Desdamona’s Child

Casting

D child — Looking for a way to come to terms with the past, 20s-30s, non-white.
FIN(ley) — One of the townspeople, trying to maintain status quo.
BRI(ar) — One of the townspeople, trying to keep on as best they can.
HAYDEN — One of the townspeople, seeking change, troubled by the past.
BITTER I — Former cop, lives in torment of their own making, stubborn, willful.
EM(ory) — Raised by Bitter I, riding the tides of all, truth-seeker, 20s-30s.
KAMRYN — One of the cops, a bullying vibe, blind to self.
PEYTON — Kamryn’s partner in the force, follows Kamryn’s lead.
LANDRY — One of the cops, trying to do good in this world, non-white.
BEAUTIFUL D — The ghost of Desdemona, D child’s mother, ageless, female.

The play is written for a cast of ten. However it may be performed by a cast of seven if the following roles are doubled:
Fin/Kamryn
Bri/Peyton
Hayden/Landry

CASTING NOTES
Casting should be inclusive and reflective of the world. All of the roles, save for Kamryn, Peyton Bitter I, Landry and D Child, may be cast with actors of any gender, orientation, ethnicity, race construct, ability and age (above 18 yrs.). In terms of Kamryn, Peyton and Bitter I, it is important to the narrative that they identify as or figure as white or white adjacent politically, and that D child and Landry figure as non-white.

The character of fierce O (the Othello of this play’s haunting) is not identified by their ethnicity or race construct. Historically, the first Black actor to play Shakespeare’s Othello was Ira Aldridge in 1826. In 2018, Golda Rosheuvel was the first actor to play Othello as an out lesbian in a production at Liverpool’s Everyman Theatre. In this play, fierce O occupies an Othered position in cis-het-white presumed-dominant culture’s eyes. There is the possibility here that fierce O was Black male, Black lesbian, Afro-Latinx, MENASA, Indigenous, etc. The author invites each production to make a clear, informed choice about this and allow the text to thus be inflected.

All character names are gender-neutral, though it is preferred if the role of Beautiful D be played by a female actor. The use of pronouns “they/them” throughout is intentional and reflects a larger purpose philosophically in terms of the non-binary nature of theatre and the world (in its potential and actuality). Actors playing a role in this play will bring who they are to the material.

Setting

PLACE
A small US town in the upper region of the Gulf Coast. Less prone to floods than most, but under threat just the same. Prides itself on being an inclusive, ethnically diverse city but legacies of racism and hate linger.

TIME
Late 20th or early 21st century.

Reviews

“DESDEMONA’S CHILD (blood cry) was on the final shortlist for Shakespeare’s New Contemporaries Cycle 2 at the American Shakespeare Center. It rose through to the top of an anonymous, multi-tiered selection process, and it is our pleasure to recommend the play. Themes of a city’s generational trauma, police brutality, and facing one’s past play out against a stark landscape with rising floodwaters. The dialogue is poetic and spare, drawing the reader into this world.”
—American Shakespeare Center

“Caridad Svich weaves past with present to create a timeless story questioning legacy, blood, and truth. As D child wonders about what they’re made and what made them, we look at Shakespeare and our own theatrical legacy. DESDEMONA’S CHILD (blood cry) traces paths of systematic oppression and talks about what isn’t talked about. The poetry of this spoken language, the nonrestrictive identities of the characters, and the depth of each character makes this play a dynamic ensemble piece. This play is dangerous and immediate and visceral—the kind of work we need more than ever.”
—Amalia Baker