Shut Up, I'm on a Diet!

by Catherine Weingarten

FULL LENGTH, A teenage girl with an eating disorder finds solace in her young therapist at her new mermaid themed inpatient treatment program but also finds him really hot. Can making out with him help her heal?
In this dark comedic play about eating disorders, one young woman must grapple with how to find her voice in a world that only wants her to look one way.

FULL LENGTH, A teenage girl with an eating disorder finds solace in her young therapist at her new mermaid themed inpatient treatment program but also finds him really hot. Can making out with him help her heal?
In this dark comedic play about eating disorders, one young woman must grapple with how to find her voice in a world that only wants her to look one way.

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Shut Up, I'm on a Diet!

Recommended by

  • Shaun Leisher: Shut Up, I'm on a Diet!

    A pitch black dark comedy about healing and connection. I especially love the scenes between Tess and her Dad. So well written and hilarious.

    A pitch black dark comedy about healing and connection. I especially love the scenes between Tess and her Dad. So well written and hilarious.

  • Samantha Marchant: Shut Up, I'm on a Diet!

    The tension between Tess and Digby was thick. The Dad was cringe funny. Funny and fascinating rhythm/line structures. Pointed in its ridiculousness. So, like, no bacon?

    The tension between Tess and Digby was thick. The Dad was cringe funny. Funny and fascinating rhythm/line structures. Pointed in its ridiculousness. So, like, no bacon?

  • Nick Malakhow: Shut Up, I'm on a Diet!

    I loved reading this expanded universe from the world of "This Car Trip Suckss!" With just four vividly-drawn characters, Weingarten executes a fully fleshed-out exploration of familial relationships, friendship, recovery and treatment facilities, and emerging sexuality AND the intersection of those things with body and self-image and mental health. The world manages to be both super heightened and entertainingly theatrical, while also grounded in strong emotional truths. Weingarten's work is so identifiable by its hilarity, sharp satire, multi-dimensionality, and distinctly cadenced dialogue...

    I loved reading this expanded universe from the world of "This Car Trip Suckss!" With just four vividly-drawn characters, Weingarten executes a fully fleshed-out exploration of familial relationships, friendship, recovery and treatment facilities, and emerging sexuality AND the intersection of those things with body and self-image and mental health. The world manages to be both super heightened and entertainingly theatrical, while also grounded in strong emotional truths. Weingarten's work is so identifiable by its hilarity, sharp satire, multi-dimensionality, and distinctly cadenced dialogue. I'd love to see this alive and onstage!

View all 10 recommendations

Character Information

Actresses in teens can be played by actresses in their 20s
  • Tess
    female, obsessed with dieting, kinda mean, shut off, likes hooking up in closets(ugh she’s cool!)
    Character Age
    16
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Cisgender Female
  • Tess's Dad
    male, superrrr manly, has got himself into some trouble, wishes him and Tess could hang 24/7
    Character Age
    40
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Cisgender Male
  • Pixie
    eager to please, she likes soup and hanging with her mother’s divorced friends who hug her a lot.
    Character Age
    16
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Cisgender Female
  • Digby
    intern at eating disorder center, dorky, kinda charming but his personality’s a bit on the surface, psychology PHD student
    Character Age
    24
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Any
    Character Gender Identity
    Cisgender Male

Development History

  • Type Reading, Organization Women’s theater festival, Year 2017
  • Type Workshop, Organization Ohio University Seabury Quinn Playwrights Festival, Year 2016
  • Type Reading, Organization Playground Experiment, Year 2016