From the Perspective of a Canoe

by Amy Dellagiarino

FULL LENGTH. How much grief can one family hold? Tess has fled to her parents’ house where she is currently curled up in an old canoe in their backyard, hiding from reporters. A few days ago her husband walked into the local supermarket and shot several shoppers before turning the gun on himself. It’s virtually impossible to escape the darkness coating her own brain, not to mention the channel news reports about...

FULL LENGTH. How much grief can one family hold? Tess has fled to her parents’ house where she is currently curled up in an old canoe in their backyard, hiding from reporters. A few days ago her husband walked into the local supermarket and shot several shoppers before turning the gun on himself. It’s virtually impossible to escape the darkness coating her own brain, not to mention the channel news reports about the event, but Tess is determined to try. All she wants to do is be left alone, but unfortunately for her it's the Fourth of July, and her parents are hell bent on carrying out their annual BBQ. The family tries desperately to keep up appearances while everything they believed to be true crumbles around them. A dark comedy about grief, guilt, and hamburgers.

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From the Perspective of a Canoe

Recommended by

  • Kyle Smith: From the Perspective of a Canoe by Amy Dellagiarino
    “

    This dark, beautiful, funny play feels like it was crafted by a croissant baker. Each page, a new layer peels back, and as you keep going through the layers, the new but similar layers, you arrive closer to the heart of this complicated play. Nobody knows what to do during something like this, so all you can do is eat a turnip and hope for the best. Well done.

    This dark, beautiful, funny play feels like it was crafted by a croissant baker. Each page, a new layer peels back, and as you keep going through the layers, the new but similar layers, you arrive closer to the heart of this complicated play. Nobody knows what to do during something like this, so all you can do is eat a turnip and hope for the best. Well done.

    ”
  • Susan Seaborn: From the Perspective of a Canoe by Amy Dellagiarino
    “

    Probably the most brilliant play I've ever read. The dialog is biting, real, and laugh until you're crying funny. A black comedy to beat all black comedies.

    Probably the most brilliant play I've ever read. The dialog is biting, real, and laugh until you're crying funny. A black comedy to beat all black comedies.

    ”
  • Playwrights Foundation: From the Perspective of a Canoe by Amy Dellagiarino
    “

    The community of national & local readers for the Bay Area Playwrights Festival in 2021 enthusiastically recommends FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF A CANOE as a Semi-Finalist at Playwrights Foundation out of 755 plays. We highly enjoyed the brisk pacing and believable characters in this humorous investigation of family and community grief during a family's 4th of July BBQ. We were compelled by this play's promise as an allegory of America's non-response to mass shootings, as well as a smartly written play about loss. We hope this play is widely read, finds dedicated collaborators, and moves swiftly...

    The community of national & local readers for the Bay Area Playwrights Festival in 2021 enthusiastically recommends FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF A CANOE as a Semi-Finalist at Playwrights Foundation out of 755 plays. We highly enjoyed the brisk pacing and believable characters in this humorous investigation of family and community grief during a family's 4th of July BBQ. We were compelled by this play's promise as an allegory of America's non-response to mass shootings, as well as a smartly written play about loss. We hope this play is widely read, finds dedicated collaborators, and moves swiftly towards production. #BAPF2021

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    ”
View all 9 recommendations

Development History

  • Reading, Austin Film Festival, 2021
  • Reading, Tuesdays@9 Los Angeles, 2020

Production History

  • University, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, 2024

Awards

  • Stage Play Script Competition
    Austin Film Festival
    Winner
    2021