Paletas de Coco or, The Letter Unspoken or, The Christmas Eve Play

by Franky D. Gonzalez

Digital Production: Ars Nova ANT Fest 2021
Digital Production: Latino Theater Company RE: Encuentro 2021

A playwright searching for his father and for someone to read aloud a letter he's written recruits a Performer who, along with the audience, are taken with the playwright on a journey through four Christmas Eves, coconut popsicles, depression, Santería chants, Times Square, male breastfeeding, reunions...

Digital Production: Ars Nova ANT Fest 2021
Digital Production: Latino Theater Company RE: Encuentro 2021

A playwright searching for his father and for someone to read aloud a letter he's written recruits a Performer who, along with the audience, are taken with the playwright on a journey through four Christmas Eves, coconut popsicles, depression, Santería chants, Times Square, male breastfeeding, reunions with long-lost siblings, Applebee's Nacho Plates, child birth, suicide attempts, fatherhood, and robbing Chinese buffets.

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Paletas de Coco or, The Letter Unspoken or, The Christmas Eve Play

Recommended by

  • Lainie Vansant: Paletas de Coco or, The Letter Unspoken or, The Christmas Eve Play by Franky D. Gonzalez
    “

    This is a deeply personal, incredibly moving show -- thank you, Franky for sharing it with the world. It's a peek behind the curtain, a life story, a confession. Gonzalez has given the world a gift here.

    This is a deeply personal, incredibly moving show -- thank you, Franky for sharing it with the world. It's a peek behind the curtain, a life story, a confession. Gonzalez has given the world a gift here.

    ”
  • Sarah Tuft: Paletas de Coco or, The Letter Unspoken or, The Christmas Eve Play by Franky D. Gonzalez
    “

    This play is tour de force of dramatized self-revelation. Brutally honest, achingly tender, heartbreakingly sweet, and always triumphant - PALETAS DE COCO OR, THE LETTER UNSPOKEN OR, THE CHRISTMAS EVE PLAY follows our narrator as he digs deep into feelings and memory so he can become the loving father he never had.

    This play is tour de force of dramatized self-revelation. Brutally honest, achingly tender, heartbreakingly sweet, and always triumphant - PALETAS DE COCO OR, THE LETTER UNSPOKEN OR, THE CHRISTMAS EVE PLAY follows our narrator as he digs deep into feelings and memory so he can become the loving father he never had.

    ”
  • Sarah Tuft: Paletas de Coco or, The Letter Unspoken or, The Christmas Eve Play by Franky D. Gonzalez
    “

    This play is tour de force of dramatized self-revelation. Brutally honest, achingly tender, heartbreakingly sweet, and always triumphant - PALETAS DE COCO OR, THE LETTER UNSPOKEN OR, THE CHRISTMAS EVE PLAY follows our narrator as he digs deep into feelings and memory so he can become the loving father he never had.

    This play is tour de force of dramatized self-revelation. Brutally honest, achingly tender, heartbreakingly sweet, and always triumphant - PALETAS DE COCO OR, THE LETTER UNSPOKEN OR, THE CHRISTMAS EVE PLAY follows our narrator as he digs deep into feelings and memory so he can become the loving father he never had.

    ”
View all 35 recommendations

Character Information

No doubling required. Two person show.
  • Performer
    Any age, anything on the gender spectrum. Race neutral. Only rule: They can’t have seen, rehearsed, or read this script.
    Any Age
    Any
    Any
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s,
      40s,
      50s,
      60s,
      70s+
  • Franky Duval Gonzalez
    Dark glasses. Blazer. Overweight. Latino.
    20s - 30s
    Latino
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Latinx/o/a or Hispanic
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Male

Development History

  • Reading, LAByrinth Theater Company, 2020
  • Reading, The Public Theatre of San Antonio, 2020
  • Reading, Dallas Theater Center Playwrights Workshop, 2020
  • Reading, HBMG Foundation National Winter Playwrights Retreat, 2020
  • Workshop, The Goodman Theatre Live @ Five Series with Dael Orlandersmith, 2020
  • Reading, Hudson Valley Performing Arts Laboratory, 2019
  • Workshop, The Lark, 2019

Production History

  • Workshop, Ars Nova ANT Fest, 2021
  • Workshop, The Latino Theater Co. RE: Encuentro, 2021

Awards

  • Princess Grace Playwriting Fellowship
    Princess Grace Foundation
    Semi-Finalist
    2021
  • Sin Muros Latinx Theatre Festival
    Finalist
    2021
  • Generations
    BETC
    Finalist
    2020
  • Risk Theatre Modern Tragedy Competition
    Finalist
    2020
  • Seven Devils Playwrights Conference
    Seven Devils New Play Foundry
    Semi-Finalist
    2020
  • Theatre Prize
    The Alpine Fellowship
    Runner Up
    2019