Southern Promises

By: Thomas Bradshaw

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Synopsis: Drama / Characters: 6m, 2f, with doubling / Simple Set / When the master of the plantation dies, he wills his slaves to be freed, but his wife doesn't think that good property should be squandered. Pandemonium ensues. The play is inspired by the true story of Henry Box Brown who escaped to the north by mailing himself in a box. Southern Promises provides a unique portrait of the old south. Bradshaw was named Playwright of the year by the theater blog KUL-That Sounds Cool and Southern Promises was named among the best performances of Stage and Screen for 2008 in The New Yorker. "Slowly, almost single-handedly, a twenty-eight-year-old black playwright named Thomas Bradshaw has been taking on the idea of race in the theatre. At the same time, he has sliced open the pretensions of the white avant-garde with a wittily glistening axe. In his new play, Southern Promises (at Performance Space 122), one can catch a glimpse of Bradshaw's anarchic gifts." -The New Yorker. "It's a striking, challenging piece that studies the abuse of power and the liquidity of morality." -NYTheatre.com. "Likely to leave you speechless"-The New York Times. "Thomas Bradshaw's deeply twisted, coolly brutal period drama Southern Promises" -Village Voice.