HAUNTINGS
by Rob Dames
Alfred and Maude have chosen today to die. Maude is fatigued by her sadness. Alfred holds a secret that has isolated him from any human interaction and his only way out is death. They have instructed their family to be with them on this evening. The family has no idea why they have been commanded to attend. The atmosphere between Alfred and his son, James, is tense and hateful. This is the most apparent damage Alfred’s secret has caused. The family is anxious to learn why they have been summoned but Alfred will not reveal the reason. That inscrutability adds to the family’s frustration and intensifies the animosity. As the anger builds, an armed man covered in tattoos takes them hostage. For the family, it is a frightening event. For Maude and Alfred, this Tattooed Man is their appointment with Death who has come to assist them in their suicide. Once that plan is revealed, Alfred is forced to disclose his secret. It is a horrible secret, but having been exposed, the pain and anger and sorrow of the past forty years are diminished without the mystery that has fueled them. For nothing is as devastating as secrets and the walls they force one to build to guard those secrets.
- Cast Size: 3M 2W
- Running Time: 90+ minutes
- Royalty Rate: $75 per performance
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About the Playwright
Rob Dames graduated Saint Louis University with a degree in theatre. Following a four-year stint in the Air Force, he did graduate studies in theater at the University of South Dakota but left to take a position as resident director of the Barn and Plantation Dinner theaters in St. Louis, MO.
Rob moved from St. Louis to Los Angeles, where he began his writing, directing and producing career on such series as: The Love Boat, Benson, Full House and many more. During his Los Angeles years, he had the good fortune to work with such TV and Film luminaries as: Aaron Spelling, Witt-Thomas-Harris, Ed. Weinberger and Steven Spielberg. After retiring from television, Rob returned to his roots and is now having success writing for the theatre.
Among his produced plays are:
VIRGINIA THROWS A WAKE
Staged reading Insight Theatre, St. Louis, Mo. 2016
Finalist Reva Shiner Comedy Award, 2016
NOWHERE MAN…
Bound For Broadway Festival, NYC, 2018
FOR ALL WE KNOW…
The Old Opera House, Charles Town, W. Virginia 2021,
Ensemble Theatre Company, Chattanooga, Tennessee, 2022
PREPPING FOR WIDOW HOOD…
Best Medicine Rep, Gaithersburg, Maryland 2022,
S2S2S Theatre Company Rancho Mirage, CA 2023
A TALE OF AN UNEXPECTED GATHERING AND ROMANCE MADE ABSURD IN THE TELLING
The Seven Festival, Albuquerque, New Mexico
Published by Smith and Kraus, “Best Ten Minute Plays of 2023”
HAUNTINGS…
Finalist Stanley Drama Award, 2016,
Premiere The Play Podcast, Los Angeles, CA 2022
Review Hauntings.