A SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. TITLE

Bulrusher

Full-Length Play, Drama  /  3w, 3m

Finalist! 2007 Pulitzer Prize in Drama
“[Davis] tickles the ears of her listeners... moving scenes on the banks of the pebble-strewn river... feel utterly true.” – The New York Times

  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    3w, 3m
  • Duration
    Duration
    120 minutes (2 hours)
  • SubGenre
    Subgenre
    Period
  • Suggested Use
    • Monologues
    • Scene Work
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Adult
Accolades
Accolades
  • Finalist! 2007 Pulitzer Prize in Drama

Details

Summary
In 1955, in the redwood country north of San Francisco, a multiracial girl grows up in a predominantly white town whose residents pepper their speech with the historical dialect of Boontling. Found floating in a basket on the river as an infant, Bulrusher is an orphan with a gift for clairvoyance that makes her feel like a stranger even amongst the strange: the taciturn schoolteacher who adopted her, the madam who runs her brothel with a fierce discipline, the logger with a zest for horses and women, and the guitar-slinging boy who is after Bulrusher's heart. Just when she thought her world might close in on her, she discovers an entirely new sense of self when a black girl from Alabama comes to town. Passionate, lyrical, and chock full of down-home humor, this play is an unforgettable experience by a new, thrilling voice.
History

Bulrusher received its world premiere in March 2006 at Urban Stages/Playwrights’ Preview Productions in New York. Directed by Leah C. Gardiner, the production featured Zabryna Guevara and Donna Duplantier.

BULRUSHER
MADAME
LOGGER
SCHOOLCH
BOY
VERA
  • Time Period 1950s
  • Setting Boonville, California, a small town in Mendocino Valley, north of San Francisco. 1955.
  • Features Period Costumes
  • Duration 120 minutes (2 hours)
  • Cautions
    • Mild Adult Themes

Media

“An engrossing rush... Eisa Davis' gleaming marriage of poetry and myth... has a big heart and a wide-open soul.” – Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune

“[Davis] tickles the ears of her listeners... moving scenes on the banks of the pebble-strewn river...f eel utterly true.” – The New York Times

“Davis explores her themes in unexpected and evocative ways...The still waters of Bulrusher turn out to run pretty deep.” – The San Francisco Chronicle

“Mixing together issues of family, heritage, race and love, Eisa Davis' Bulrusher delivers a powerful impact with a poetic, deeply realized script and story. In the hands of director Marion McClinton... the work becomes transcendent.” – TalkingBroadway.org

"Bulrusher brims with profound lyrical passion...a poetic play with much nuance.” – NYTheatre.com

“Davis has powers as a writer to find beauty in almost everything, and her play pulses with compassion and life. Bulrusher has the kind of satisfying, uplifting ending you can only find in live theater — vibrant, poetic, immediate and thrilling.” – Bay Area News Group

ON BREAKING CHARACTER 

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Music

  • Musical Style N/A (Not a musical)
  • Vocal DemandsN/A (Not a musical)
  • Chorus Size N/A (Not a musical)

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: £70 per performance plus VAT when applicable.

Scripts

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Authors

Eisa Davis

Eisa Davis is a writer, composer and actress working on stage and screen. A recipient of the 2020 Creative Capital Award, a Herb Alpert Awardee in Theater and an Obie winner for Sustained Excellence in Performance, Eisa was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Drama for her p ...

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