Human Beings (& Parts Thereof) by
FULL LENGTH, TWO-ACT - A superhero courtroom drama. This play is based on a real court case from the early 2000s called “Toy Biz, Inc. v. United States.” Because of a quirk of trade law, Marvel Comics realized they could potentially save hundreds of thousands of dollars in action figure tariffs if they argued that the X-Men were not human beings. This enraged fans, and rightfully so: The X-Men were created as...
FULL LENGTH, TWO-ACT - A superhero courtroom drama. This play is based on a real court case from the early 2000s called “Toy Biz, Inc. v. United States.” Because of a quirk of trade law, Marvel Comics realized they could potentially save hundreds of thousands of dollars in action figure tariffs if they argued that the X-Men were not human beings. This enraged fans, and rightfully so: The X-Men were created as an allegory for the Civil Rights Movement. We follow cynical U.S. Customs attorney Paige Palmer as she champions superheroes’ humanity with the help of Marvin Rooney, an idealistic comic book nerd.