James Meneses

James Meneses

James Meneses is a Chilean Chinese playwright who delves into the worlds of magic realism, like in his science fiction musical HERE IS GONE, about an authoritarian state where dreaming is against the law, and his play DREAM FRAGMENTATION about a son reconnecting with his recently deceased father through a series of fragmented dreams, attempting to reconcile their past before a tsunami wave reaches them. His...
James Meneses is a Chilean Chinese playwright who delves into the worlds of magic realism, like in his science fiction musical HERE IS GONE, about an authoritarian state where dreaming is against the law, and his play DREAM FRAGMENTATION about a son reconnecting with his recently deceased father through a series of fragmented dreams, attempting to reconcile their past before a tsunami wave reaches them. His characters represent the voiceless and the outcast like in SHUT YOUR MOUTH AND OPEN YOUR EYES about a Kicker bound to be the first female professional football player, while struggling to adapt to playing the parental role for her autistic sister. His plays CROSS FROM ROME, DREAM FRAGMENTATION, and WHILE YOU WAIT have been produced in NYC by the Greenhouse Ensemble. He has performed on stage in SUNSHINE QUEST at the Wild Project and 44TH AND 9TH written by Christy Hall ( I am Not Okay with This), and has acted alongside Judith Roberts (Orange is the New Black) in the comedy short film, REUNION

Plays

  • Three Catholics Eat Lasagna with the Atheist
    On the next vacation to Italy, Lucia plans on introducing her American atheist boyfriend George to her devout Roman Catholic family  . . . After a religious joke goes wrong at a dinner party, the line between just supporting Lucia’s faith and adhering to it himself starts to form and become slippery.
  • Dream Fragmentation
    Jacob dreams of his father who recently committed suicide, and the time to reconcile their past begins to fade as a Tsunami wave draws closer.
  • Purgatory Train
    Two best friends die in a car crash and are now  stuck in limbo on an old diesel train. They recount drunken memories of college and decide whether to go to their graduation ceremony in spirit, or start the train, not knowing where the tracks will take them.
  • Ghost Hunt of the Pandemic
    During the Covid Pandemic, Paulie, an unemployed construction worker, becomes an actor on a low budget ghost reality TV show. A non-believer of the paranormal world, Paulie pretends and acts scared, but tonight in an abandoned Middle School, he witnesses something unimaginable yet real.
  • Gig at the U
    On Halloween, Ryan, a comedian is kicked off a prestigious University’s stage for an unacceptable joke. Him and his boyfriend Evan, discuss how to respond to the vitriol on social media, and whether throwing in the towel on an early standup career is the best option.