Adrienne Dawes

Adrienne Dawes

Adrienne Dawes is an award-winning AfroLatina playwright and producer originally from Austin, TX. Her full length plays include: Denim Doves (2016), Am I White (2014, B. Iden Payne Award for Outstanding Script; David Mark Cohen New Play Award; Kilroys honorable mention), and You Are Pretty (2004, Stanley and Evelyn Lipkin Prize for Playwriting). Adrienne is a member of the Dramatists Guild, ScriptWorks and...
Adrienne Dawes is an award-winning AfroLatina playwright and producer originally from Austin, TX. Her full length plays include: Denim Doves (2016), Am I White (2014, B. Iden Payne Award for Outstanding Script; David Mark Cohen New Play Award; Kilroys honorable mention), and You Are Pretty (2004, Stanley and Evelyn Lipkin Prize for Playwriting). Adrienne is a member of the Dramatists Guild, ScriptWorks and company member of Salvage Vanguard Theater.

Adrienne is currently based in Tulsa, OK as part of the first writing cohort of the Tulsa Artist Fellowship, supported by the George Kaiser Family Foundation.

Plays

  • Casta by Adrienne Dawes
    Recommendations: 3
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    Cast: 
    7
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    Genre: docudrama/historic, experimental + 1 more
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    Keyword: 18th century, Mexico + 8 more
    Genre: docudrama/historic, experimental, period
    Keyword: 18th century, Mexico, mixed-race, mestizo, art history, casta paintings, Spain, mestizaje, #full length, bilingual
    FULL LENGTH: Casta (working title) is inspired by a series of casta paintings by Miguel Cabrera, a mixed-race painter from Oaxaca. Casta paintings were a unique form of portraiture that grew in popularity over the 18th century in Nueva España that depicted different racial mixtures arranged according to a hierarchy defined by Spanish elites.

    When a lowly apprentice is commissioned to paint a...
    FULL LENGTH: Casta (working title) is inspired by a series of casta paintings by Miguel Cabrera, a mixed-race painter from Oaxaca. Casta paintings were a unique form of portraiture that grew in popularity over the 18th century in Nueva España that depicted different racial mixtures arranged according to a hierarchy defined by Spanish elites.

    When a lowly apprentice is commissioned to paint a casta series for a wealthy patron, he tries to conform his work to a set hierarchy but finds the images revolt, illuminating a complex portrait of fluid Latinx identities.

    Casta is in development with Salvage Vanguard Theater in Austin, TX with a creative team that includes director Jenny Larson and composer Graham Reynolds.

    Casta requires an ensemble of mixed-race Latinx actors, preferably fluent in Spanish.
    NOTE: NPX does not currently offer an opportunity to tag plays for mixed race or AfroLatinx actors so I've tagged all applicable tags under roles for race.
  • Teen Dad by Adrienne Dawes
    Cast: 
    5
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    Genre: comedy, dark comedy + 1 more
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    Keyword: African-American family, multiracial + 6 more
    Genre: comedy, dark comedy, drama
    Keyword: African-American family, multiracial, family, trauma, mixed race, teenager, great roles for teens, afrolatinx
    FULL LENGTH: Abby, a precocious​ ​emo-goth/AfroLatinx ​teenager,​ ​orchestrates a​ ​surprise reunion for her​ ​mother Tanya and birth father Tom, with the help of her mom's fiance/healer John. Hoping to provoke long-lasting reconciliation between​ ​her parents before her high school graduation, Abby's plans completely derail when Tom arrives with new girlfriend Alusha. The ensuing fight between Tom...
    FULL LENGTH: Abby, a precocious​ ​emo-goth/AfroLatinx ​teenager,​ ​orchestrates a​ ​surprise reunion for her​ ​mother Tanya and birth father Tom, with the help of her mom's fiance/healer John. Hoping to provoke long-lasting reconciliation between​ ​her parents before her high school graduation, Abby's plans completely derail when Tom arrives with new girlfriend Alusha. The ensuing fight between Tom and Tanya triggers previous traumas. Can this family confront their past, "deal and heal?"

    "Teed Dad" subverts the popular regional theatre "kitchen-sink beach house play" to share a heartfelt, comedic exploration of generational trauma and recovery in a mixed race Black and Latinx family.

    ** 3 roles (Tom, Abby and Alisha) are specifically written for mixed race actors. NPX does not currently offer a way to tag roles for mixed race actors.
  • Am I White by Adrienne Dawes
    Recommendations: 1
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    Cast: 
    5
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    Genre: drama, experimental
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    Keyword: biracial, mixed race + 5 more
    Genre: drama, experimental
    Keyword: biracial, mixed race, mental illness, prison, neo nazi, american race relations, passing
    FULL LENGTH: When Neo-Nazi terrorist Wesley Connor returns to prison after a failed bomb plot, he is confronted with two identities that threaten his position within the White Order of Thule most: fatherhood and his own mixed race heritage. Inspired by the true story of Leo Felton and Erica Chase, Am I White travels between linear narrative, recurring dreams and minstrel show nightmare to discover if a singular...
    FULL LENGTH: When Neo-Nazi terrorist Wesley Connor returns to prison after a failed bomb plot, he is confronted with two identities that threaten his position within the White Order of Thule most: fatherhood and his own mixed race heritage. Inspired by the true story of Leo Felton and Erica Chase, Am I White travels between linear narrative, recurring dreams and minstrel show nightmare to discover if a singular self exists in post-modern “post-racial” America.

    NOTE: There is not currently a mixed-race category for roles offered on NPX but this play requires 2 mixed race actors (1M/1F) and 3 White actors (1M, 2F).
  • RUN.HIDE.FIGHT by Adrienne Dawes
    Recommendations: 1
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    Cast: 
    4
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    Genre: dark comedy, drama + 1 more
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    Keyword: #domesticviolence, #10minuteplay #blackplaywright + 6 more
    Genre: dark comedy, drama, political
    Keyword: #domesticviolence, #10minuteplay #blackplaywright, #crisis, #trauma, #workplace, #workplaceviolence, #guncontrol, #activeshooter
    10 MIN: When a disgruntled employee disrupts an emergency preparedness drill, crisis actors Soloway and Linnea find themselves trapped in an all too real scenario of workplace violence.
  • Denim Doves by Adrienne Dawes
    Recommendations: 1
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    Cast: 
    10–12
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    Genre: comedy, dark comedy + 2 more
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    Keyword: feminist comedy, feminist satire + 4 more
    Genre: comedy, dark comedy, experimental, satire
    Keyword: feminist comedy, feminist satire, dystopian future, sci-fi, dark comedy, devised
    FULL LENGTH:

    “You are safe here, Sister.”

    Tucked safely into the woods of what was once Belle, MO, a modest compound is home to five sister wives and their reluctant Husband. While the wives enjoy many freedoms, they have one simple and sacred task: a wife must produce the next heir, or they all risk being cut from the braid.

    When a new wife mysteriously arrives the...
    FULL LENGTH:

    “You are safe here, Sister.”

    Tucked safely into the woods of what was once Belle, MO, a modest compound is home to five sister wives and their reluctant Husband. While the wives enjoy many freedoms, they have one simple and sacred task: a wife must produce the next heir, or they all risk being cut from the braid.

    When a new wife mysteriously arrives the night of the Seedling, she disrupts their semi-annual procreation ritual. Will this new wife's radical ideas, ancient riot grrl songs, and acid wash denim compromise the safety and sanctity of this devout compound?

    Set in a dystopian future, Denim Doves is a collaboratively-devised feminist farce that explores themes of women in subjugation and the hilarious consequences of a rigid dick-tatorship.

    Original music by Erik Secrest with lyrics by Cyndi Williams.

    PRESS:
    "With 'Denim Doves', Adrienne Dawes has created a strong feminist statement, while also delivering solid entertainment. It never feels preachy, even provides some of the biggest laughs I’ve had in some time, while still delivering its messages loudly and proudly (after all, it ends with a group women literally gearing up to fight the patriarchy)." - Examiner.com

    “Mix the first episode of “The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” with 1970s science fiction films “Zardoz and The Apple,” add in a dash of Judd Apatow humor, and you’ve got “Denim Doves,” a new collaboratively devised theater piece written by Adrienne Dawes and created with Salvage Vanguard Theater . . . "Denim Doves” is ultimately a feminist statement about the hidden power and strength of women in even the most absurd and desultory of circumstances." - Austin American Statesman

    "The brazenness with which sex and menstruation are treated in the production is actually refreshing . . . it's nice to know that I'm not the only woman who's ever read a work of imaginative or dystopian fiction and wondered how a girl's period is supposed to fit into all that." - Austin Chronicle

  • You Are Pretty by Adrienne Dawes
    Cast: 
    7–10
    ·
    Genre: comedy, dark comedy
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    Keyword: comedy, sex workers + 3 more
    Genre: comedy, dark comedy
    Keyword: comedy, sex workers, site-specific, feminist, feminist comedy
    FULL LENGTH: You are Pretty explores the intimate lives and loves of workers of the Hippie Ho House, a legal brothel located in Moundhouse, NV. The Hippie Ho House depends primarily on the earnings of its top performer Bunny, known for her kinky parties and exaggerated “polyorgasmic” performances. As the women work to entertain a rotating cast of clients, their livelihood is threatened when Bunny refuses a...
    FULL LENGTH: You are Pretty explores the intimate lives and loves of workers of the Hippie Ho House, a legal brothel located in Moundhouse, NV. The Hippie Ho House depends primarily on the earnings of its top performer Bunny, known for her kinky parties and exaggerated “polyorgasmic” performances. As the women work to entertain a rotating cast of clients, their livelihood is threatened when Bunny refuses a client for the first time.



    Press:

    "You are Pretty . . . presents this world to you warts and all: the flimsy sheen of sex on top, the rage and lust churning below the surface, comedy, romance, and a free drink besides. For a play with such a tantalizing, sensationalistic premise, though, Pretty is actually full of nuance, quiet moments, and sadness. It's about the fragile people sucked into such a ruthless lifestyle (however they mask it as a world of fantasy)." - Austin Chronicle

    Noted as one of theater critic Hannah Kenah's "favorite moments onstage in 2008" - Austin Chronicle

    "If I could be young again, I would offer join (or offer my house to) Austin's busiest acting troupe, St Idiot Collective. Their site-specific valentine this February is You are Pretty by Adrienne Dawes, an earnest tale about the legal sex industry from a feminist perspective that has turned - how shall we say? - romantic." Playwright Amparo Garcia Crow in American Theater Magazine, October 2007
  • How to Talk to a Girl Wearing Headphones by Adrienne Dawes
    Cast: 
    3
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    Genre: comedy, romantic comedy
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    Keyword: coffeeshop, comedy + 3 more
    Genre: comedy, romantic comedy
    Keyword: coffeeshop, comedy, meet cute, romantic comedy, podcast
    10 MIN: How do you talk to a girl wearing headphones? Start a podcast.
  • Not This White Woman by Adrienne Dawes
    Cast: 
    3
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    Genre: comedy, dark comedy
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    Keyword: Race, election + 6 more
    Genre: comedy, dark comedy
    Keyword: Race, election, women, comedy, Viola Davis, Mary J. Blige, political, safety pin
    10 MIN: It's any day after November 8, 2016 on public transportation during rush hour. And it's the first time Karen Michelle has truly been ashamed to be an American. She's feeling so many feels, all of the feels. She wants desperately to process with the other female passengers, who, just so happen to be Black. Karen Michelle is trying so hard but no one wants to connect. No one even seems to...
    10 MIN: It's any day after November 8, 2016 on public transportation during rush hour. And it's the first time Karen Michelle has truly been ashamed to be an American. She's feeling so many feels, all of the feels. She wants desperately to process with the other female passengers, who, just so happen to be Black. Karen Michelle is trying so hard but no one wants to connect. No one even seems to care that she's wearing a safety pin and "Not This White Woman" tee shirt.