Tom Bruett

Tom Bruett

Tom Bruett is a playwright whose work has been produced at La Jolla Playhouse/Blindspot Collective, Atlantic Acting School, PianoFight, SF Fringe, PCSF, ReGroup Theatre, Lakeshore Players, Players’ Theatre and Best of PlayGround 23 and 24. His full-length PlayGround commission, The Nesting Instinct, was read as part of Zoom Fest 2020. He was a finalist for the Humana Festival Heideman Award. As a lyricist he...
Tom Bruett is a playwright whose work has been produced at La Jolla Playhouse/Blindspot Collective, Atlantic Acting School, PianoFight, SF Fringe, PCSF, ReGroup Theatre, Lakeshore Players, Players’ Theatre and Best of PlayGround 23 and 24. His full-length PlayGround commission, The Nesting Instinct, was read as part of Zoom Fest 2020. He was a finalist for the Humana Festival Heideman Award. As a lyricist he was selected for the Johnny Mercer Songwriting Institute through ASCAP and Northwestern.

Plays

  • The Nesting Instinct by Tom Bruett
    Recommendations: 1
    ·
    Cast: 
    6
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    Genre: comedy, drama + 2 more
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    Keyword: environment, LGBTQ + 2 more
    Genre: comedy, drama, experimental, political
    Keyword: environment, LGBTQ, animal anthropomorphism, family grief
    Olivia and her brother Matthew have conflicting views about what to do with their inherited childhood home that’s built in a flood zone in Florida. A pair of blue-footed boobies wrestle with the power of the instinctual urge to have a chick on an island that is shrinking by the day. Three stories intertwine in surprising ways to explore parenthood, identity and the steadfast power of home in a world that is...
    Olivia and her brother Matthew have conflicting views about what to do with their inherited childhood home that’s built in a flood zone in Florida. A pair of blue-footed boobies wrestle with the power of the instinctual urge to have a chick on an island that is shrinking by the day. Three stories intertwine in surprising ways to explore parenthood, identity and the steadfast power of home in a world that is changing drastically by the minute.
  • The Sound Healing by Tom Bruett
    Cast: 
    5
    ·
    Genre: comedy, drama + 2 more
    ·
    Keyword: healing, grief + 3 more
    Genre: comedy, drama, experimental, immersive
    Keyword: healing, grief, healing power of sound, Contemporary gay male life, immersive
    Two years after an accident that caused the death of his children and the break-up of his marriage, Gabe is in danger of becoming lost in his grief forever. Luckily he finds the first glimmer of hope for recovery at a sound healing led by an old friend. Can he put the past behind him and forgive or will he become lost in the dance of anger and heartbreak? Hope shows up in the most surprising places, if you listen hard enough.
  • The Starter by Tom Bruett
    Cast: 
    2
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    Genre: dark comedy
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    Keyword: features LGBTQ characters, COVID + 1 more
    Genre: dark comedy
    Keyword: features LGBTQ characters, COVID, kitchen
    A gay couple is trying to find a sour dough starter in the middle of the pandemic. The search brings back ghosts from a previous epidemic that they somehow were lucky enough to survive.
  • Fabulous Pink Pumps by Tom Bruett
    Recommendations: 1
    ·
    Cast: 
    3
    ·
    Genre: comedy
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    Keyword: gay and trans theatre, Gay and LGBTQ
    Genre: comedy
    Keyword: gay and trans theatre, Gay and LGBTQ
    A middle-aged straight guy and a trans woman meet in the shoe aisle of TJ Maxx. Little do they know that his wife is observing from afar. In this thought provoking exploration of gender and stereotypes, we find that we're not actually all that different. And everyone loves a pair of fabulous pink pumps.
  • Welcome to the String by Tom Bruett
    Cast: 
    3–4
    ·
    Genre: comedy, fantasy + 1 more
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    Keyword: christmas, anthropomorphism
    Genre: comedy, fantasy, holiday
    Keyword: christmas, anthropomorphism
    An aging C9 Christmas light string must find a way to remain relevant before their owner decides to replace them with the dreaded modern and sleep LED lights. In the process the light bulbs explored life, death and the true meaning of Christmas.
  • Mom's House by Tom Bruett
    Cast: 
    2
    ·
    Genre: dark comedy
    ·
    Keyword: features LGBTQ character, grief + 2 more
    Genre: dark comedy
    Keyword: features LGBTQ character, grief, comedy, Psychedelic drugs
    A brother and sister are tasked with cleaning out their recently deceased mother's house. However, the rice crispy treats they just consumed are not as they seem and the past quickly takes over. Can they come together to forge a new path forward or will they be stuck picking through the demons their ancestors left behind?
  • Christmas Evita by Tom Bruett
    Cast: 
    2
    ·
    Genre: comedy, drama
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    Keyword: LGBTQ, intergenerational
    Genre: comedy, drama
    Keyword: LGBTQ, intergenerational
    When volunteering at a nursing home on Christmas, Edgar is faced with the challenging task of serving dinner to the most crotchety member of the community. Though wildly different, the two men bridge the generational divide by connecting around shared love, loss and a mutual appreciation for a certain Andrew Lloyd Weber musical.
  • Stale Nuts and Bubble Wrap by Tom Bruett
    Cast: 
    2
    ·
    Genre: comedy, experimental + 1 more
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    Keyword: hoarding, comedy + 2 more
    Genre: comedy, experimental, movement/physical
    Keyword: hoarding, comedy, inanimate objects talking, anthropomorphism
    What happens when you look inside the minds of the objects that a hoarder collects? You learn something about humanity and the depths which we all go to stay relevant and important.
  • Whose Afraid of Liberal Fragility by Tom Bruett
    Cast: 
    4
    ·
    Genre: drama
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    Keyword: Racial Tension, Gay and LGBTQ + 1 more
    Genre: drama
    Keyword: Racial Tension, Gay and LGBTQ, millennial angst
    When a group of millennial friends meet for a dinner party, tensions rise when race, sexuality and gender come to a head in a violent and surprising way.
  • Just As It Is Today by Tom Bruett
    Cast: 
    2
    ·
    Genre: comedy, political
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    Keyword: global warming, anthropomorphism
    Genre: comedy, political
    Keyword: global warming, anthropomorphism
    In this heartwarming, anthropomorphic 10 minute play, we meet Daphne and Duncan, a pair of blue-footed boobies of chick-bearing age. Their island home is shrinking fast and they must decide if they should have a chick or leave their home in search of higher ground. This play was featured in Best of Playground in San Francisco 2019.