Nan and the Lower Body

A SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. TITLE

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Cast Size

2w, 2m
Duration

90 minutes
Target Audience

Adult

Details

Summary

When Pap smear inventor Dr. George Papanicolaou takes on a brilliant new assistant, Nan Day, he senses that she is hiding a secret. As Dr. Pap discovers the truth, he learns that he may hold the key to solving her greatest mystery. This frank and funny play explores the mysteries of the heart and provides a personal perspective on the revolutionary technology that has saved the lives of millions but caused moral dilemmas along the way.

History

Nan and the Lower Body premiered at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley in Palo Alto, CA on 13 July 2022. Directed by Giovanna Sardelli, the production featured Jeffrey Brian Adams, Christopher Daftsios, Lisa Ramirez and Elissa Beth Stebbins.

Cast Attributes

Keywords

Performing Groups

DR. GEORGE PAPANICOLAOU (aka DR. PAP) – Mid 60s, short, Greek, handsome in an odd way, in a way that grows on you. A truly unique scientific mind. Mischievous, good-humored, perceptive, charismatic, subversive, more tenacious than most.
NAN DAY – 20s/30s, tall, New England, pretty in a quiet way, in a way that grows on you. Extremely bright, very reserved and buttoned-up, but more emotional than she lets on. Not good at small talk or meaningless jokes. Trying to hide symptoms of a serious health crisis.
MACHE PAPANICOLAOU – Wife of George. Late 50s to early 60s, short, even stout, not attractive but not unappealing, built with an unusual amount of discipline, blunt, has worked long and hard with her husband, but is recently losing her place at his side.
TED DAY – Husband of Nan. 20s/30s. Liberal New England minister, incredibly earnest and socially forward thinking, perhaps easily shocked, his ideals make him miss the subtler things sometimes. He became a minister to hug the world. A positive extrovert.

Nan also plays THE PLAYWRIGHT.
Mache also plays OLDER NAN.
Ted also plays OLDER TED.

Please don’t make everyone white.

Time Period 1950s
Setting A lab at Cornell, the Papanicolaous’ living room and other locations. 1952.
Features Period Costumes
Additional Features No Intermission
Duration 90 minutes
Cautions
- Alcohol
- Mild Adult Themes
- Smoking

Media

“Entertaining and effective… original and compelling… an exploration of everything it means to be a woman.” – KQED

“To all who assume or insist that science and medicine be entirely cold, logical and objective, Nan and the Lower Body issues a forceful rejoinder… a play about the permeable boundary between research and lived reality, between workplace and domicile… Nan and the Lower Body serves as a vital reminder that we all need to be able to talk about women’s bodies and say the word ‘vagina’ without shame or titters.” – San Francisco Chronicle

“Remarkable… a timely catalyst for deep reflection about the journey of women.” – Aisle Seat

“Transforms a clinical subject into a human one… in Jessica Dickey’s one-act play… the Pap smear gets its due as a major medical milestone, and audiences get an informative, funny and touching peek into both the science and the scientists behind it, as well as a timely reminder of how science has too often neglected the health care concerns of half the population” – Palo Alto Online

“An exploration of everything it means to be a woman. [The play] touches on the way women’s health has been traditionally neglected by the medical community. It ponders gender roles and the ways women have been sidelined by patriarchal culture. It even quietly highlights the stoicism women develop because of the pain – both physical and emotional – that is inherent to living in a female body… an entertaining and effective exploration of women’s issues performed in an original and compelling context.” – KQED

“Joyous… there is something important and uplifting about seeing such strong, vibrant, funny and intellectual characters celebrating women and the female body at a time when violent culture wars are bubbling on cable news shows and social media timelines.” – Los Altos Town Crier

Videos

Nan and the Lower Body – TheatreWorks Silicon Valley Trailer
Meet Jessica Dickey, playwright of Nan and the Lower Body
Meet Dr. Pap from Nan and the Lower Body at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley
In Conversation: The Directors Series – Nan and the Lower Body at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley

Licensing & Materials

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

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Ticketing

Authors

Jessica Dickey

Jessica Dickey, a native of Pennsylvania, began her research on Amish culture in order to write her play The Amish Project, which was praised by audiences and critics alike during its Off-Broadway run at the prestigious Rattlestick Playwrights Theater in New York City. The A ...

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Nan and the Lower Body