Doctor Rue Voynich and her apprentice Fade travel the American Heartland dispensing herbal medications. Covertly, they perform abortions, which have been illegal since “the Pence days.” Fade tries to help local youth Hannah complete her abortion, using knowledge from an ancient manuscript, before her mother and the sheriff can nail them for the “attempted murder of an unborn person.”
This play about mothers and daughters is poetic, sexy, vulgar, queer, and a little too real.
The first student production of this play will open at Stanford University in February 2018, produced by Stanford Women* in Theater!
This play about mothers and daughters is poetic, sexy, vulgar, queer, and a little too real.
The first student production of this play will open at Stanford University in February 2018, produced by Stanford Women* in Theater!
CHARACTERS
Rue Voynich, an herbalist (mid 40s, any ethnicity, woman):
Rue is a middle-aged trans woman who performs illegal abortions in secret. She’s not unkind, but she’s a shrewd businesswoman who is pragmatic to a fault.
Fade, an apprentice (late teens, any ethnicity, woman):
Fade is a mouthy teenager and Rue’s apprentice, too naïve for her own good. Her heart speaks more loudly than her head.
Hannah, a young woman seeking an abortion (late teens, any ethnicity, woman):
Hannah is a pregnant young woman who is naturally clever and quite uneducated. She’s persuasive, persistent, and impatient.
Jess, a mother (early 40s, any ethnicity, woman):
Jess, Hannah’s mother, never really learned how to understand herself as an independent human with agency rather than as an extension of “the family.” She’s protective, anxious, and image-conscious.
Harrison, an officer of the law (early 50s, any ethnicity, woman):
The local sheriff, Harrison is the kind of woman who believes that abortion is murder and poor people should get better jobs. She enjoys her power without understanding what it does to people she cares about.
Rue is a middle-aged trans woman who performs illegal abortions in secret. She’s not unkind, but she’s a shrewd businesswoman who is pragmatic to a fault.
Fade, an apprentice (late teens, any ethnicity, woman):
Fade is a mouthy teenager and Rue’s apprentice, too naïve for her own good. Her heart speaks more loudly than her head.
Hannah, a young woman seeking an abortion (late teens, any ethnicity, woman):
Hannah is a pregnant young woman who is naturally clever and quite uneducated. She’s persuasive, persistent, and impatient.
Jess, a mother (early 40s, any ethnicity, woman):
Jess, Hannah’s mother, never really learned how to understand herself as an independent human with agency rather than as an extension of “the family.” She’s protective, anxious, and image-conscious.
Harrison, an officer of the law (early 50s, any ethnicity, woman):
The local sheriff, Harrison is the kind of woman who believes that abortion is murder and poor people should get better jobs. She enjoys her power without understanding what it does to people she cares about.