Love In The Time Of Trump

Synopsis:

Nancy (white) and Brett (black) meet and go out on a date.  They finish late, so she doesn’t go into work the next morning – September 11, 2001.

She feels that Brett has, in effect, saved her life, and this gives her the sense that they were destined to meet, fall in love and get married.

He is a lawyer, who does a fair bit of pro bono work for the poor.  It is now 2008, Nancy is pregnant, and he is offered a job that pays three times as much – which he accepts – at Lehman Brothers.  Nancy is appalled, and feels he has betrayed their values.

Obama becomes President.  Nancy is mugged on the street, but a passerby manages to neutralise the mugger, who has a sad story.  It turns out that he knew Brett in high school, but dropped out at the time that Brett went on to university. She reveals that with Lehman Brothers’ demise, Brett is now doing two menial jobs to make ends meet.

By 2012, Nancy and Brett have two small children.  Nancy is now the breadwinner, whilst Brett is a househusband.  Nancy’s mother, Vera, has just had surgery for ovarian cancer.

It is now 2016.  Trump has just become President, and it turns out that both Vera and Brett have voted for him.  Nancy feels that she simply doesn’t know Brett anymore.

The pressures within the marriage build, reflecting the polarisation within American society.

And there are further shocks in store.

Character Breakdown:

The play is a 3-hander:  2 females, 1 male
NANCY  20 – 39
VERA   50 – 65 / WOMAN – one actor.
BRETT  24 – 43 (person of colour) / MAN – one actor.

The action takes place in NYC between 2001 and 2020.

Running-time:  85 minutes.

Production History:  Not yet produced.

Excerpt available for download for free.