George Brant

George Brant’s plays and operas include GROUNDED, ELEPHANT’S GRAVEYARD, MARIE AND ROSETTA, INTO THE BREECHES!, THE PRINCE OF PROVIDENCE, TENDER AGE, THE MOURNERS’ BENCH, ANY OTHER NAME, SALVAGE, GRIZZLY MAMA, THREE VOYAGES OF THE LOBOTOMOBILE, GOOD ON PAPER and the upcoming RUST and MOTHERS OF KHERSON. An Affiliate Writer at the Playwright’s Center, his scripts have been produced internationally by The Public Theater, the Atlantic Theater Company, The Metropolitan Opera House, Washington National Opera, Cleveland Play House, Trinity Repertory Company, Milwaukee Repertory, the Studio Theatre, London’s Gate Theatre, Page 73, and Edinburgh’s Traverse Theatre, among others. He has received a Lucille Lortel Award, an Edgerton New Play Award, a Kennedy Center National Playwriting Award, the...

George Brant’s plays and operas include GROUNDED, ELEPHANT’S GRAVEYARD, MARIE AND ROSETTA, INTO THE BREECHES!, THE PRINCE OF PROVIDENCE, TENDER AGE, THE MOURNERS’ BENCH, ANY OTHER NAME, SALVAGE, GRIZZLY MAMA, THREE VOYAGES OF THE LOBOTOMOBILE, GOOD ON PAPER and the upcoming RUST and MOTHERS OF KHERSON. An Affiliate Writer at the Playwright’s Center, his scripts have been produced internationally by The Public Theater, the Atlantic Theater Company, The Metropolitan Opera House, Washington National Opera, Cleveland Play House, Trinity Repertory Company, Milwaukee Repertory, the Studio Theatre, London’s Gate Theatre, Page 73, and Edinburgh’s Traverse Theatre, among others. He has received a Lucille Lortel Award, an Edgerton New Play Award, a Kennedy Center National Playwriting Award, the Smith Prize, a Scotsman Fringe First Award, a Creative Workforce Fellowship, an Off-West End Theatre Award, an NNPN Rolling World Premiere, three OAC Individual Excellence Awards, and the Keene Prize for Literature. He has been awarded writing fellowships from the MacDowell Colony, the McCarter Theatre Center, Blue Mountain Center, the Hermitage, the Djerassi Resident Artist’s Program, and the Michener Center for Writers. He is a graduate of the Michener Center at UT-Austin and is published by Samuel French, Oberon Books and Smith & Kraus.

Scripts

Grounded

by George Brant

Synopsis

An F-16 fighter pilot is reassigned to the Air Force’s drone program, piloting a remote-controlled Reaper in the Middle East from an air-conditioned trailer outside of Las Vegas. Confronted with the challenge of fighting a war by day and being a wife and mother by night, she struggles to compartmentalize her existence as her two realities become increasingly permeable.

An F-16 fighter pilot is reassigned to the Air Force’s drone program, piloting a remote-controlled Reaper in the Middle East from an air-conditioned trailer outside of Las Vegas. Confronted with the challenge of fighting a war by day and being a wife and mother by night, she struggles to compartmentalize her existence as her two realities become increasingly permeable.

Marie and Rosetta

by George Brant

Synopsis

Bringing fierce guitar playing and swing to gospel music, Sister Rosetta Tharpe was a legend in her time and a huge influence on Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, and Ray Charles. Marie and Rosetta chronicles her first rehearsal with a young protégée, Marie Knight, as they prepare to embark on a tour that would establish them as one of the great duos in musical history.

Bringing fierce guitar playing and swing to gospel music, Sister Rosetta Tharpe was a legend in her time and a huge influence on Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, and Ray Charles. Marie and Rosetta chronicles her first rehearsal with a young protégée, Marie Knight, as they prepare to embark on a tour that would establish them as one of the great duos in musical history.

Into the Breeches!

by George Brant

Synopsis

1942: Oberon Play House’s director and leading men are off at war. Determined to press on, the director’s wife sets out to produce an all-female version of Shakespeare’s Henry V, assembling an increasingly unexpected team united in desire, if not actual theater experience. Together they deliver a delightful celebration of collaboration and persistence when the show must go on! A surprisingly modern and moving...

1942: Oberon Play House’s director and leading men are off at war. Determined to press on, the director’s wife sets out to produce an all-female version of Shakespeare’s Henry V, assembling an increasingly unexpected team united in desire, if not actual theater experience. Together they deliver a delightful celebration of collaboration and persistence when the show must go on! A surprisingly modern and moving comedy about the singular way art and community reveal our boldest selves even in the darkest times.

The Prince of Providence

by George Brant

Synopsis

The nation knows him from Crimetown and Operation Plunder Dome, but Providence has a deeper and more complicated relationship with Buddy Cianci. A charismatic visionary who was also a corrupt philanderer, the long-time mayor defied the odds time after time – from his very first election to winning again after being arrested on assault charges. Surrounded by a colorful carousel of characters, Buddy gave...

The nation knows him from Crimetown and Operation Plunder Dome, but Providence has a deeper and more complicated relationship with Buddy Cianci. A charismatic visionary who was also a corrupt philanderer, the long-time mayor defied the odds time after time – from his very first election to winning again after being arrested on assault charges. Surrounded by a colorful carousel of characters, Buddy gave Providence many things: some are more visible – businesses, tourism, and relocated rivers – while others are less tangible, but no less real – pride, notoriety, and now, a great story to tell.

Elephant's Graveyard

by George Brant

Synopsis

The true tale of the tragic collision between a struggling circus and a tiny town in Tennessee, which resulted in the only known lynching of an elephant. Set in September of 1916, the play combines historical fact and legend, exploring the deep-seated American craving for spectacle, violence and revenge.

The true tale of the tragic collision between a struggling circus and a tiny town in Tennessee, which resulted in the only known lynching of an elephant. Set in September of 1916, the play combines historical fact and legend, exploring the deep-seated American craving for spectacle, violence and revenge.

Tender Age

by George Brant

Synopsis

Desperate for work, Martín presents himself at the local Walmart turned detention center and is hired to guard young refugee children separated from their parents. But when a terrifying epidemic spreads throughout the quarantined youth, he breaks with protocol and resolves to find the cure.

Desperate for work, Martín presents himself at the local Walmart turned detention center and is hired to guard young refugee children separated from their parents. But when a terrifying epidemic spreads throughout the quarantined youth, he breaks with protocol and resolves to find the cure.

Dark Room

by George Brant

Synopsis

Inspired by the haunting photography and life of Francesca Woodman, Dark Room is an eleven-scene journey into the surreal world Woodman conjured and inhabited before she took her own life at the age of 22. A highly physical and lyrical investigation of creative impulses, the legacies of desire, and the fragmented nature of that which we leave behind.

Inspired by the haunting photography and life of Francesca Woodman, Dark Room is an eleven-scene journey into the surreal world Woodman conjured and inhabited before she took her own life at the age of 22. A highly physical and lyrical investigation of creative impulses, the legacies of desire, and the fragmented nature of that which we leave behind.

Grizzly Mama

by George Brant

Synopsis

Deb is a divorced suburban mom who reimagines herself as a righteous liberal avenger following the death of her activist mother. Her daughter Hannah is a typical texting teenager - that is, until she discovers the real reason why mom moved them next door to a certain Alaskan presidential candidate. A dark comedy about motherhood, murder, and moose.

Deb is a divorced suburban mom who reimagines herself as a righteous liberal avenger following the death of her activist mother. Her daughter Hannah is a typical texting teenager - that is, until she discovers the real reason why mom moved them next door to a certain Alaskan presidential candidate. A dark comedy about motherhood, murder, and moose.

Any Other Name

by George Brant

Synopsis

A dark comedy (or light tragedy) about poetry, madness, and identity theft in Victorian England.

A dark comedy (or light tragedy) about poetry, madness, and identity theft in Victorian England.

Salvage

by George Brant

Synopsis

Danny’s sister and mother have just laid him to rest and now find themselves racing against time to rescue his prized possessions from the family basement before a flood hits. Enter Danny’s high-school sweetheart to lend a hand – but is she here to pay her last respects or to keep Danny alive forever?

Danny’s sister and mother have just laid him to rest and now find themselves racing against time to rescue his prized possessions from the family basement before a flood hits. Enter Danny’s high-school sweetheart to lend a hand – but is she here to pay her last respects or to keep Danny alive forever?

The Mourners' Bench

by George Brant

Synopsis

An emotional puzzle-play that skips back and forth in time as it tells the story of a living room and its three sets of inhabitants, all struggling to overcome the tragedy that took place within its walls.

An emotional puzzle-play that skips back and forth in time as it tells the story of a living room and its three sets of inhabitants, all struggling to overcome the tragedy that took place within its walls.

Three Voyages of the Lobotomobile

by George Brant

Synopsis

A play about the inventor of the American lobotomy, Dr. Walter J. Freeman, and his tireless, deluded, and ultimately tragic quest to spread the good news of his medical procedure across America. The play presents Freeman’s life in a triptych of scenes - home, work, and retirement – and explores the dark side of the American myth of the confident genius, the brilliant inventor who will stop at nothing to...

A play about the inventor of the American lobotomy, Dr. Walter J. Freeman, and his tireless, deluded, and ultimately tragic quest to spread the good news of his medical procedure across America. The play presents Freeman’s life in a triptych of scenes - home, work, and retirement – and explores the dark side of the American myth of the confident genius, the brilliant inventor who will stop at nothing to achieve his dream.