The Civilians' R&D Group!

I'm beyond excited to announce that I was chosen to be part of The Civilians' R&D Group! Now in its 13th year, the R&D Group puts together a cohort of writers, composers, and directors to each work on a project that relies on creative investigation. I'll be toiling away at my play The Tusk Hunters, which I've previously developed through The Workshop Theater, UT Austin, and elsewhere. Here's a synopsis:

Two men in the Alaskan tundra search for woolly mammoth tusks as an alternative to elephant ivory. But their most recent discovery causes their employer to pivot from the ivory trade to a project straight out of science fiction as a means of combatting climate change. Inspired by the real-life founding of Colossal Biosciences, The Tusk Hunters explores the morality of de-extinction and the toll that scientifically revolutionary ideas take on those who execute them.

I've been chipping away at The Tusk Hunters for quite some time, and I'm hoping to come out of the R&D Group next year with a new research-driven draft that compellingly presents the play's scientific ideas while still being narratively satisfying. We'll all be presenting our work in a public reading series called Findings in June, so keep a lookout for that. You can read more about all the brilliant artists in the R&D Group on the Civilians website, as well as in Playbill and American Theatre. 

Thanks so much to The Civilians for taking a chance on me and my work. Can't wait to get started!