Jonathon Benjamin

A short play inspired by recent events in American Politics. Wade and Ronnie are at Wade's family's home for Thanksgiving. They are upstairs, in an empty room, having a heated and diametrically opposed conversation about their future.

You can find love in the most unexpected places. Most human beings desire love—emotions and behaviors characterized by passion, intimacy and commitment. In this play, we find ourselves thrust into a world that has crescendoed into its second World War. Adolf Hitler is in absolute rule over Germany and the Hitler Youth have grown their numbers by indoctrinating and appropriating various national youth groups throughout Germany.
Two Young men, Lukas and Ryker, find themselves swept up into the Nazi Party and enlisted in the Wehrnacht, the uniformed military of Nazi Germany. On the Night of the Long Knives, Hitler declares laws against and orders a purging of homosexuals, that marks the beginning of the Nazi Party’s attack on gay men in Germany. Along with millions of Jews, Serbians, disabled citizens and other undesirables, Lukas and Ryker are caught in the crosshairs of their own political party.
Part of Lukas and Ryker’s duties at the Treblinka extermination camp are to collect people from the incoming trains and accompany the masses to the gas chambers for purging. Lukas and Ryker walk a very thin line on which their lives are depending. Ryker, the loyalist, is obligated to the ideals and doctrine of the Fuhrer. While Lukas, not so fully indoctrinated, is committed to his heart and his chance to escape this nightmare.

But, when they eventually get caught and have no more options, will Ryker run, or will Lukas stay?

Jon and Peter have been roommates for 12 years. Peter's mother is having major surgery, so he and Jon must decide the path that their relationship must take. Jon is ready to come out about their relationship, but Peter doesn't want to cause trouble for his mother before surgery. Is their love strong enough to get them through this, or will it be the end of their happiness together?

This play follows the journey of Brennan Lowman, tracking his story from an active-duty injury through transitioning back into civilian life after being medically retired from the Air Force. The play tackles the challenges that a recovering service member faces including, but not limited to, mental health, civilian sensitivity, and family dysfunction as a result of the hardship of caregiving. Lowman's story further acts as a medium by which our wounded veterans can reach out to the civilian sector, helping us all to see a glimpse of the struggles that they must face in order to find their “new normal.”

Inspired by August Wilson's Century Cycle, A Rip in the Fabric endeavors to follow the journey of the African American experience. Beginning in Africa, the play traverses the impossible and at times heart-wrenching milestones of the history of the African American through the Atlantic Slave Trade up until the late 20th century.

The Corner of Rainbow is an adaptation of the novel by Jonee M. Brown. It is a beautiful coming-of-age adventure of a young African child named Suwaigo. After his Father goes missing, Suwaigo leaves his village to find him. He meets those few guiding lights that come into our lives, helping to keep him on the path to his destiny. Suwaigo learns how to trust his faith through the many challenges he faces in search of his Father. From the Cherished Child to the Seasoned Saint, Suwaigo’s is a tale from which we can all learn the strength of hope and how powerful it is on the road to finding our true purpose in life.

Aeron, a high-school teenager, is fighting forces on both fronts--on one hand she has boy issues and, in the other, her abusive father at home. When she takes matters into her own hands, the consequences force her and the people she has affected to all come together and understand the circumstances. Through her Limericks, Aeron helps us to follow her story and try to understand why things went so wrong.

Is the only way out, the right way out?

This play is a glimpse into American life-specifically four characters from 1969 and, later, three more in 2012. Many historical milestones connect our present-day America to the past. The Stonewall Riots were the catalysts that connect the 50 years of this play. The set is minimal as the dialogue carries both the action and setting of the story.

The opening scenes interweave three actual events-the Vietnam War, the Moon Landing and the Stonewall Riots in Greenwich Village, NYC. When the play picks up, 43 years after Stonewall, the Obama Administration is in Office. With the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, it is now the first year that Active Duty military personnel are allowed to participate in Gay Pride festivities. One Great Leap in time shows us how the Stonewall Riots made way for the Brave New World we live in today.

Brandon is your run-of-the-mill college student. He thinks himself the lady-killer but his past has the ladies thinking twice before a date with him. Like a dreary cloud overhead, his past is always with him, but he manages with his therapy and medication. But, what happens on this particular evening is just something he could not have been ready for…

“The Enemy” is a short 10-minute play about an injured veteran’s way of dealing with life after service. He is cared for by his mother and Doctor Fox. Throughout the play we hear this veteran obsessing over an enemy but no one pays him any mind. Is it the result of his brain injury or is it an actual threat?

The real question is....who’s the enemy?

This is a fictional retelling of a famous nursery rhyme. The short play uses historical reality to retell the origin of the nursery rhyme.

A group of friends hav setup a meeting to get the goods. All is clandestine as things kick into action. But, what are the goods and can they pull this off?

a monologue in response to the question, "Why do black people always have to state that they're black or bring the conversation to race?"

An AIR FORCE veteran is forced to come to terms with how his life had turned out after serving in the military. He struggles with his family history and living up to the generations of men in the military that came before hiom.

A monologue from a hurting son to his mother.