Tin Noses

by Sarah Bowden

Max is an actor who wants to expand his range. As the star of the superhero film franchise, “The Dart,” he worries the public will never take him seriously as an artist. After being cast as a wounded World War I vet, he must learn how to perform disability for the camera. Who better than to teach him how to shape his physicality than Austin, another actor who was also up for the role of the vet, and who lives...

Max is an actor who wants to expand his range. As the star of the superhero film franchise, “The Dart,” he worries the public will never take him seriously as an artist. After being cast as a wounded World War I vet, he must learn how to perform disability for the camera. Who better than to teach him how to shape his physicality than Austin, another actor who was also up for the role of the vet, and who lives with cerebral palsy?

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Tin Noses

Recommended by

  • Eli Van Sickel: Tin Noses by Sarah Bowden
    “

    Bowden uses the "play-within-a-play" device to examine disability on multiple fronts: What does it mean to be disabled "enough?" How do you show your strength to someone who underestimates you based on your disability? Why are so few disabled storytellers given opportunities to their own stories? It's fun, romantic, and a wholly unique love triangle.

    Bowden uses the "play-within-a-play" device to examine disability on multiple fronts: What does it mean to be disabled "enough?" How do you show your strength to someone who underestimates you based on your disability? Why are so few disabled storytellers given opportunities to their own stories? It's fun, romantic, and a wholly unique love triangle.

    ”
  • Jordan Bird: Tin Noses by Sarah Bowden
    “

    An engaging concept with a fresh twist on the play-within-a-play trope. These characters are -very- frustrating, which I find refreshing -- and the depth of my frustration with them indicates the depth of my engagement with them. This show poses some wonderful challenges for an artistic team. And thank all goodness for a complex, romantic role for an actor with a disability: a role there are far, far too few of.

    An engaging concept with a fresh twist on the play-within-a-play trope. These characters are -very- frustrating, which I find refreshing -- and the depth of my frustration with them indicates the depth of my engagement with them. This show poses some wonderful challenges for an artistic team. And thank all goodness for a complex, romantic role for an actor with a disability: a role there are far, far too few of.

    ”
  • Cassandra Rose: Tin Noses by Sarah Bowden
    “

    A staged reading of this play was part of the 2017 Chicago Theatre Marathon, and boy are we glad it was. The theme of that year's incubator was "I Am Indomitable," and this play and these characters definitely fit the bill! If you're at all interested in how theatres & Hollywood portray disability, do yourself a favor and try this play on for size.

    A staged reading of this play was part of the 2017 Chicago Theatre Marathon, and boy are we glad it was. The theme of that year's incubator was "I Am Indomitable," and this play and these characters definitely fit the bill! If you're at all interested in how theatres & Hollywood portray disability, do yourself a favor and try this play on for size.

    ”
View all 4 recommendations

Character Information

This play also centers one character with a mobility condition, which should always be played by an actor with a disability.
  • Max
    American star of “The Dart” superhero franchise; out to prove himself a “serious” artist in the historical drama “Tin Noses.” Think Bradley Cooper.
    29
    White
    Cis male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s,
      40s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      White
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Man
  • Hannah
    American stage choreographer; old college flame of Max’s and friend (and maybe more?) to Austin; Hannah’s experiencing a personal/artistic crisis at the moment.
    30
    Any
    Cis female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Woman
  • Austin
    American stage actor who competed for Max’s role in “Tin Noses;” displays spastic hemiplegia; has more than a major interest in Hannah. Smartest guy in the room.
    31
    Any
    Cis male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Man,
      Non-binary
  • George Thwaites
    A fictional English army officer; a tough guy emotionally and physically traumatized by his service in World War I; alternately played by the actors who play Max and Austin.
    30
    Any
    Cis male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Man
  • Anna Coleman Ladd
    A real-life American sculptor and socialite; founded and ran the American Red Cross’ Studio for Portrait-Masks from 1917 to 1919; played by the actress who plays Hannah.
    30
    Any
    Cis female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Woman
  • Assistant
    Anna’s fictional assistant at the Studio for Portrait-Masks. One of those side characters whose motives matter only as much as they relate to the main character; played by the actors who play Max and Austin.
    25
    Any
    Cis male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Man

Development History

  • Reading, Chicago Theatre Marathon, 2017
  • Reading, VanKap Productions, 2016
  • Reading, Greenhouse Theater Center, 2015

Awards