A SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. TITLE

Queen

Full-Length Play, Drama  /  2w, 2m

Madhuri Shekar

How far will you go to defend your ethics and standards of integrity, and at what cost? A play about the pursuit of truth, relationships and bees.

Queen

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  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    2w, 2m
  • Duration
    Duration
    90 minutes
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Adult, Teen (Age 14-18)
Accolades
Accolades
  • Winner! 2019 New York Innovative Theatre Awards, Outstanding Original Full-Length Script

Details

Summary

Sanam Shah, a mathematician, and Ariel Spiegel, a biologist, are Ph.D. candidates and best friends working together to discover the cause of colony collapse disorder – the urgent, ecological crisis where bees are disappearing around the world in alarming numbers. Just as they are about to publish a career-defining new paper on the subject, calling for a ban on commercial pesticides, Sanam realizes that the numbers don’t add up to support their conclusion. Should she look the other way for the sake of environmental action, or should she stand by her scientific principles, even if it means ceding ground to an ecological disaster, jeopardizing her career and losing her best friend?

In 2017, Madhuri Shekar's Queen made the Kilroys' List of new plays by women, trans and non-binary authors of color.

History
Queen was first produced by Victory Gardens (Chay Yew, Artistic Director; Erica Daniels, Executive Director) in Chicago, Illinois on April 14, 2017.
Cast Attributes
Keywords
Performing Groups

SANAM SHAH – Indian. An applied mathematician about to graduate from a Ph.D. program in ecology.
ARIEL SPIEGEL – White. A Ph.D. ecology researcher and single mom.
ARVIND PATEL – Indian-American. A financier from New York. A potential suitor for Sanam.
DR. PHILLIP HAYES – Late 40s/Early 50s. White. Ariel and Sanam's supervising professor.

  • Time Period Contemporary
  • Setting Santa Cruz, California. 2016.
  • Duration 90 minutes

Media

“Intriguing, funny, and highly relevant.” – TheaterJones

“Shekar is a brainy and entertaining writer... This timely story about the interplay of science, conscience and the heart offers a most winning test case.” – Chicago Sun-Times

“Two powerhouse women fighting convention and fighting for what they want. We see them for the complex individuals they are... Queen lifts up women in a way that's intellectual and passionate.” – PerformInk

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: £55 per performance plus VAT when applicable.

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Authors

Madhuri Shekar

Madhuri Shekar

Madhuri Shekar is an award-winning playwright and screenwriter. She was born in California and grew up in India, and is currently based in Jersey City. She is an alum of the Juilliard Playwriting program, a fellow at New Dramatists, and the 2020 winner of the Lanford Wilson P ...

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