Mortified

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Synopsis:

A woman encounters a man from her past and is disturbed by the strange power he still holds over her. In her attempts to uncover the truth of what happened between them, she evokes her 13-year-old self: a synchronized swimmer struggling to make sense of her burgeoning sexuality. Humorous and dark, Mortified explores adolescent sex, shame and transformation and how we reckon with the traumatic experiences that shape us.

Characters:

Woman: a woman in her late thirties.
Girl: the thirteen-year-old version of Woman
Ty: both a man in his fifties and a twenty-one-year-old wannabe pimp
Coach Cindy: a synchronized swimming coach with magical powers; ancient and ageless

Synchro Swimmer 1
Brother: a university student majoring in women’s studies
Sandy: a thirteen-year-old who prefers horses to people
Shannon’s Dad: A cheery gentleman in his fifties
Ben: a thirteen-year-old wannabe bad boy

Synchro Swimmer 2
Matt: a sensitive twelve-year-old boy
Dad: a hopeful and clueless father
Shannon: a testy thirteen-year-old with a walker

Synchro Swimmer 3
Mom: a worried and protective mother
Zach: a creepy guy in his twenties wearing a gold chain
Andy: a thirteen-year-old boy who wants to be a werewolf
Donny: a thirteen-year-old boy

Synchro Swimmer 4
Janine: a thirteen-year-old girl who loves doodling and egg salad
Sister: a sixteen-year old full of rage

Synchro Swimmer 5
Alisha: a worldly fourteen-year-old
Joey: A boy with very chapped lips

First Produced:

Vancouver, November 2018 at Studio 58 in association with Touchstone Theatre

Resources:

Mortified is available through the CPO Website.

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Notes:

Cast size is flexible, between 9-27. Mortified was initially conceived as a play for 9 performers: eight women and one man (as Ty). In this version, the female synchro team plays multiple roles as suggested above. The original production in Vancouver featured a mixed gender cast of 27. With that many performers there was less double casting, and the synchro team became a distinct unit within the larger group of characters from the Woman’s past. Also, in this production two actors played Ty; one in the present, one in the past.