Hellbent in a Northwoods Cabin

by Kim E. Ruyle

[Full-Length] NOTE: This play was previously titled, Flannel Sheets and a John Deere.
It all starts innocently enough when on the afternoon of November 19th, 2021, four coworkers are thrown together in a hunting cabin in the Wisconsin Northwoods on this, the very day that Kyle Rittenhouse has been found not guilty of fatally shooting two people during the Kenosha unrest of 2020. One of the four is an...

[Full-Length] NOTE: This play was previously titled, Flannel Sheets and a John Deere.
It all starts innocently enough when on the afternoon of November 19th, 2021, four coworkers are thrown together in a hunting cabin in the Wisconsin Northwoods on this, the very day that Kyle Rittenhouse has been found not guilty of fatally shooting two people during the Kenosha unrest of 2020. One of the four is an interloper, a fish out of water who has no business being there. As they discover unnerving truths about each other, including how they are each uniquely connected to the events in Kenosha, hostilities are sparked, alliances form and break, and everyone is put in jeopardy. How destructive can polarizing values become on a personal level? These four coworkers are about to find out.

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Hellbent in a Northwoods Cabin

Recommended by

  • Alaina Tennant: Hellbent in a Northwoods Cabin

    The very purpose of theatre is to understand the human experience—and that doesn't just mean the experience of people who think and believe the same way we do. In a time when politics is so polarizing, it is incredibly important to perform plays like this! To look at all sides of the story and view from the audience how quickly and insensibly we let things escalate. This play is perfect for theatres that want to open up political discussions without leaning on a particular bias. The dialogue is spectacular! The tension and pacing are equally wonderful.

    The very purpose of theatre is to understand the human experience—and that doesn't just mean the experience of people who think and believe the same way we do. In a time when politics is so polarizing, it is incredibly important to perform plays like this! To look at all sides of the story and view from the audience how quickly and insensibly we let things escalate. This play is perfect for theatres that want to open up political discussions without leaning on a particular bias. The dialogue is spectacular! The tension and pacing are equally wonderful.

  • Daniel Prillaman: Hellbent in a Northwoods Cabin

    I saw somewhere that folks w/ADHD won't follow rules they think are stupid. To them, they're nonsensical. But on the flip, rules they don't think are stupid? They will follow those to the death. And rage if other people don't. But that doesn't really apply to just neurodivergents does it? Ruyle's play is a pressure cooker, a perfect example of what might all too easily happen if you trap enough different viewpoints in one place. No one thinks they're the villain. And it takes a nuanced, delicate hand to navigate. Are we up to the task? Excellent chamber drama.

    I saw somewhere that folks w/ADHD won't follow rules they think are stupid. To them, they're nonsensical. But on the flip, rules they don't think are stupid? They will follow those to the death. And rage if other people don't. But that doesn't really apply to just neurodivergents does it? Ruyle's play is a pressure cooker, a perfect example of what might all too easily happen if you trap enough different viewpoints in one place. No one thinks they're the villain. And it takes a nuanced, delicate hand to navigate. Are we up to the task? Excellent chamber drama.

  • Ricardo Soltero-Brown: Hellbent in a Northwoods Cabin

    Ruyle makes a melting pot out of a cabin then turns it into a pot-boiler. The ingredients are the four characters, a weekend getaway, a potential hookup, a good-samaritan gesture, and a lost-and-wounded authority. It's a hodgepodge but it works like a magic trick, because everyone gets suspicious of everyone else just by their being themselves. Opposites attract, flip sides align. It's remarkable thematic work for looking at our country today and considering the values we hold in order to coexist. The dialogue never lets up, the character work follows through, and the lost-in-translation...

    Ruyle makes a melting pot out of a cabin then turns it into a pot-boiler. The ingredients are the four characters, a weekend getaway, a potential hookup, a good-samaritan gesture, and a lost-and-wounded authority. It's a hodgepodge but it works like a magic trick, because everyone gets suspicious of everyone else just by their being themselves. Opposites attract, flip sides align. It's remarkable thematic work for looking at our country today and considering the values we hold in order to coexist. The dialogue never lets up, the character work follows through, and the lost-in-translation provides laughs. Wonderful contemporary piece.

Development History

  • Type Reading, Organization Chicago Dramatists (excerpt of early draft, Flannel Sheets and a John Deere), Year 2023

Awards

  • 2024 Wisconsin Wrights
    Forward Theatre (Awarded for early draft, Flannel Sheets and a John Deere)
    Finalist
    2024
  • 2024 Scriptwriters & Co International Festival, Full-Length Play Script Category
    Scriptwriters & Co
    Runner Up
    2024