Backyard/Blues Discussion

Once a month-ish, Lee Shackleford comes on to talk with Jonah about a 10-minute play. Both Lee and Jonah are playwrights, directors, and have produced short play festivals (Lee has done many more than Jonah). These discussions tap into not only the writing and storytelling, but also what goes through the mind of a producer when they read your play.

The play in questions is Backyard/Blues by Nick Baker. Much of the conversation is about the information on the Character page, so I've pasted it here.

CHARACTERS

BRUCE: (Masc/60’s/white) A recently retired CEO of a company his great grandfather started.

FRANKLIN: (Masc/mid-late 30’s/Black) Bruce’s long time personal assistant who has been promoted to CEO after working closely with him for 12 years.

POMEGRANATE: (Femme/50’s/white) Bruce’s wife. Has been fooling herself into believing in an empty, loveless marriage for far too long.

SETTING

A cozy backyard in suburban Massachusetts, USA.

TIME

July 4th, 2021

Notes for Consideration:

- When a character’s line reads “ … “ it marks a dramatic beat. This could be a rest, a moment of reflection, connection, regret, realization, humor, awkward tension; anything really.

- If a line is bracketed with double parentheses on both sides ((like this)), it marks a character saying a line for themself. Can be an aside. Doesn’t have to be heard by everybody.

- Feel free to construct the house and porch with the cheapest materials possible. Everything about this set is flimsy and not built to last.