dust
9 to 49 W, 1 M
80 minutes, no intermission
Wrestling with the reality that everyone he's ever known was just killed in a shooting at his school, Boy spends his last minutes spinning a story that looks not unlike J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan. These young women, these mermaids, compete to be heard as their story unfolds. They are the swim team – powerful and sometimes monstrous. And then there’s Wendy. His Wendy. Boy is convinced that she’s the only person who understands him. Until she doesn’t. Part dance, part theatre, Dust plays like a music score that’s been infiltrated by poetry, giving voice to the unspeakable.
Production History
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA (GAINESVILLE, FL)
PRODUCTION
DIR. SUSAN SCHULD, 2023
PACIFIC LUTHERAN UNIVERSITY (TACOMA, WA)
PRODUCTION
DIR. ANAMARIA GUERZON, 2021
SAM HOUSTON STATE UNIVERSITY (HUNTSVILLE, TX)
UNIVERSITY SHOWCASE / STAGED READING
DIR. MICHAEL LAWSON, 2019
YOUTH THEATRE NORTHWEST (MERCER ISLAND, WA)
WORKSHOP PRODUCTION
DIR. ERIN MURRAY, 2018
Development History
DRAMATURGY BY SARA KEATS (2015 - 2020)
CYGNET THEATRE (SAN DIEGO, CA)
WORKSHOP
DIR. ROB LUTFY, 2018
SEWANEE WRITERS CONFERENCE (SEWANEE, TN)
WORKSHOP
MODERATED BY NAOMI IIZUKA & KEN WEITZMAN, 2016
ARTISTS BLOC (WASHINGTON, DC)
WORKSHOP
DIR. HUNTER STYLES, 2013
JOHN F. KENNEDY CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS (WASHINGTON, DC)
STAGED READING
DIR. HUNTER STYLES, 2012
Honors & Awards
2020 THE KILROYS LIST
2018 FINISH LINE COMMISSION, CYGNET THEATRE
2017 EUGENE O'NEILL NATIONAL PLAYWRIGHTS' CONFERENCE SEMI-FINALIST
Actors portraying Wendy and Boy in the 2023 University of Florida production of Dust, directed by Susan Schuld and choreographed by Elizabeth Johnson. Photo by Michael A. Eaddy and T F Guntrup, courtesy of the University of Florida School of Dance & Theatre.
Actors portraying The Mermaids in the 2023 University of Florida production of Dust, directed by Susan Schuld and choreographed by Elizabeth Johnson. Photo by Michael A. Eaddy and T F Guntrup, courtesy of the University of Florida School of Dance & Theatre.
Actors portraying Lily, Boy, and The Mermaids in the 2023 University of Florida production of Dust, directed by Susan Schuld and choreographed by Elizabeth Johnson. Photo by Michael A. Eaddy and T F Guntrup, courtesy of the University of Florida School of Dance & Theatre.
Actors portraying Wendy and The Mermaids in the 2023 University of Florida production of Dust, directed by Susan Schuld and choreographed by Elizabeth Johnson. Photo by Michael A. Eaddy and T F Guntrup, courtesy of the University of Florida School of Dance & Theatre.