Delivery Boy

Jaden Alvaro Gines's DELIVERY BOY is a unique seriocomedy that focuses heavily on the lower middle class of America, giving perspective on the families who are stuck in a never ending struggle of spending every last bit of money to stay exactly where they are. The play deals with the slow, clawing nature of depression, mental illness, and generational trauma, with a heavy emphasis on the hefty burden of the...

Jaden Alvaro Gines's DELIVERY BOY is a unique seriocomedy that focuses heavily on the lower middle class of America, giving perspective on the families who are stuck in a never ending struggle of spending every last bit of money to stay exactly where they are. The play deals with the slow, clawing nature of depression, mental illness, and generational trauma, with a heavy emphasis on the hefty burden of the college admissions economics—all seen through the eyes of a teenager on the cusp of securing a college experience, with the help of his psychology teacher. With two hours to midnight on New Years Eve, Delivery Boy is stuck delivering pizzas on his old, rusty bicycle in the center of working class suburbia. After years of economic strife, a raging dependency to Marijuana, and physically and emotionally unavailable parents, Delivery Boy has accepted that his dreams of college have been long extinguished. But when an opportunity for a better life is presented to him by his high school psychology professor, Mrs. Gonzales, Delivery Boy must come to terms with those he's lost, who he wants to be, and what lies ahead of him in the new year, all while the clock ticks down to midnight.

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Delivery Boy

Character Information

Aside from Delivery Boy and Mrs. Gonzales, his psychology professor, the rest of the characters in the piece can be incorporated through a multitude of ways; They can be performed by a recording, another actor offstage, or by Delivery Boy himself. Or, if one is looking to have performers on stage, There is also the option of having all of the voices and characters in the play appear suddenly around Delivery Boy, before disappearing as quickly as they came. It is important, however, to never have the performers in the same playing space as Delivery Boy. His play space is mid-stage, grounded, while the rest of the world unfolds above and around him. This wall is only broken at the end, when Mrs. Gonzalez appears on stage alongside Delivery Boy. Mrs. Gonzalez is the only one who makes eye contact with him.

*The character of Delivery Boy should be performed by a trasnmasculine person.
  • Delivery Boy
    The central character of the play, as well as its namesake. A 17 year old loner from working class suburbia. Due to the financial restraints of middle class America, he is forced to deliver pizzas on his old, rusted bicycle just to stay afloat. Coming from absent, working parents, his vices grow from weed to alcohol. It is only when faced with an opportunity from a teacher that he can start to muster the courage to strive for better. He is our narrator for the piece, no matter how unreliable he may be. Comedic timing is a must, as he entices the audience onstage for the duration of the play.
    Character Age
    17-18
    Character Gender Identity
    Non-binary or trans man
  • Mrs. Gonzales
    A public school psychology teacher, somewhere in her early-mid 20’s. Tentative, wise, but can take a joke just as good as she can dish it out, with even more sarcastic finesse. Following a fatal car crash, she acts as a guiding force for Delivery Boy, urging him towards betterment after giving him the opportunity for a full ride college scholarship to any university of his choosing.
    Character Age
    25-30
    Character Race/Ethnic Identity
    Latino
    Character Gender Identity
    Cis female

Development History

  • Type Reading, Organization Theater Exile, Year 2026
  • Type Workshop, Organization The University of the Arts - Equinox New Play Festival, Year 2023

Production History

  • Type Fringe, Organization Philadelphia Fringe, Cannonball Festival, Year 2024
  • Type Professional, Organization Kitchen Sink Theater Company, Year 2024

Awards

  • Best New Play
    BroadwayWorld Off Broadway Awards
    Finalist
    2024