I Hate This (a play without the baby)

David and his wife Toni learn at her 30 week check-up that their unborn child has died. Jumping back and forth between two timelines, David tells the story of the 36 hours between learning this truth and the birth of their first child, as well as the year that follows - detailing the frustration, recrimination, guilt, sorrow and ultimate acceptance of their son's death.
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I Hate This (a play without the baby)

Recommended by

  • Lisa Dellagiarino Feriend:
    25 Apr. 2021
    I don't have enough compliments for this play. It begins with a couple 30 weeks pregnant being told no heartbeat can be detected, and then it alternates between moving forward in time and returning to that day, preparing to give birth. It is beautiful and heartbreaking. One moment that got me was the observation that we use language to understand our world, but there is no word for parents of a dead child, so you don't understand who you are. So much weighty stuff articulated perfectly. I am going to be thinking about this play for a long time.
  • Donna Hoke:
    6 May. 2020
    People need this play to learn how to help parents who've lost infants, people those parents alone knew and loved. Kudos to David for sharing so much truth and pain in an effort to share awareness.
  • Ricardo Soltero-Brown:
    30 Apr. 2020
    This is a very, very good play. Of the highest, most extraordinary standard. I'd like to recommend, now, a drama, sincerely as I can. Hansen forgoes a procedural account of tragedy, instead he structures a journey of mythic quality through grief and terror without sacrificing any elements of objectivity or subjectivity but, in fact, makes full use of both by linking specific moments in time by their sentiment or subtext, observing the various players and stages of a nightmare odyssey, revisiting them, even reimagining them, yes, dramatizing them, noting the excesses of fancy and reality. The fountain, the sparrow. Unforgettable.

Character Information

  • David
    32,
    Any
    ,
    Male

Development History

  • Reading
    ,
    Dobama Theatre, Cleveland Heights
    ,
    2002

Production History

  • Professional
    ,
    Chennai Art Theatre
    ,
    2021
  • Professional
    ,
    Reinberger Auditorium, Cleveland, OH
    ,
    2016
  • University
    ,
    Hartwick College, Oneonta, NY
    ,
    2015
  • Professional
    ,
    Freerange Theatre, The Lowry, Manchester, UK
    ,
    2014
  • Professional
    ,
    Cleveland Public Theatre, Cleveland, OH
    ,
    2011
  • Professional
    ,
    Beargrass Christian Church, Louisville, KY
    ,
    2007
  • Professional
    ,
    Corporate College, Warrensville Hts., OH
    ,
    2007
  • Professional
    ,
    Terry O'Toole Theatre, Lincoln, UK
    ,
    2007
  • Professional
    ,
    Lurgan Town Hall, Lurgan, Northern Ireland
    ,
    2007
  • Professional
    ,
    Plymouth Salvation Army Hall, Plymouth, UK
    ,
    2007
  • Professional
    ,
    Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham, UK
    ,
    2007
  • Professional
    ,
    Royal College of Physicians, London, UK
    ,
    2007
  • Professional
    ,
    St. Cuthbert's Church, Carlisle, UK
    ,
    2007
  • Professional
    ,
    International Student Centre, London, UK
    ,
    2006
  • Professional
    ,
    University Plaza Hotel and Conference Center, Columbus, OH
    ,
    2006
  • Professional
    ,
    St. Vincent DePaul Church, London, UK
    ,
    2006
  • Professional
    ,
    15th National Perinatal Bereavement Conference, Chicago, IL
    ,
    2006
  • Professional
    ,
    Akron City Hospital, Akron, OH
    ,
    2005
  • Professional
    ,
    MetroHealth Medical Center, Cleveland, OH
    ,
    2005
  • Fringe
    ,
    The New York International Fringe Festival
    ,
    2004
  • Professional
    ,
    Rock & Roll Hall of Fame & Museum, Cleveland, OH
    ,
    2004
  • Professional
    ,
    LaCentre Conference and Banquet Facility, Westlake, OH
    ,
    2004
  • Workshop
    ,
    Cleveland Public Theatre, Cleveland, OH
    ,
    2003
  • Fringe
    ,
    Minnesota Fringe Festival
    ,
    2003
  • Professional
    ,
    Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH
    ,
    2003

Awards

Overall Excellence Award - Solo Performance
,
The New York International Fringe Festival
,
2004
Top Ten Play of 2003
,
The Plain Dealer
,
2003