CAVE CANEM

The autumn of 2018 finds Jermichael, a young black man from Dallas, attempting the impossible balancing act of mending his relationship with his estranged son who he has recently been granted partial custody of and a long simmering resentment towards his white neighbor and former childhood best friend, Clayton. Through trials and gut-busting tribulations, the two navigate this uncomfortable era of their relationship, culminating in a final bout of rage strong enough to tear the fabric of the place they call home. Cave Canem is dynamic, fast-paced dark comedy that dives right into the depths of race, fatherhood, sexuality, childhood, identity, accountability, and what it means to be a good person.

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This project began as a staged reading at the Yale Playwrights Festival and became a mounted production at the Johnathan Edwards Theater at Yale University. The size and configuration of the theater brought about a unique set of challenges that pushed us to explore every possible avenue to tell this story. The content of the story was one that I loved for its supernatural elements grounded in realism and comedy. To tie it all together, I added in my own textless scenes that served dualy as transitions and behind the scenes looks into the puzzle pieces hidden in the text. Ultimately, the story was one that had you thinking it would go one way and left you awestruck and confused as to what to think next. Either way, you had a damn good laugh. 

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