Undo

by Holly Arsenault

UNDO is the recipient of the 2013 Theatre Puget Sound Gregory Award for Outstanding New Play and the 2013 Seattle Theatre Writers' Award for Excellence in Local Playwriting. It was nominated for the 2013 American Theatre Critics Association New Play Awards and was a semi-finalist for the 2014 Princess Grace Award.

"The premise is so simple and brilliant—what if a divorce were a public event precisely like your...

UNDO is the recipient of the 2013 Theatre Puget Sound Gregory Award for Outstanding New Play and the 2013 Seattle Theatre Writers' Award for Excellence in Local Playwriting. It was nominated for the 2013 American Theatre Critics Association New Play Awards and was a semi-finalist for the 2014 Princess Grace Award.

"The premise is so simple and brilliant—what if a divorce were a public event precisely like your wedding, with guests and presents and an officiant and tons of booze?—that it threatens to overpower the show itself. But Arsenault’s sharp wit and ear for honest dialogue, which focuses on realistically mundane details and then telescopes to huge family drama, makes the concept work beautifully. Bring someone to talk it over with after; you’ll surely want to." - THE STRANGER

UNDO takes place in a universe that is exactly like our own with one important difference: in order to get a divorce, you must go through a backwards version of your own wedding ceremony.

We meet Rachel, the "bride," and Joe, the "groom," on the morning of their undoing. As their families gather, it becomes clear that the burden of the occasion is weighing on them all, drawing old wounds and secrets to the surface. A religious proscription that, though alcohol is allowed, food is not, further fuels the group unraveling. While Joe resorts to extreme measures to halt the proceedings and Rachel doubles down on questionable choices, the matriarch enlists the best man as her reluctant confessor, a long-deferred romance is rekindled, and the youngest sister emerges as the family’s moral backbone.

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Undo

Recommended by

  • Aleks Merilo: Undo

    I saw this play in Seattle a while back, and found it funny, bittersweet, and utterly unique. It was a very satisfying antithesis to the standard "Wedding Play". I very much look forward to seeing this again.

    I saw this play in Seattle a while back, and found it funny, bittersweet, and utterly unique. It was a very satisfying antithesis to the standard "Wedding Play". I very much look forward to seeing this again.

  • Katie Forgette: Undo

    This play has a very clever "hook," but it's much more than that. Bleak and funny and weirdly romantic.

    This play has a very clever "hook," but it's much more than that. Bleak and funny and weirdly romantic.

  • Diane Brewer: Undo

    I happened upon this script last night, and I love the way it asks us to look at true love and sacrifice through the lens of a divorce ritual.

    I happened upon this script last night, and I love the way it asks us to look at true love and sacrifice through the lens of a divorce ritual.

View all 4 recommendations

Character Information

3 men, 7 women, 1 child of any gender
There is no character in this play that must be played by a cisgender actor

A note on casting: Jews come in all colors and a family can be made of people with different ethnic backgrounds. If the character of Joan is played by an actor of color, Ari’s surprise regarding Mr. St. Clair’s racial identity (ACT II, Scene 6) will need to be revisited.
  • THE CHILD WITH THE GLASS
    Just a child
    Character Age
    8
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Jewish
    Character Gender Identity
    Any
  • JOE PFEIFFER
    The husband, American and Jewish
    Character Age
    30
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Jewish
    Character Gender Identity
    Male
  • RACHEL MENDELSSOHN PFEIFFER
    The wife, American and Jewish
    Character Age
    30
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Jewish
    Character Gender Identity
    Female
  • ARI GLASSMAN
    Joe’s best friend, American and Jewish
    Character Age
    30
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Jewish
    Character Gender Identity
    Male
  • JOAN WOLOFSKY MENDELSSOHN
    Rachel’s mother, American and Jewish
    Character Age
    49
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Jewish
    Character Gender Identity
    Female
  • NAOMI MENDELSSOHN
    Rachel’s younger sister, American and Jewish
    Character Age
    14
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Jewish
    Character Gender Identity
    Female
  • HANNAH MENDELSSOHN
    Rachel’s older sister, American and Jewish
    Character Age
    32
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Jewish
    Character Gender Identity
    Female
  • SIOBHAN DOYLE
    Hannah’s girlfriend, Irish, raised Catholic
    Character Age
    25
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Female
  • ABE PFEIFFER
    Joe’s father, American and Jewish
    Character Age
    60
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Jewish
    Character Gender Identity
    Male
  • ADINE WOLOFSKY
    Rachel’s aunt, Joan’s sister, American and Jewish
    Character Age
    60
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Jewish
    Character Gender Identity
    Female
  • MELITA JOHNSON
    Ari’s ex-girlfriend, American, raised Unitarian Universalist
    Character Age
    26
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Female

Development History

  • Type Reading, Organization Seattle Office of Arts & Culture @ Seattle Rep, Year 2011

Production History

  • Type Professional, Organization Parade Productions @ The Studio at Mizner Park, Year 2015
  • Type University, Organization The Theatre School at DePaul University, Year 2015
  • Type Professional, Organization Annex Theatre, Year 2013

Awards

  • Princess Grace Award
    Semi-Finalist
    2014
  • Gypsy Rose Lee Award for Excellence in Local Playwriting
    Seattle Theatre Writers
    Winner
    2013
  • Gregory Award for Outstanding New Play
    Theater Puget Sound
    Winner
    2013