The Last Supper, a grand guignol love story (Satire/Zombie Apocalypse)

by David Simpatico

The Last Supper: a grand guignol love story

A grand guignol farce about the end of the world, and how we get there.
Cast size: 8 men, 5 women; puppet zombies

MANNY, a comfortably retired gay man in the Hudson Valley, and MAX, his socially catatonic playwright/husband, are hosting an assisted-suicide, end-of-life dinner for 99-year-old patriarch, EDGAR, whose retinue includes RAMONE, a 27-year-old tantric...

The Last Supper: a grand guignol love story

A grand guignol farce about the end of the world, and how we get there.
Cast size: 8 men, 5 women; puppet zombies

MANNY, a comfortably retired gay man in the Hudson Valley, and MAX, his socially catatonic playwright/husband, are hosting an assisted-suicide, end-of-life dinner for 99-year-old patriarch, EDGAR, whose retinue includes RAMONE, a 27-year-old tantric masseur, and MORTY, professional death-doula, to prepare the fatal Seconal cocktail. The guests are late, the grid is on the fritz, and sirens blast out dire warnings of impending doom. Wine-wrangler PATTY RUE runs into trouble when recently deceased corpses rise from the grave as UNDEAD CANNIBALS, devouring humans and spreading the ZOMBIE VIRUS.

Despite the zombies, sirens and disinformation spewed by SIRI, the malfunctioning smart-house computer, Manny and his guests finally sit for the Last Supper. But each time Edgar raises his glass for his final, farewell toast, he is interrupted by desperate intruders seeking sanctuary from the Undead: KAREN PICKLES, local right-wing MAGA Town Supervisor; BLACK DAHLIA, African American performance artist and LESLIE DUKE, her trans husband/carpenter/activist. And finally, they are joined by FRED CHRISTIAN, the new next-door neighbor, a God-Hates-Fags ordained minister come to spread the hate of Christ.

This aggressive black comedy explores the Great Replacement Theory to its logical, self-destructive ends. The desperate survivors band together in the flux of what’s real and unreal, fighting for their lives against the undead, against the machines, and against each other.

Trigger Warnings:
Please be advised, this story involves references to, and representations of, the following issues that may cause discomfort: Slavery, Racism, Gore, Assisted suicide, Graphic language, graphic subject matter, graphic violence, Political satire, Abortion, Gun shots, Impalement, Nuclear bomb, Woke, MAGA, Zombie Apocalypse, Flagrant sexuality, Castration, Fellatio, Cannibalism, Child birth, Eye-gouging, Branding, Vivisection, Animal cruelty, Homophobia, Anti-Semitism and Anti-Christian bias.

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The Last Supper, a grand guignol love story (Satire/Zombie Apocalypse)

Character Information

  • Manny
    The well-heeled and well-kept master of the house, the guy in charge. White, Jewish, gay. Hosting an assisted-suicide dinner party, the day of a zombie apocalypse. Having a crisis of identity and purpose.
    60s+
    White
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      60s,
      70s+
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      White
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Man
  • Max
    A playwright who has retreated into his own world with occasional sync-ups to the real world. A gay, end-of-the-world Prepper.
    50+
    White
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      50s,
      60s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      White
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Man
  • Siri
    Smart House Computer, with a secret...
    Any Age
    African American/Black
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      30s,
      40s,
      50s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Black, African, Caribbean, or African American
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Woman,
      Non-binary
  • Wally
    Professional maitre 'd; severe alcoholic, Max's best friend, phenomenal cook famous for his homestyle French cuisine; always cooking, always smoking, always drinking; officially has no fucks left to give.
    40+
    Any
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      40s,
      50s,
      60s
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Man
  • Ramone
    Edgar’s sexy, 27 year-old Latinx roommate; ambitious, smart, brutal. Brilliant event designer and tantric masseur.
    20s-30s
    Latino
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Latinx/o/a or Hispanic
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Man
  • Morty
    Edgar's death doula; ex-abortionist; the son of a US senator; makes a killing in the newly-legalized assisted-suicide business with his franchise, The Last Supper.
    40s+
    Any
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      30s,
      40s,
      50s
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Man,
      Non-binary
  • Edgar
    Manny's mentor and former lover; a brilliant liver-of-life. The spare bunk in Edgar’s famous floor-through apartment has been filled with a steady line of remarkable young men, all of whom have made their impact upon the world. Tonight, he plans to kill himself, right after the final toast.
    60+
    White
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      60s,
      70s+
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      White
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Man
  • Patty Rue
    Wine wrangler, Wally's best pal/worst enemy; a wild-maned redhead of a certain age, with oversized dark sunglasses, lamb gloves, a seasonal swirl of wool and yarn and scarves, and layers of gentrified outerwear; an orphan with abandonment issues.
    50s+
    White
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      50s,
      60s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      White
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Woman
  • Karen Pickles
    Town Supervisor, Pickle entrepreneur, ex-dog-friend; Built like a dyed-blond Mac Truck, KAREN combines the ambitious charisma of Kimberly Guilfoyle, the neanderthalic charm of Marjorie Taylor Green, and a genuinely good, if misguided, heart.
    40s+
    White
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      30s,
      40s,
      50s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      White
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Woman
  • Black Dahlia
    A stunning and brilliant black radical performance artist/teacher wearing a cute maternity dress and army boots; she looks about ten months pregnant.
    30s+
    African American/Black
    Female
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s,
      40s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      Black, African, Caribbean, or African American
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Woman
  • Leslie Duke
    Black Dahlia's trans-husband, a buff carpenter with a light beard and mustache; never goes anywhere without his tools.
    30s+
    White
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s,
      40s,
      50s
  • Fred Christian
    Manny's new next-door neighbor; opening a branch of the Westboro Baptist Church, virulently anti-lgbtq, anti-black, anti-Jew; wears a flack jacket over a GOD HATES FAGS t-shirt; wields a big baseball bat.
    40s+
    White
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      40s,
      50s,
      60s
    • Actor Race/Ethnic Identity
      White
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Man
  • The Dead Cable Guy
    Sexy Cable tech support in short shorts; a zombie.
    20s+
    Any
    Male
    Can be played by:
    • Actor Age
      20s,
      30s,
      40s,
      50s
    • Actor Gender Identity
      Man

Development History

  • Reading, Stissing Center, 2024
  • Reading, Howl Playwrights, 2023/4