The Submission

by Jeff Talbott

Danny has written a complex new drama about an African-American family trying to get out of the Projects, and it has just been selected for the nation's preeminent play festival.  Problem is:  Danny, a young white playwright, submitted the work under a pen name in the hope of increasing its chances for production.  So he hires Emilie, a black actress, to stand in for him as author.  What starts as a terrible...

Danny has written a complex new drama about an African-American family trying to get out of the Projects, and it has just been selected for the nation's preeminent play festival.  Problem is:  Danny, a young white playwright, submitted the work under a pen name in the hope of increasing its chances for production.  So he hires Emilie, a black actress, to stand in for him as author.  What starts as a terrible idea becomes more and more terrible as Danny drags Emilie, his boyfriend, and his best friend down a long a dirty path of truth, lies, revelation and betrayal.  A fiercely funny and intelligent new comic drama about the words we use to describe each other -- and the things we'll do to get what we want.

“THE SUBMISSION is a raw, unsentimental play about race and gender that exposes the quiet prejudice and intolerance among even our most progressive thinkers. It is both uncomfortable and impossible to not watch. . . . As for Talbott, it's a pleasure to see what he's capable of.”
--AP, Mark Kennedy

“Fearless, whip-smart, and hyperarticulate, Talbott's incendiary political comedy-drama asks hard questions about our supposedly post-racial world. . . . THE SUBMISSION is an important play. It makes you stop and think.”
--Backstage, Erik Haagensen

“A viewing of THE SUBMISSION is bound to be one of the most electrically-charged theatre outings of the season.”
--Broadwayworld.com, Michael Dale

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The Submission

Recommended by

  • Jess Eichen: The Submission by Jeff Talbott
    “

    I had the pleasure of seeing The Submission performed at the Stella Adler Studio -- this play weaves tension, white lies, mistakes, piling resentments, egos, and harsh words that get so tight that the only place for it all to go is to explode in everyone's faces. I gasped many times. Beneath all the drama, Jeff Talbott has created a nuanced open discussion about race in America and in the arts, and the responsibilities and power that a storyteller takes on when they tell a story.

    I had the pleasure of seeing The Submission performed at the Stella Adler Studio -- this play weaves tension, white lies, mistakes, piling resentments, egos, and harsh words that get so tight that the only place for it all to go is to explode in everyone's faces. I gasped many times. Beneath all the drama, Jeff Talbott has created a nuanced open discussion about race in America and in the arts, and the responsibilities and power that a storyteller takes on when they tell a story.

    ”
  • Kareem Fahmy: The Submission by Jeff Talbott
    “

    Scathing, funny, nasty... what a fun read. Bold, vivid characters. A "ugh, this hurts" look at what it means to be a playwright in the American theatre today.

    Scathing, funny, nasty... what a fun read. Bold, vivid characters. A "ugh, this hurts" look at what it means to be a playwright in the American theatre today.

    ”
  • Julie Zaffarano: The Submission by Jeff Talbott
    “

    This gripping and unnerving play makes you squirm and laugh and think. With each bad decision, the characters are drawn deeper and deeper, caught in a web of lies. Brilliant. A must read. Bravo, Jeff Talbott!

    This gripping and unnerving play makes you squirm and laugh and think. With each bad decision, the characters are drawn deeper and deeper, caught in a web of lies. Brilliant. A must read. Bravo, Jeff Talbott!

    ”

Production History

  • Professional, MCC Theater - Off-Broadway/Lucille Lortel Theatre, 2011

Awards

  • John Gassner Award for Best New American Play
    Outer Critics Circle
    Winner
    2012
  • The Laurents/Hatcher Award (inaugural winner)
    The Laurents/Hatcher Foundation
    Winner
    2011
  • The O'Neill Playwrights Conference
    The Eugene O'Neill Theater Center
    Semi-Finalist
    2011