​Drowning Ophelia

"...witty, poetic, and psychologically true." - Theatre Storm
"...a present-day drama that explores timeless truths." - Broad Street Review
"This poetic and powerful production...understands that sometimes what’s in our head is more real than what’s outside of it." - Phindie
Productions:
Cheney, WA, 2023
Manitoba, CAN, 2023​
Toronto, CAN, 2021
​Indianapolis, IN, 2021
Nova Scotia, CAN, 2021
Southern Pines, NC, 2021
Moscow, ID, 2019
Philadelphia, PA, 2016
Scranton, PA, 2016
​San Francisco, CA, 2013


​Jane doesn’t know what to do with the literary character who has taken up residence in her bathtub. She doesn’t want Ophelia interrupting the obsessive order of her life with obnoxious songs about death and valentines. She doesn’t want Ophelia disrupting her relationship with Edmund, the oddly charming actor who might show up for dinner in a suit…or a suit of armor. And she most definitely doesn’t want Ophelia stirring up memories of a brother she would rather forget. But Ophelia doesn’t care about what Jane wants so much as what she needs. As Jane’s past intrudes dangerously on her present, it becomes clear that Ophelia is not simply a character from "Hamlet," but a long-forgotten messenger with a question from Jane’s own troubled mind: How do you move on when reconciliation is not an option?

Drowning Ophelia is a dark comedy performed in one act about the long-term consequences of childhood abuse, and a love letter to those who have suffered. There is always hope.

Characters:

OPHELIA, straight out of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” child-like, purposeful 
JANE, early twenties to mid-thirties, a bit obsessive, a tad on edge
ADAM, her brother, older by eight or ten years, devastatingly likable
EDMUND, an actor, equal parts charm and awkwardness
​
Drowning Ophelia is published by Blue Moon Plays. You can read an excerpt on New Play Exchange or purchase a perusal copy here.

​Featured Productions

Toronto, CAN 2021

A twenty-minute adaptation with original choreography by Kimia Karachi.
​
​Directed by Kimia Karachi for The University of Toronto

Cast: 

Zia Parcon as Ophelia

Ohryong Kwon as Jane

Nezar El-Rayes as Adam

Photos by Jae Yang Photography

Indianapolis, IN 2021

​​Directed by Grant Williams for The University of Indianapolis

Cast: 

Audrey Panyard as Ophelia

Senaite Tekle as Jane

Refik Dogruyol as Adam

Nicholas Finch as Edmund

Photos by Kielynn Tally
​Used by permission of the University of Indianapolis Department of Theatre
Winner of 7 National Awards from the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, including The Citizen Award, "which recognizes programs in higher education using theatrical production to promote long-term societal impact through an artistic lens, to encourage empathetic exploration of the complex cultural and physical world, and to advocate for justice on campus and throughout the world."

Nova Scotia, CAN 2021

Directed by Robert Seale for Acadia University

Cast: 

Lauren Amirault as Ophelia

Claire Chateauneuf as Jane

Mike Butler as Adam

Myles Bradley as Edmund

​

Southern Pines, NC 2021



​Directed by Finch Rose for Pinecrest Players Theatre

Cast: 

Finch Rose as Ophelia

Ava Wellener as Jane

David Martinez as Adam

Kate Dela Rocha as Edmund

Moscow, ID 2019

​Directed by Carly McMinn for The University of Idaho

Cast: 

Alexa Lamers as Ophelia

Katharine Sonas as Jane

Joseph Winder as Adam

Rhys Colson as Edmund

Photos by Chian-ann Lu
Philadelphia, PA 2016

​Directed by Daniel Roberts for Eager Risk Theatre & Ensemble Atria

Cast:

Lindsay Andreanszky as Ophelia

Victoria Rae Sook as Jane

Levi Morger as Adam

Erik Endsley as Edmund

Photos by RKD Photograpy
Scranton, PA 2016
Directed by Jonathan Strayer for Gaslight Theatre Company

Cast:

Jessica McDonough as Ophelia

Alicia Nordstrom as Jane

Timothy McDermott as Adam

Jeremy J. Kemmerer as Edmund

​Photos by Brad Barry

San Francisco, CA 2013

 
​Directed by Ellery Schaar for Repurposed Theatre

Cast:

Kirsten Dwyer as Ophelia

Katharine Otis as Jane

Ryan Hayes as Adam

Will Trichon as Edmund

Photos by Ted Davis and Robbie Sweeney ​

"Abused"
An MFA Design Thesis by Allyson Conover 





Drowning Ophelia was selected by Allyson (Kochanek) Conovor, a student of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts MFA program, as one of two plays used in her final Wigs & Makeup Thesis Project, "Abused."

From Allyson: "I believe art lives and breathes when it is given purpose and meaning. As artists, we have a unique opportunity to say what we want in whichever creative way we can dream of. For my thesis, I wanted to use my platform to bring awareness to abuse. Far too many silent victims go throughout life stifled and broken because there is not enough empathy towards them and their situations. I chose Shakespeare's The Winter’s Tale and Rachel Luann Strayer’s Drowning Ophelia because in each show there is a victim and an abuser. If you or someone you know has suffered from abuse of any kind whether it be emotional, physical, verbal, or psychological, I want you to know I empathize with you and have attempted to encapsulate these feelings and emotions through my art."

You can see more of Allyson's work here.