the world of the play
What I’ve been reading, listening to, and interacting with as I write this play.
Recommended Listening and Reading
The playlist that I put together while writing Dust. The progression of the songs is meant to mimic the progression of the play.
“One Year After Seven Deaths” by Rebecca Solnit (essay)
I read this essay in October 2015 and the images that ricocheted in my mind became the very beginnings of the Dust we have today.
Men are Responsible for Mass Shootings: How toxic masculinity is killing us (article)
I was workshopping Dust out of town at Cygnet Theatre when the Parkland mass shooting happened. In that moment, in that room, I wished that I hadn’t been so right about some of the details. I wished that my play wasn’t such a period piece. This Harper’s Bazaar article by Jennifer Wright is probably my most texted link.
I couldn’t stop shouting “no shit!” at this headline when my director Robby Lutfy sent this Women in the World article to me in February 2018. And then I read it and the way my play reflected back on the world was painful.
No More Elegies Today by Clint Smith (poem)
I came across this poem on April 6, 2018 when investigative reporter Rachel Crosby shared it on Twitter. That day, 34-year-old Antonio Aquino was shot and killed by a Las Vegas police officer.
I know we know all about incels now, but at the time (April 2018), this Cosmopolitan article was incredibly informative. The weapon in the April 23, 2018 Toronto van attack was a vehicle, but the sentiment still speaks very loudly to the world of Dust.
