Amber Kusching

Amber Kusching

Amber Kusching is a New Jersey-based playwright, director and theatre artist who is devoted to creating new, original works of theatre. Since graduating with her BA in Theatre Studies from Montclair State University in 2015, Amber’s original plays have been produced over twenty times in festivals throughout South Jersey, Philadelphia and NYC. Amber has been a featured artist twice at the Jersey Fringe Festival...
Amber Kusching is a New Jersey-based playwright, director and theatre artist who is devoted to creating new, original works of theatre. Since graduating with her BA in Theatre Studies from Montclair State University in 2015, Amber’s original plays have been produced over twenty times in festivals throughout South Jersey, Philadelphia and NYC. Amber has been a featured artist twice at the Jersey Fringe Festival and her original digital play OZ.ORG was produced as a part of Philly Fringe in the summer of 2020. Amber's shows have also been performed at Manhattan Repertory Theatre, The Davenport, The PIT Loft, The Chain Theatre, The Secret Theatre, The Ritz, Haddonfield Plays & Players, and Venice Island Performing Arts Center. Amber is dedicated to creating theatre that generates unique audience experiences and that push the boundaries of contemporary storytelling. She has written immersive and interactive plays, devised performances, short-form and-long form plays, and plays that make audiences question how we perceive theatre, each other, and society as a whole. Besides writing, Amber is an experienced theatre director, dramaturg, editor, actor, choreographer, and producer, and she serves as a regional reviewer for BroadwayWorld.com in the Greater Philadelphia Area. Amber is also the Co-Founder and Artistic Director of the COVID-created digital theatre production company Virtually Possible Theatre Company.

Plays

  • The Hourglass
    Six characters—Yellow, Blue, Green, Red, Purple, and White— discuss and explore the limitations of time and space through poetic text and movement. The characters individually struggle with trauma, may it be the death of a loved one, the futility of memory, the pain of war and addiction, or facing one's own mortality. Despite their individual experiences, their lives are intertwined, perhaps even more than...
    Six characters—Yellow, Blue, Green, Red, Purple, and White— discuss and explore the limitations of time and space through poetic text and movement. The characters individually struggle with trauma, may it be the death of a loved one, the futility of memory, the pain of war and addiction, or facing one's own mortality. Despite their individual experiences, their lives are intertwined, perhaps even more than they are aware, as they leave lasting impressions on each other and on the audience. An hourglass is turned over at the beginning of the play, and the play spans the length of the hourglass' time. Time continues to slip away and each falling grain of sand in the hourglass seems to beg the questions, “Have you ever wanted to stop time? And at what cost?”' One Act. 3W 3M
  • The Maryland Women
    Are we defined by our family and our situation? Or can we break free from the restraints of a terrible legacy? A house in Baltimore, Maryland has been owned by one family for a hundred years. Now the home is up for sale, but the rooms remain haunted by the memories of the women who have lived there. In this dark drama, find out what secrets have been hidden behind closed doors in a house passed down for over...
    Are we defined by our family and our situation? Or can we break free from the restraints of a terrible legacy? A house in Baltimore, Maryland has been owned by one family for a hundred years. Now the home is up for sale, but the rooms remain haunted by the memories of the women who have lived there. In this dark drama, find out what secrets have been hidden behind closed doors in a house passed down for over three generations. Follow the cast of The Maryland Women to experience each of the women’s stories with the ghosts of the past in this immersive theatre project. Immersive. 45 Minutes. 6W
  • When I Fell in Love
    Marie has been here before: on the floor of her bedroom reading a suicide note from her husband. Dylan has threatened to take his life dozens of times, but Marie doesn't take his most recent claim seriously. "When I Fell in Love" chronicals the last moments of Dylan's life and the circumstances surrounding his suicide attempts, and also looks into the life of his young daughter Carly who...
    Marie has been here before: on the floor of her bedroom reading a suicide note from her husband. Dylan has threatened to take his life dozens of times, but Marie doesn't take his most recent claim seriously. "When I Fell in Love" chronicals the last moments of Dylan's life and the circumstances surrounding his suicide attempts, and also looks into the life of his young daughter Carly who connects to her father through memories of sea turtles. 10 Minutes. 2W 1M
  • Cloud Illusions
    Mitchell, a middle-aged overworked lawyer, stumbles upon Joan, a bride in her wedding dress sprawled out on the grass in the park watching the clouds. He stops to make sure she is all right and what follows is a life-altering conversation for the both of them. In this play based on Joni Mitchell's 1966 folk song "Both Sides Now", two strangers find a way to help each other and decide instead of...
    Mitchell, a middle-aged overworked lawyer, stumbles upon Joan, a bride in her wedding dress sprawled out on the grass in the park watching the clouds. He stops to make sure she is all right and what follows is a life-altering conversation for the both of them. In this play based on Joni Mitchell's 1966 folk song "Both Sides Now", two strangers find a way to help each other and decide instead of dwelling in the past or stressing about the future, the best thing to do is to relish the moment and just look up. 10 Minutes. 1W 1M​
  • Crazy
    An addiciton to anxiety medication, the loss of a loved one, murderous rage, crippling depression, unmeasurable mood swings, auditory hallucinations, imaginary friends, stalking, paranoia, alcoholism, and murder. At what point do we draw the line between normal and derranged? "Crazy" is a compilation of snippets of five therapy sessions with five different patients, and delves into the question, what...
    An addiciton to anxiety medication, the loss of a loved one, murderous rage, crippling depression, unmeasurable mood swings, auditory hallucinations, imaginary friends, stalking, paranoia, alcoholism, and murder. At what point do we draw the line between normal and derranged? "Crazy" is a compilation of snippets of five therapy sessions with five different patients, and delves into the question, what makes us crazy? One Act. 3W 3M​
  • The Fall and Rise in the Popularity of Laura Keene
    April 15, 1865 Laura Keene was the leading actress in "Our American Cousin" at the Ford Theatre when President Abraham Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth. Based on true events, "The Fall and Rise in the Popularity of Laura Keene" takes place yearsafter the assassination. As her popularity fades, Laura tells the tale of that evening while donning the infamous dress still shockingly stained...
    April 15, 1865 Laura Keene was the leading actress in "Our American Cousin" at the Ford Theatre when President Abraham Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth. Based on true events, "The Fall and Rise in the Popularity of Laura Keene" takes place yearsafter the assassination. As her popularity fades, Laura tells the tale of that evening while donning the infamous dress still shockingly stained with Lincoln's blood. Though the first female theatrical actor-manager in the United States, will Laura be remembered for more than the gruesome events of that emotional evening. 10 Minutes. 1W​
  • Deserted
    'Deserted' chronicals the dramatic last moments of Private Kevin Crawford's life after going AWOL from his army base in Iraq during Operation Desert Storm. As he aimlessly wanders through the desert, Crawford is visited by phantom figures of important male role-models in his life including a mysterious appearance from a Corporal from Crawford's camp, a vision of Crawford's high school...
    'Deserted' chronicals the dramatic last moments of Private Kevin Crawford's life after going AWOL from his army base in Iraq during Operation Desert Storm. As he aimlessly wanders through the desert, Crawford is visited by phantom figures of important male role-models in his life including a mysterious appearance from a Corporal from Crawford's camp, a vision of Crawford's high school English teacher, as well as an encounter with the private's deceased father. Crawford wriggles through the sand and empties his pack as he goes along, leaving behind the physical and metaphorical weight of his memories and learning the importance of letting them go. 10 Minutes. 4M
  • Linger
    Everyone hates endings. But Steph lingers, always hovering on the precipice of an ending. Alex has made a huge mistake. But will Steph forgive him because she loves him or is she just lingering in the happiness she felt when they were together? Using parallels to Hemingway's famous 1926 novel, The Sun Also Rises, 'Linger' explores the reasons we have a hard time letting people, and things, go. 10 Minutes. 1W​ 1M
  • He Loves Me Not
    'He Loves Me Not' explores the lasting effects of a verbally abusive relationship on one's self-esteem and psyche. Lauren is in a new relationship but is still haunted by dark memories of her ex. She seeks love desperately from those around her, but discovers she cannot give herself fully until she learns to love herself first. Standing in a pile of flowers of forgiveness, she is left in the push...
    'He Loves Me Not' explores the lasting effects of a verbally abusive relationship on one's self-esteem and psyche. Lauren is in a new relationship but is still haunted by dark memories of her ex. She seeks love desperately from those around her, but discovers she cannot give herself fully until she learns to love herself first. Standing in a pile of flowers of forgiveness, she is left in the push and pull of 'he loves me, he loves me not...' 10 Minutes. 1W​ 2M
  • Double Play
    They say when you become a teenager, everthing changes. It's Riley's thirteenth birthday and she wants more than anything to be a Phillies pitcher when she grows up. But after being in a car accident with her father the night before while coming home from a baseball game, her birthday party is in a hospital room. Though she has her mother and friends celebrating by her side, her father's not...
    They say when you become a teenager, everthing changes. It's Riley's thirteenth birthday and she wants more than anything to be a Phillies pitcher when she grows up. But after being in a car accident with her father the night before while coming home from a baseball game, her birthday party is in a hospital room. Though she has her mother and friends celebrating by her side, her father's not there. And she knows that there is something about the accident her mother's not telling her. 10 Minutes. 3W 2M
  • Paper Dolls
    In 'Paper Dolls,' a young woman puts on display her conflicting memories of a time of abuse in her childhood. With blank sheets of paper strewn around her, she is joined by two iterations of herself, going back and forth between love and hate as well as the past and present. As she confronts her pain, she delves into the realization that even something as fragile as a paper doll can be recreated and redeemed. 10 Minutes. 3W
  • Burden to Bear
    When a young Emma is bullied in school, Dr. James , her therapist, gives her Mr. Bear Bear to tell all her feelings to. A few days later, Emma's school bully is killed on the playground and Emma is connected to the murder. It's been over ten years, and Emma is still locked up when she gets a surprise visit from Dr. James. He knows Emma couldn't have committed the crime and he suspects that Mr....
    When a young Emma is bullied in school, Dr. James , her therapist, gives her Mr. Bear Bear to tell all her feelings to. A few days later, Emma's school bully is killed on the playground and Emma is connected to the murder. It's been over ten years, and Emma is still locked up when she gets a surprise visit from Dr. James. He knows Emma couldn't have committed the crime and he suspects that Mr. Bear Bear is more than just a stuffed animal. 10 Minutes. 2W​ 1M
  • The Drive for Victory
    Three Daytona wins is a lot to live up to. Jessica is the daughter of a NASCAR legend, and like her dad, she strives to cross the finish line first. But, after her father dies in an accident during a race, can she focus long enough to not only win, but survive? Monologue. 1W