The Inner Monster

This was a unique piece in the Third Annual Young Playwrights Festival at the Prescott Center for the Arts. A dark, disturbing take on mental illness and the traces it can leave on a familial legacy. The playwright, a 15-year-old, crafted a truly gripping tale – with this curious narrator who kept cropping up. We set him up as a psychiatrist perusing an old file, and used shadow puppetry to fill in some of the exposition before unleashing four great actresses on the play’s two-part structure. It was creepy enough to warrant a special notice to the parents who might have brought little ones to the festival…but no one opted out. Our staging overwhelmingly nabbed the Audience Choice Award that year.

Photo credits: David Cottle (David Cottle Photography) and Denette (Captured Photography by Denette)