Theatrefolk Featured Play – The Bottom of the Lake by Steven Stack
Welcome to our Featured Play Spotlight. The mysterious dramedy, The Bottom of the Lake by Steven Stack is an awesome combination of ghost stories, urban legends, teen issues, romance, absurd comedy, and film noir, all in a single play!
Summer camp. The memories. The s’mores. The campfire. The ghost stories.
Dani’s out in the middle of the woods at night, alone, without a flashlight. She meets three girls from another camp, and the new friends tell ghost stories to pass the time.
After each of their stories comes to life onstage, only one story remains to be told – a story none of them saw coming.
Why did we publish this play?
Ghost stories are common in film, but much less common onstage. And that’s exactly why we love this play. It works as a piece of theatre and as a ghost story. When I read the play for the first time, I didn’t see the end coming!
Let’s hear from the author!
1. Why did you write this play?
Two main reasons: One, I spent most of my younger years feeling like, for whatever reason, I didn’t fit with everyone else, and I dealt with it in a variety of ways, depending on my maturity level. The second reason was that I love mixing humor, horror, and heart, especially when they don’t seem to fit together.
2. Describe the theme in one or two sentences.
That what we define has “normal” isn’t the norm, and all of us are always seeking to know that we are enough the way are.
3. What’s the most important visual for you in this play?
Dani pulling her hood down.
4. If you could give one piece of advice for those producing the play, what would it be?
Focus on the things that the characters aren’t saying or doing that drives them to say what they are saying or doing.
5. Why is this play great for student performers?
It lets them play a variety of fun and challenging characters in a world that is different than their own but also connects with what they go through every day with searching for a place where they fit. In the end, all of these characters are seeking belonging. They just all go about finding that belonging in different ways depending on who they are and how they deal with the damages they carry.
Get your copy of The Bottom of the Lake right here, right now!
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