Nubia Monks

Monique and David are reunited after two years, six months and about two weeks. But did I mention that Monique and David are ex-lovers? Did I also mention that this reunion was the last thing either of them expected to happen on a Friday night? Did I also mention that most of A LESSON IN LOVE takes place during a Lyft ride in Los Angeles, CA? Which means that not only are Monique and David completely taken aback by this reunion, they are also stuck in LA traffic, and are therefore stuck with each other. Over the course of this ride... these two ex-lovers are forced to face unresolved feelings from their past whilst also navigating new and surprising feelings that are brewing in the present. This two-hander is a romantic comedy that explores the complex nuances of Love. A LESSON IN LOVE is a play about what happens when you let Love do the work. This is more than just a play; it's a necessary conversation.

Six ancestral beings have been tasked with a divine assignment: Ancestral guardianship; providing complete protection, prevention, support and justice for all Black girls who are still healing from, or who are facing the dangers of sexual atrocities that continue to afflict us worldwide. In order to activate this power and become ancestral guardians, they must first face their own experiences of sexual assault so that they may be free… because a Black woman has the power to free her entire community, if she can first free herself. This is not a play; this is a prayer- for Black women, from Black women. Inspired by real stories, and real people; THE LOST WOMEN shines light on sexual violence, the injustices that Black women face, and the ancestral power that we draw our strength from every day that we choose to wake up and brave a world that has yet to love us or see us as human.

In 1984, Lonnie Franklin Jr, also known as the “Grim Sleeper” claimed his first victim; by 2007, he had claimed the lives of over one hundred African American women. He would hunt them down, lure them with money and crack cocaine, then he would either shoot them with his 25. Caliber pistol or strangle them to death. He would then sexually assault their lifeless bodies before taking polaroid pictures of them. Once, he was finished, he would mutilate their bodies and leave their parts in alleyways all over South Central, Los Angeles. Among his victims was a little girl named Princess Berthomieux; she was only fifteen years old when she was murdered.

The Girl(s) Next Door is centered around Princess and the spirits of the Grim Sleeper’s victims. Princess is on a mission to completely dismantle an injustice system that continues to allow violence against Black women to go unchecked. She will not stop until justice is served for her, and the many lives lost to The Grim Sleeper.

Hands of Color examines the issue of racism and how it is inevitably dismantled and unraveled when in the face of pure love and innocence.