Dominique Morisseau, daughter of Detroit and world renowned playwright (Detroit ‘67, Skeleton Crew, Shameless, Ain’t Too Proud), brings another of her extraordinary works home to Detroit Public Theatre. In the riveting Pipeline, which premiered at Lincoln Center Theater in 2017, Morisseau gives us the story of Nya, an inner-city public high school teacher committed to her students. Desperate to give her only son the opportunities her students will never have, this mother’s hopes for her son clash with an educational system that is rigged against him.

Dominique Morisseau has written some quietly devastating social dramas (“Skeleton Crew”) on her way up, but now the playwright has definitely arrived with this emotionally harrowing, ethically ambiguous drama that raises barbed questions about class, race, parental duty, and the state of American education. –Variety

CREATIVE TEAM

Dominique Morisseau — Playwright
Candis C. Jones — Director
Jeromy Hopgood — Scenic & Projections Designer
Shelby Newport — Costume Designer
Jennifer Fok — Lighting Designer
Curtis Craig — Sound Designer
Pegi Marshall — Props Designer
Chris Corporandy — Vocal Coach
Katherine Nelson — Production Stage Manager
Skyler Tarnas — Production Assistant Stage Manager

Cooped up on maternity leave and eager for conversation, Jessie invites the funny and forthright Lina for coffee in their neighboring backyards. They become fast friends, quickly bonding over their shared new mom experience—and arousing the interest of a wealthy neighbor hoping for a similar connection. Cry it Out takes an honest look at the absurdities of new motherhood, the dilemma of returning to work versus staying at home, and how class impacts parenthood and friendship. This insightful comedy, written by award-winning playwright Molly Smith Metzler (Orange is the New Black, Shameless), premiered at the Humana Festival in Louisville in 2017.

A deeply felt topical drama that takes audiences on an emotional roller-coaster ride that whipsaws through laughs, poignant tears and moments of monumental rage. –LEO Weekly

CREATIVE TEAM

Molly Smith Metzler — Playwright
Courtney Burkett — Director
Pegi Marshall — Scenic Designer
Mike Durst — Lighting Designer
Matt Tibbs — Sound Designer
Katherine Nelson — Production Stage Manager & Costume
Designer
Chris Corporandy — Vocal Coach
Skyler Tarnas — Production Assistant Stage Manager

Romance unfolds in a new musical wound around the tender love songs of Matthew Sweet's landmark album, Girlfriend. Two teenage boys - one a social outcast, the other a quintessential jock - realize there’s more to life than what high school has taught them. This rock musical, taking place between high school graduation and the rest of life, gives voice to everyone who has ever felt they do not quite fit in - and anyone who remembers the terror and thrill of first love will relate.

Girlfriend is the breathless testimony of a fool for love, a rock ‘n’ roll valentine that delivers subtle wisdom with an exhilarating kick. –Rolling Stone

CREATIVE TEAM

Todd Almond — Book
Matthew Sweet — Music & Lyrics
Joe Bailey — Director
Jeremy St. Martin — Music Director & Keyboard
Jeromy Hopgood — Scenic Designer
Katherine Nelson — Costume Designer
Jennifer Fok — Lighting Designer
Tim Franquist — Sound Designer
Pegi Marshall — Props Designer & Props Master
Stephanie Buck — Production Stage Manager

Written by Academy Award-nominated writer Martin McDonagh (Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri), The Beauty Queen of Leenane is a groundbreaking, TONY Award-winning, wildly funny, and deeply shocking modern classic. Set in the mountains of Connemara, Ireland, it tells the story of Maureen Folen, a plain and lonely woman in her early forties; Mag, the aging, manipulative mother with whom she lives; and their toxic, caretaking relationship. When Mag interferes in Maureen’s first (and potentially last) romantic relationship, events are set in motion that are as tragically funny as they are horrific. Winner of the Drama Desk, Drama League, Lucille Lortel, and Outer Critics Circle Awards for best play, "McDonagh re-creates the traditional Irish family drama only to set it ablaze with a postmodern blowtorch." –LA Times

The extraordinary achievement of [The Beauty Queen of Leenane] is that it is wildly funny, deeply affecting and grotesquely macabre all at the same time. —The Telegraph (UK)

CREATIVE TEAM

Martin McDonagh — Playwright
Andrew Borba — Director
Stephanie Buck — Assistant Director
Amelia Bransky — Scenic Designer
Christianne Myers — Costume Designer
Michaela Tanskley — Assistant Costume Designer
Scott Bolman — Lighting Designer
Pegi Marshall — Props Designer & Props Master
Katherine Nelson — Production Stage Manager
Skyler Tarnas — Production Assistant Stage Manager