good friday by Kristiana Rae Colón is play scripted with her Chicago hand and heart. The Texas premiere of this seminal work also functioned as my dramaturgy debut to Austin, Texas. The play traces the intersections of gun violence and sexual assault in a university setting. At the suggestion of playwright Colón, I was hired as New Manifest Theatre Company’s dramaturg, with the charge to lead facilitations on care and brave spaces. As NMTC’ s second full production, this play was a bold choice for the emerging theatre company. With the acknowledgement that the subject matter of this script is fiercely unsettling, dark, and violent, I became the point person beyond traditional dramaturgy with a focus on harm reduction and collective care for our team and the audience. Ample shout outs are due to my mentors/collaborators Tara Branham, Tanuja Jagernauth, and Kristiana Rae Colón herself.
Dramaturgy Note:
“When I was told to be prepared in case we didn’t win, I said, ‘I can’t prepare for that.’ He was guilty the minute I woke up. No one can talk me out of the hurt he caused me. Worst of all, I was warned, because he now knows you don’t remember, he is going to get to write the script. He can say whatever he wants and no one can contest it. I had no power, I had no voice, I was defenseless. My memory loss would be used against me. My testimony was weak, was incomplete, and I was made to believe that perhaps, I am not enough to win this.”
This excerpt from survivor Chanel Miller’s nearly hour long testimony against rapist Brock Turner encapsulates much about the inequity present in our justice system. Entering the world of the play means stepping no further than the world we currently live. Womxn go disbelieved. Rapists get 6 months and serve 3.
With good friday, we witness a radical change of pace. We are pushed to imagine justice that circumvents our broken system. We are pushed to imagine a world that rejects the prison industrial complex. And yet, there are still questions.
This play is an offering. Remember to breathe. Take care.
Dramaturgy Lobby Displays:
Press:
We Are Austin
5-minute segment on national television, in conversation with dramaturg Yasmin Zacaria Mikhaiel and director Simone Raquel Alexander
Interviews with Cast and Production Team
3 episodes, each around 30 minutes
‘Kristiana Rae Colón's shocking drama puts audiences at the intersection of gun violence and sexual assault, and makes us think about both’
Trey Gutierrez, The Austin Chronicle
Watch good friday and the post-show Talkback Panel via HowlRound Livestream
