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Last Night and the Night Before

Poetic, dark and often deeply funny, Last Night and the Night Before explores the power, necessity and beauty of loss.

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Description

  • Full Length Play
  • Drama
  • 120 minutes

  • Time Period: Present Day
  • Target Audience: Adult
  • Set Requirements: Unit Set/Multiple Settings
  • Cautions: Mild Adult Themes, Strong Language

  • Performance Group:
  • Blackbox / Second Stage /Fringe Groups, Professional Theatre

  • Accolades:
  • Winner! Todd McNerney National Playwriting Contest (2015)
When Monique and her 10-year-old daughter Samantha show up unexpectedly on her sister’s Brooklyn doorstep, it’s the beginning of the end for Rachel and her partner Nadima’s orderly lifestyle. Monique is on the run from deep trouble, her husband Reggie is nowhere to be seen and Samantha becomes ever haunted by the life in southern Georgia she was forced to leave behind.

Poetic, dark and often deeply funny, Last Night and the Night Before explores the power, necessity and beauty of loss.
REVIEWS:

"Last Night and the Night Before is a powerful portrait of family ties in crisis."

 Chicago Reader

"Last Night and the Night Before is stuff strong enough to make you laugh, cry and remain engaged throughout."

 Chicago Sun-Times

"A moving portrait of a Black family navigating a pivotal moment of transition."

 BroadwayWorld

"Last Night And The Night Before perfectly blends wit and intense emotions that will have you on the edge of your seat watching this... flawless production by the exceptional playwright Donnetta Lavinia Grays. It will definitely be one of our yearly top ten plays and is a Must-See!"

 Let's Play Theatrical Reviews

Premiere Production: Last Night and the Night Before received its world premiere at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts on January 25, 2019. The show made its Chicago premiere at Steppenwolf Theater company on April 16, 2023.

Characters

  • Casting: 1M, 4F
  • Casting Attributes: Role(s) for Black Actor(s), Features Children

  • SAM – A 10-year old girl. Smart. Sharp. Inquisitive. Dark. Loving.
    MONIQUE – Sam’s mother. Early-mid 20s. A poet. A lost soul. Loving.
    REGGIE – Sam’s father. Early-mid 20s. Loving to a fault. Boyish. Unfaltering.
    RACHEL – Sam’s aunt. Monique’s sister. Mid-30s. Warm-hearted. Steely but with cracks. Guilt-ridden. Loving.
    NADIMA – Rachel’s girlfriend. Mid-30s. Playful. Charming. Funny. Fiercely protective. Loving.

  • All characters are African-American.

    • Available Material

    Name Price
    Last Night and the Night Before Script This is optional. Order Now

    When Monique and her 10-year-old daughter Samantha show up unexpectedly on her sister’s Brooklyn doorstep, it’s the beginning of the end for Rachel and her partner Nadima’s orderly lifestyle. Monique is on the run from deep trouble, her husband Reggie is nowhere to be seen and Samantha becomes ever haunted by the life in southern Georgia she was forced to leave behind.

    Poetic, dark and often deeply funny, Last Night and the Night Before explores the power, necessity and beauty of loss.

    		$24.95

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