic of this play.

Development History

  • Reading
    ,
    Pittsburgh Public Theater
    ,
    2021
  • Reading
    ,
    PlayPenn
    ,
    2020

Awards

Selection
,
Reading
,
Philadelphia Women's Theatre Festival
,
2022
Winner
,
New Play competition
,
Pittsburgh Public Theater
,
2021
Finalist
,
Henley Rose New Play Competition
,
Henley Rose
,
2021
Semi-Finalist
,
New Play Festival
,
Premiere Stages at Kean University
,
2020
Finalist
,
New play development conference
,
PlayPenn
,
2020
Top 100 Verity Bargate Award
,
Soho Theatre, UK
,
2020
Longlist Theatre 503 International Playwriting Award
,
Theatre 503, UK
,
2020