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WHAT IS THE SHOW ABOUT?
The Refuge Plays tells the story of a family in Southern Illinois, who have chosen to live in the forest. It’s divided into three separate plays that span 70 years and five generations. It begins in the present and moves back a generation with each play, slowly informing the audience how the family came to be. Part family saga, part ghost story, it’s a beautiful story about intergenerational relationships and legacy. The three plays are titled Protect the Beautiful Place, Walking Man, and Early’s House.
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WHERE DOES IT TAKE PLACE?
PART 1: Protect the Beautiful Place: A simple two-room house nestled in a clearing in a forest in Southern Illinois. Two days in the present.
PART 2: Walking Man: Outside and in the immediate surroundings of the house from Protect the Beautiful Place. Two days in the 1970s.
PART 3: Early’s House: The clearing in the forest before the house is built. One night in the 1950s.
WHO ARE THE CHARACTERS
PART 1: Protect the Beautiful Place
Early. An old woman
Walking Man. A recently deceased man who continues to interact with his family
Gail. Walking Man’s wife and de facto matriarch
Joy. Gail and Walking Man’s daughter who returned home after some years away
Ha-Ha. Joy’s teenage son
Symphony. A young girl from a nearby town whom Ha-Ha brings home to the family
PART 2: Walking Man
Early. A wife and mother who is focused on her family’s safety and survival
Crazy Eddie. Early’s husband
Walking Man. Early and Crazy Eddie’s son, a wanderer who has returned home
Dax. Crazy Eddie’s young brother
Clydette and Reginald. A married couple who are ghosts
Gail. A young woman who fled home and came to the forest
PART 3: Early’s House
Early. A young woman and mother who survived the winter
Crazy Eddie. A World War II veteran with two prosthetic legs
Published on September 21, 2023.