A Case for the Existence of God

A SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. TITLE

A Case for the Existence of God

Full-Length Play, Drama  /  2m

Samuel D. Hunter

Inside a cubicle in a small office in southern Idaho, two men struggle to balance the confounding terms on a loan. Samuel D. Hunter's intimate, powerful play is a thoughtful meditation on human resilience.

Image: 2022 Signature Theatre Company Production (Emilio Madrid)

A Case for the Existence of God

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  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    2m
  • Duration
    Duration
    90 minutes
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Adult
Accolades
Accolades
  • Winner! 2022 New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award, Best Play

Details

Summary

A thoughtful and meditative two-hander, Samuel D. Hunter's extraordinary play is both intimate and expansive as it explores themes of parenthood, financial insecurity and empathy.

A Case for the Existence of God unfolds in a cubicle where two seated people unexpectedly choose to bring one another into their fragile worlds. Keith, a mortgage broker, and Ryan, a yogurt plant worker seeking to buy a plot of land that belonged to his family many decades ago, realize they share a "specific kind of sadness." At this desk in the middle of America, loan talk opens up into a discussion about the chokehold of financial insecurity and a bond over the precariousness of parenthood. With humor, empathy and wrenching honesty, Hunter commingles two lives and deftly bridges disparate experiences of marginality.

History
A Case for the Existence of God premiered off-Broadway at Signature Theatre on 12 April 2022. Directed by David Cromer, the production featured Kyle Beltran and Will Brill.
Keywords
Performing Groups
KEITH – Male, mid- to late thirties, black.
RYAN – Male, mid- to late thirties, white.
  • Time Period Contemporary, Present Day, New Millennium/21st Century
  • Setting A cubicle inside a small business in Twin Falls, Idaho. The present or recent past.
  • Features Contemporary Costumes/Street Clothes
  • Additional Features No Intermission
  • Duration 90 minutes
  • Cautions
    • Alcohol
    • Strong Language

Media

“[A] must-see heartbreaker of a play.” – The New York Times

Critic’s Pick! “Heartbreaking... though A Case makes the connection between personal and societal calamity more explicit than ever – can it be just an accident that it’s set in Twin Falls? – it may also be the purest example yet of Hunter’s approach to playwriting as an experiment in empathy.” – The New York Times

“Crystalline... The playwright has reduced his components to the bare minimum, offering us Hunter superfans a chance to marvel at his elegant way with exposition and the stealthy way he lures us down into the deep end of the emotional pool.” – Vulture

“Easily one of the best of the year... Mr. Hunter, one of the finest playwrights at work today, is anything but an ideologue. His subject is the complexities of specific human beings – appealingly unexceptional ones – and the trials, large and small, that life throws their way. Mr. Hunter's plays are notable, or rather remarkable, for their laid-back simplicity and the depth of the compassion he shows for his characters.” – The Wall Street Journal

“Phenomenal. Transcendent. An instant classic.” – Theatrely

“Deeply compassionate, quietly remarkable... the play is constantly dynamic as it pulls you into its world... As in his previous works Pocatello, Greater Clements, and especially The Whale, Hunter has a gift for telling stories of ordinary people at crossroads and in crisis. He has an ear for dialogue that stubbornly rings true. On paper the title smacks of something on a grand scale; on stage the story is small and big at the same time.” – New York Theatre Guide

“Stunning... A Case for the Existence of God is a world premiere, and there hasn’t been a better one for a play this theater season in New York City.” – The Wrap

★★★★★ “Another extraordinary play by Samuel D. Hunter.” – New York Stage Review

Photos

  • A Case for the Existence of God

    Image: 2022 Signature Theatre Company Production (Emilio Madrid)

  • A Case for the Existence of God

    Image: 2022 Signature Theatre Company Production (Emilio Madrid)

Licensing & Materials

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

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Authors

Samuel D. Hunter

Samuel D. Hunter

Samuel D. Hunter grew up in Moscow, Idaho and lives in New York City with his husband and daughter. His full-length plays include The Whale (Drama Desk Award, Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Play, GLAAD Media Award, Drama League and Outer Critics Circle nominations for B ...

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