Before I'm Dead
Before I’m Dead is a tender two-hander that asks what it really means to see another human being: not the polished performance they present to the world, but the real, inconvenient, luminous truth of them. It shows us that, surprising as they may be, connections are the greatest form of bravery in the face of mortality
How the play came to be
It began with a competition....
I wrote Before I'm Dead for the VCA Award, with a specific home in mind: The Glitch in Lower Marsh. Having never written a play for fewer than four actors, I enjoyed the challenge of building a big narrative with just two performers. That meant breaking the rules of naturalism and crafting a story that could hook an audience fast and take them on a full emotional journey in 70 - 80 minutes.
The idea of a terminally ill teen and their troubled therapist had been pootling around in my brain for a while but I had not found the right format to ground the idea. The award deadline and the specific need for an in-the-round staging became the catalyst. I wrote the play in two days.
From there; producer Ellie Shaw and director Oli Savage, built a little world in a cafe basement; Pete Ashmore and Myla Carmen came onboard and breathed life into Stuart and Zara.
Before I'm Dead For You?
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If you'd like to buy a copy of the script they are available from all good retailers (and most bad ones too).
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The rights for this play are available for both professional and amateur groups. Please contact Nick Hern in the first instance
Cast the play
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Cast the play
As written, Before I'm Dead is for 1M/1F actor musicians. I am happy for the roles to be gender swapped