Last Night and the Night Before by Donnetta Lavinia Grays

When Monique and her 10-year-old daughter Samantha show up unexpectedly on her sister’s Brooklyn doorstep, it’s the beginning of the end for Rachel and her partner Nadima’s orderly lifestyle. Monique is on the run from deep trouble, her husband Reggie is nowhere to be seen, and Samantha becomes ever haunted by the life in southern Georgia she was forced to leave behind. Poetic, dark and often deeply funny Last...
When Monique and her 10-year-old daughter Samantha show up unexpectedly on her sister’s Brooklyn doorstep, it’s the beginning of the end for Rachel and her partner Nadima’s orderly lifestyle. Monique is on the run from deep trouble, her husband Reggie is nowhere to be seen, and Samantha becomes ever haunted by the life in southern Georgia she was forced to leave behind. Poetic, dark and often deeply funny Last Night and the Night Before explores the power, necessity, and beauty of loss.



At the root of this play is the daughter of a small town that is lost to the current sweeping epidemic of heroin abuse in this country. She is a mother who tries desperately to break a cycle of despair for her own daughter. Last Night and The Night Before is a drama infused with laughter, lightness, poetry and hope. It speaks to so many small towns across this country that have lost brilliant children due to lack of industry and economic opportunity within those communities.

Todd McNerney National New Play Award Winner. Eugene O'Neill Center National Playwright Festival Semifinalist.
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Last Night and the Night Before

Recommended by

  • Alex Burkart:
    24 Feb. 2019
    “ I was fortunate enough to see this play produced at the Denver Center of the Performing Arts. The playwright writes with immense passion, which also channels into riveting storytelling focused on characters with incredible dimension and depth. A masterful balance of poetry, dialogue, and action, this is a play that deserves every ounce of praise for its honest and compelling look at humanity. ”
  • Mfoniso Udofia:
    15 Jun. 2017
    “ This play ripped a hole in me. It has been a long time since a play engrossed me so thoroughly that my mind shut down and my my biology kicked in. It is trite to say, but nevertheless true...this play had me laughing and weeping. I cannot wait to see LAST NIGHT AND THE NIGHT BEFORE realized on stage. It is breathtaking in it's excavation of the human condition. Thank you! ”
  • Michael Edan:
    12 Apr. 2017
    “ This play gripped me from the very beginning, carrying me along its fearless current into deep, complex, tragic territory. The characters and dialogue ring with the unmistakable tone of truth telling. Humor is also present in this richly textured work that balances despair with hope through vulnerable and exposed lives. A masterful play; powerful, compassionate, wise, that speaks not only about what can be lost, but more importantly, what can be found. ”
View all 8 recommendations

Development History

  • Workshop
    ,
    Colorado New Play Summit
    ,
    2017
  • Reading
    ,
    Labyrinth Theater Company
    ,
    2016
  • Workshop
    ,
    Portland Stage Company's Little Festival of the Unexpected
    ,
    2015
  • Reading
    ,
    The Actors Studio
    ,
    2014
  • Reading
    ,
    Naked Angels
    ,
    2013
  • Reading
    ,
    Classical Theatre of Harlem
    ,
    2013

Awards

Winner
,
Barrie and Bernice Stavis Playwright Award
,
National Theater Conference
,
2019
Kilroys List
,
The Kilroys
,
2017
Kilroys List
,
The Kilroys
,
2017
Winner
,
Todd McNerny National Playwright Award
,
2015