Rachel Whalen

Rachel Whalen is a writer and translator from Buffalo, New York. She has an MFA from NYU and currently lives in Mexico City. You can find more of her work at rachel-whalen.com.

Rachel Whalen is a writer and translator from Buffalo, New York. She has an MFA from NYU and currently lives in Mexico City. You can find more of her work at rachel-whalen.com.

Scripts

The Rut

by Rachel Whalen

Synopsis

After struggling for years with infertility, Moira asks Rini, her brilliant and intimidating best friend from childhood, to carry her baby. But as Moira and her husband, Vincent, plan for the birth, the political and emotional complications of surrogacy open up old wounds in Moira and Rini's friendship, forcing them both to confront the complexities of their relationship. The Rut explores female friendship...

After struggling for years with infertility, Moira asks Rini, her brilliant and intimidating best friend from childhood, to carry her baby. But as Moira and her husband, Vincent, plan for the birth, the political and emotional complications of surrogacy open up old wounds in Moira and Rini's friendship, forcing them both to confront the complexities of their relationship. The Rut explores female friendship, class, and the harrowing and sometimes devastating decisions faced by women today.

This Side of Michigan

by Rachel Whalen

Synopsis

Lois, a waitress who is down on her luck, wakes up one morning to find an octopus in her apartment. In the ten minutes that follows, she confronts past and present struggles while interacting with the new creature that's inhabiting her home. "This Side of Michigan" is an allegorical, surreal, dramatic work that attempts to understand class, grief, and survival in 21st-century America.

Lois, a waitress who is down on her luck, wakes up one morning to find an octopus in her apartment. In the ten minutes that follows, she confronts past and present struggles while interacting with the new creature that's inhabiting her home. "This Side of Michigan" is an allegorical, surreal, dramatic work that attempts to understand class, grief, and survival in 21st-century America.