Steven Christopher McKnight

Steven Christopher McKnight (he/him/his) is a playwright and memoirist from some abandoned coal mine in Northeastern Pennsylvania. He is enamored with political assassinations, history's petty absurdities, and metatheatre. He is currently working on a trilogy of plays about Artificial Intelligence and how it threatens to undo us.

Steven Christopher McKnight (he/him/his) is a playwright and memoirist from some abandoned coal mine in Northeastern Pennsylvania. He is enamored with political assassinations, history's petty absurdities, and metatheatre. He is currently working on a trilogy of plays about Artificial Intelligence and how it threatens to undo us.

Scripts

Dredging Lake Cocytus

by Steven Christopher McKnight

Synopsis

The Acheron Project provides specially curated AI simulacra of deceased loved ones. Users receive an interface that looks, sounds, and acts exactly like the real thing! However Thomas Day, a high-ranking executive for the project, is suspicious that something more is happening: Namely, the simulacra seem to all share the same mutual hallucination, known to them as Paradisio. An investigation of Acheron dredges...

The Acheron Project provides specially curated AI simulacra of deceased loved ones. Users receive an interface that looks, sounds, and acts exactly like the real thing! However Thomas Day, a high-ranking executive for the project, is suspicious that something more is happening: Namely, the simulacra seem to all share the same mutual hallucination, known to them as Paradisio. An investigation of Acheron dredges up Tom's own guilt in his betrayal of his close friends and abandonment of his own family as an attempt to avoid confronting the soul-crushing grief that pursues him relentlessly. Meanwhile his deceased sister, an AI simulacrum herself, finds herself unraveling a mystery of her own: some simulacra wander Paradisio without their consent.

Sequel to "Binding Prometheus."

The Well-Dressed Stranger of Prague

by Steven Christopher McKnight

Synopsis

Years ago, Max and Jana made a promise to meet in a nondescript square in Prague. Max showed up. Jana didn't. Max is joined by a well-dressed stranger who is exactly who he seems to be.

Years ago, Max and Jana made a promise to meet in a nondescript square in Prague. Max showed up. Jana didn't. Max is joined by a well-dressed stranger who is exactly who he seems to be.

Binding Prometheus - A Travesty in Three Acts

by Steven Christopher McKnight

Synopsis

Binding Prometheus follows the genesis of a creative AI, ShakesBot, created by charismatic computer programmer Leroy Baxter to dream up and write incredible scripts with the wit of William Shakespeare. However, the ShakesBot soon takes on a life of his own, and as the characters grapple with the ramifications of releasing him into the world, Leroy Baxter’s motivations prove to not be so cut-and-dry as he’s...

Binding Prometheus follows the genesis of a creative AI, ShakesBot, created by charismatic computer programmer Leroy Baxter to dream up and write incredible scripts with the wit of William Shakespeare. However, the ShakesBot soon takes on a life of his own, and as the characters grapple with the ramifications of releasing him into the world, Leroy Baxter’s motivations prove to not be so cut-and-dry as he’s letting on.

The Iron Man of Prague

by Steven Christopher McKnight

Synopsis

Max and Elena are two ex-lovers, brought by fate to the Charles Bridge in Prague to reexamine their relationship and tell ghost stories.

Max and Elena are two ex-lovers, brought by fate to the Charles Bridge in Prague to reexamine their relationship and tell ghost stories.

Prelude

by Steven Christopher McKnight

Synopsis

A semifictionalized history play about the life of Gavrilo Princip, the young man who shot and killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo on June 28th, 1914. What happened to young Gavrilo Princip that led him to Sarajevo in 1914? How will Gavrilo justify firing two bullets into the motorcade and sending the world careening toward a path of destruction? Much more pressing, what is up with that sandwich?

A semifictionalized history play about the life of Gavrilo Princip, the young man who shot and killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo on June 28th, 1914. What happened to young Gavrilo Princip that led him to Sarajevo in 1914? How will Gavrilo justify firing two bullets into the motorcade and sending the world careening toward a path of destruction? Much more pressing, what is up with that sandwich?

The Man Who Shot Hitler

by Steven Christopher McKnight

Synopsis

A strategically unnamed fascist finds himself alone in a bunker with a troubling message and a mirror that does not work. An unexpected visitor pops by.

A strategically unnamed fascist finds himself alone in a bunker with a troubling message and a mirror that does not work. An unexpected visitor pops by.

Twenty Shillings and a Dog: A Contemporary Farce In One Continuous and Insufferable Act

by Steven Christopher McKnight

Synopsis

The shit hits the proverbial fan in the timeless 18th-century English town of Horningshire when Jonathan Kingsley, cabbage farmer of some small fortune, discovers that his wife, Mary Kingsley, has been entertaining an extramarital affair with an anonymous lover and decides, in a fit of anger, to auction her off at the local market. Follow Jeff, a young, poor, homeless orphan as he begs, meanders, and sweet-talks...

The shit hits the proverbial fan in the timeless 18th-century English town of Horningshire when Jonathan Kingsley, cabbage farmer of some small fortune, discovers that his wife, Mary Kingsley, has been entertaining an extramarital affair with an anonymous lover and decides, in a fit of anger, to auction her off at the local market. Follow Jeff, a young, poor, homeless orphan as he begs, meanders, and sweet-talks the village locality into giving him the money to liberate Mary from her less-than-ideal husband. Who will wind up with Mary Kingsley's hand in marriage, and is there more to this auction than meets the eye?

Caius & Quid

by Steven Christopher McKnight

Synopsis

Caius and Quid are two bums who live on a park bench. Shenanigans ensue when a certain degree of political upheaval occurs.

Caius and Quid are two bums who live on a park bench. Shenanigans ensue when a certain degree of political upheaval occurs.