Katrin Arefy

Katrin Arefy is an essayist and playwright who examines the many absurd realities that we experience in our daily lives in her writing.

Her essays and playscripts have appeared in numerous literary magazines, including North Dakota Quarterly, Water~Stone Review, Fleas on the Dog, Free State Review, and Meat for Tea: The Valley Review, The Tusculum Review and Some Scripts Literary Magazine.

Her plays have been premiered in New York City, performed in California, reached the semifinalist round at Ivoryton Playhouse’s inaugural Women Playwright’s Initiative, selected for inclusion at the Iranian Drama Festival in Heidelberg, Germany, and Funny Shorts in Florida. Her latest theatre work, The Portrait of an Angel, a Lion, a Monster was premiered in Manhattan, NY in January 2022 The play...

Katrin Arefy is an essayist and playwright who examines the many absurd realities that we experience in our daily lives in her writing.

Her essays and playscripts have appeared in numerous literary magazines, including North Dakota Quarterly, Water~Stone Review, Fleas on the Dog, Free State Review, and Meat for Tea: The Valley Review, The Tusculum Review and Some Scripts Literary Magazine.

Her plays have been premiered in New York City, performed in California, reached the semifinalist round at Ivoryton Playhouse’s inaugural Women Playwright’s Initiative, selected for inclusion at the Iranian Drama Festival in Heidelberg, Germany, and Funny Shorts in Florida. Her latest theatre work, The Portrait of an Angel, a Lion, a Monster was premiered in Manhattan, NY in January 2022 The play was well received by he audience and NY critics in a review on The Theatre Times.

Katrin's play A Massacre will be included in the 2023 season of Golden Thread Production's ReOrient Festival.

You may see samples of Katrin Arfey’s plays at New Play Exchange or on her website www.katrinarefy.com

Scripts

The Elbisnopsers! or How Do You Say Their Damn Name?

by Katrin Arefy

Synopsis

Breaking news about a distant civilization disturbs the quiet household of a middle class family, as three adults try to overcome their own fear-inducing ignorance. Turning to their limited resources, they manage to incite their dread of the unknown. The ensuing tempest in a teapot underscores how intercultural miscommunication and lack of knowledge can cause fear of anyone different or unfamiliar. Using a...

Breaking news about a distant civilization disturbs the quiet household of a middle class family, as three adults try to overcome their own fear-inducing ignorance. Turning to their limited resources, they manage to incite their dread of the unknown. The ensuing tempest in a teapot underscores how intercultural miscommunication and lack of knowledge can cause fear of anyone different or unfamiliar. Using a humorous situation, The Elbisnopsers aims to question the idea of us versus “the other.”

A Massacre

by Katrin Arefy

Synopsis

Discovering a pile of dead bodies in the middle of their office, work colleagues seem nonchalant to the carnage and instead become embroiled in petty arguments. Their repetitive discussions and responses are predetermined and nonnegotiable.

Written in a surreal manner, A Massacre observes the bigger world we live in, and highlights the limitation of the smaller world in which we live—our minds.

Discovering a pile of dead bodies in the middle of their office, work colleagues seem nonchalant to the carnage and instead become embroiled in petty arguments. Their repetitive discussions and responses are predetermined and nonnegotiable.

Written in a surreal manner, A Massacre observes the bigger world we live in, and highlights the limitation of the smaller world in which we live—our minds.

Love is a Carrot! or Can You Love the Umbrella?

by Katrin Arefy

Synopsis

Awakened by sounds from a machine that warns of impending danger, six pseudo-intellectual housemates get into endless groundless arguments, contradicting themselves and creating a cacophony of mad unreason. Unable to listen to each other or think outside of their very limited “open” minds, the characters are truer to our own world than we would like to believe.

Like the other parts of the trilogy, Love Is a...

Awakened by sounds from a machine that warns of impending danger, six pseudo-intellectual housemates get into endless groundless arguments, contradicting themselves and creating a cacophony of mad unreason. Unable to listen to each other or think outside of their very limited “open” minds, the characters are truer to our own world than we would like to believe.

Like the other parts of the trilogy, Love Is a Carrot explores the question of how to oppose evil, this time by presenting fear and distrust on one hand and suicidal feebleness on the other.

Peace, a Massacre, and the Umbrella

by Katrin Arefy

Synopsis

Peace, a Massacre, and the Umbrella is a trilogy written in a surreal manner that aims to question the idea of us versus “the other.”

Breaking news about a distant civilization turns the prosaic tedium of a middle class household’s day to a tempest in a teapot. Their attempt to overcome their fear-inducing ignorance by turning to their limited resources results in a farcical event.

Discovering a pile of dead...

Peace, a Massacre, and the Umbrella is a trilogy written in a surreal manner that aims to question the idea of us versus “the other.”

Breaking news about a distant civilization turns the prosaic tedium of a middle class household’s day to a tempest in a teapot. Their attempt to overcome their fear-inducing ignorance by turning to their limited resources results in a farcical event.

Discovering a pile of dead bodies in the middle of their office, work colleagues seem nonchalant to the carnage and instead become embroiled in petty arguments. Their repetitive discussions and responses are predetermined and nonnegotiable.

And finally, awakened by sounds from a machine that warns of impending danger, six pseudo-intellectual housemates get into endless groundless arguments, contradicting themselves and creating a cacophony of mad unreason. Unable to listen to each other or think outside of their very limited “open” minds, the characters are truer to our own world than we would like to believe.

Like the other parts of the trilogy, Love Is a Carrot explores the question of how to oppose evil, this time by presenting fear and distrust on one hand and suicidal feebleness on the other.

The Dog, and the Shoe, and the Window

by Katrin Arefy

Synopsis

This ten minute absurd play is about the norms that were imposed to us by our society. Can we question the norms? Even if we want to break out of them, how far outside of our box are we able to see?

This ten minute absurd play is about the norms that were imposed to us by our society. Can we question the norms? Even if we want to break out of them, how far outside of our box are we able to see?

The Portrait of an Angel, a Lion, a Monster

by Katrin Arefy

Synopsis

The Portrait of an Angel, a Lion, a Monster is about transformation, miracles, and love.

The play draws a honest portrait of an extraordinary man, his lover, and the scenes from their lovehood in the backdrop of Judaism.

The Portrait of an Angel, a Lion, a Monster is about transformation, miracles, and love.

The play draws a honest portrait of an extraordinary man, his lover, and the scenes from their lovehood in the backdrop of Judaism.

O Lubvi

by Katrin Arefy

Synopsis

O Lubvi is a thirty minute play with dark humor dreaming about love. The play is a reminder of how often the universal need for love ironically goes hand in hand with our inability to connect.

O Lubvi is a thirty minute play with dark humor dreaming about love. The play is a reminder of how often the universal need for love ironically goes hand in hand with our inability to connect.

A Helmet Is a Helmet Is a Helmet

by Katrin Arefy

Synopsis

A Helmet Is a Helmet Is a Helmet is a ten-minute play that considers the subject of identity. The play focuses on Jewish identity, sexual identity, Don Quixote’s identity, as well as Jonathan’s identity.

A Helmet Is a Helmet Is a Helmet is a ten-minute play that considers the subject of identity. The play focuses on Jewish identity, sexual identity, Don Quixote’s identity, as well as Jonathan’s identity.

The Living Room And Death

by Katrin Arefy

Synopsis

THE LIVING ROOM AND DEATH IS A FARCICAL PLAY THAT CREATES A MULTILAYERED ATMOSPHERE AROUND THE THEMES OF DEATH, GRIEF, AND MORTALITY. THE PLAY OFFERS JUXTAPOSITIONS BETWEEN MORTALITY AND IMMORTALITY, THE MUNDANE AND DEEPER HUMAN NEEDS, AND BETWEEN THE LONGING FOR CONNECTION AND THE REALITY OF DISCONNECTION. AS IF MOCKING THE HUMAN CONDITION, THE MOST HEATED ARGUMENTS IN THE PLAY DON’T GO ANY FURTHER THAN A STORM...

THE LIVING ROOM AND DEATH IS A FARCICAL PLAY THAT CREATES A MULTILAYERED ATMOSPHERE AROUND THE THEMES OF DEATH, GRIEF, AND MORTALITY. THE PLAY OFFERS JUXTAPOSITIONS BETWEEN MORTALITY AND IMMORTALITY, THE MUNDANE AND DEEPER HUMAN NEEDS, AND BETWEEN THE LONGING FOR CONNECTION AND THE REALITY OF DISCONNECTION. AS IF MOCKING THE HUMAN CONDITION, THE MOST HEATED ARGUMENTS IN THE PLAY DON’T GO ANY FURTHER THAN A STORM IN A TEACUP. THE PLAY IS WRITTEN IN THE STYLE OF MEANINGFUL NONSENSE, AKA ABSURD.

More Than Thirty Faces of the Rouen Cathedral

by Katrin Arefy

Synopsis

A haunting portrait of solitude amidst love, this monologue depicts a grandmother with dementia navigating a landscape of loss, her mind wandering in search of the solace of familiar comforts.

A haunting portrait of solitude amidst love, this monologue depicts a grandmother with dementia navigating a landscape of loss, her mind wandering in search of the solace of familiar comforts.