Galatea

by David Templeton

Winner, American Theatre Critics Association New Play Citation, 2022
Winner, Bay Area Theatre Critics Association, Best Original Play, 2022
Winner, Bay Area Theatre Critics Association, Best Bay Area Production, 2022
Winner. Will Glick New Play Award, Honorable Mention

A mystery/drama about a robot and her therapist, GALATEA is something of a cross between "My Fair Lady" and "Agnes of God," set on a space...

Winner, American Theatre Critics Association New Play Citation, 2022
Winner, Bay Area Theatre Critics Association, Best Original Play, 2022
Winner, Bay Area Theatre Critics Association, Best Bay Area Production, 2022
Winner. Will Glick New Play Award, Honorable Mention

A mystery/drama about a robot and her therapist, GALATEA is something of a cross between "My Fair Lady" and "Agnes of God," set on a space station in 2167. A multiple award-winning science-fiction mystery/thriller, GALATEA takes place on a single set high above the Earth, as robotics specialist Dr. Margaret Mailer conducts a series of sessions with the synthetic Seventy-One, the only surviving member of a crew once assigned to the Galatea, a deep-space transport vessel which disappeared over 100 years before. As Mailer slowly peels away layer after layer of the reluctant synthetic's protective programming, she grows closer and closer to discovering what, exactly, happened on the Galatea, while gradually suspecting a unsettling truth that could change the future of humankind.

Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award - Citation Winner 2022
San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Awards - Winner Original Script
Will Glickman New Play Awards - Honorable Mention 2021

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Galatea

Recommended by

  • Reggie Herbert: Galatea

    This play is fantastic. I cannot recommend it highly enough. As both a science fiction fan and a theatre practicioner, it is one of the few pieces that I've encountered that is a stellar example of both working at their highest potential. The things that make good science-fiction stories are good characters and big questions analyzed via narrative, and this does all of that in a graceful way.

    This play is fantastic. I cannot recommend it highly enough. As both a science fiction fan and a theatre practicioner, it is one of the few pieces that I've encountered that is a stellar example of both working at their highest potential. The things that make good science-fiction stories are good characters and big questions analyzed via narrative, and this does all of that in a graceful way.

  • Kate Danley: Galatea

    An absolutely stunning science fiction piece! A gorgeous study of humanity, an intriguing mystery, and so well crafted and written. If you are a fan of the gentle philosophy of Star Trek: the Next Generation, this will hit all the feels for you. With a small cast and easy staging requirements, this is a piece deserving of being produced often.

    An absolutely stunning science fiction piece! A gorgeous study of humanity, an intriguing mystery, and so well crafted and written. If you are a fan of the gentle philosophy of Star Trek: the Next Generation, this will hit all the feels for you. With a small cast and easy staging requirements, this is a piece deserving of being produced often.

  • Aly Kantor: Galatea

    This stunning but intimate sci-fi play captured my full attention from page one, and by the end, I was fully sobbing. I believe Dr. Mailer would call it "Catharsis." This is the sort of disarmingly human, sensitive, moving, and immersive sci-fi play I've been searching for. The characters are distinct and lovable, and the brilliant twists never stop coming, deepening my investment in their stories. I am resisting the urge to scroll back to the top and read it from the beginning. PLEASE produce this play! I want to see every performance!

    This stunning but intimate sci-fi play captured my full attention from page one, and by the end, I was fully sobbing. I believe Dr. Mailer would call it "Catharsis." This is the sort of disarmingly human, sensitive, moving, and immersive sci-fi play I've been searching for. The characters are distinct and lovable, and the brilliant twists never stop coming, deepening my investment in their stories. I am resisting the urge to scroll back to the top and read it from the beginning. PLEASE produce this play! I want to see every performance!

View all 6 recommendations

Development History

  • Type Commission, Organization Spreckels Performing Arts Center, Year 2020

Production History

  • Type Professional, Organization Spreckels Theatre Company, Year 2021

Awards

  • Overall Production/Bay Area: SFBATCC Excellence in Theatre Award
    The San Francisco Theatre Critics Association
    Winner
    2022
  • Original Script: SFBATCC Excellence in Theatre Award
    The San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Critics Association
    Winner
    2022
  • Citation in 2022 Steinberg/ATCA New Play Awards
    The Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust/American Theatre Critics Circle
    Winner
    2022
  • Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award
    The Harold & Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust/American Theatre Critics Association
    Finalist
    2022
  • Will Glickman Award
    Theatre Bay Area/Will Glickman Foundation
    Honorable Mention
    2021