A grand guignol love story by David Simpatico
The guests are late, the grid is on the fritz, and sirens blast out dire warnings of impending doom! Meanwhile, recently deceased corpses rise from the grave as UNDEAD CANNIBALS, devouring humans and spreading the ZOMBIE VIRUS. The desperate survivors band together in the flux of what’s real and unreal, fighting for their lives against the undead, against the machines, and against each other. This aggressive black comedy explores the Great Replacement Theory to its logical, self-destructive ends.
I want to thank this wonderful group of actors for having such a great time with the material. Most of the cast had been in the first, private reading at my home back in April. Among that first group was the late Lou Trapani, who passed away over the summer, but gave a legendary swan song as Edgar. I know he would be very happy with his replacement, Richard Rizzo. Also featured in the cast are Alex Angeloch, Chantez Engelheit, Angela Grace Henry, Norm Magnusson, LJ McCaw, Steven Patterson, Nan Gatewood-Satter, Bill Solley, Griffin Stenger, Dean Temple, Anne Undeland and Irving Zuniga.
Before the very first public reading of THE LAST SUPPER at the Stissing Center, I gave a brief talk about my creative process, and how I used images and collage work to explore the elements of the story I’m going to tell. Thanks to John Ronga for taking the video and the terrific photos of the reading
First public reading on
Sunday, Oct. 20
3pm, $5
Stissing Center, Pine Plains
A grand guignol farce about the end of the world, and how we get there.
Cast size: 8 men, 5 women; zombies
MANNY, a retired gay man, and MAX, his occasionally catatonic playwright/husband, are hosting an assisted-suicide, end-of-life dinner for 99-year-old patriarch, EDGAR, whose retinue includes RAMONE, a 27-year-old tantric masseur, and MORTY, professional death-dula, to prepare the fatal Seconal cocktail, during the pre-dinner wine tasting, hosted by professional Maitre D’, WALLY. The guests are late, the grid is on the fritz, and sirens blast out dire warnings of impending doom. Wine-wrangler PATTY RUE runs into trouble when recently deceased corpses rise from the grave as UNDEAD CANNIBALS, devouring humans and spreading the ZOMBIE VIRUS.
Despite the zombies, sirens and disinformation spewed by SIRI, the malfunctioning smart-house computer, Manny and his guests finally sit for the Last Supper. But each time Edgar raises his glass for his final, farewell toast, he is interrupted by desperate intruders seeking sanctuary from the Undead: KAREN PICKLES, local right-wing MAGA Town Supervisor; BLACK DAHLIA, African American performance artist and LESLIE DUKE, her trans husband/carpenter/activist. And finally, they are joined by FRED CHRISTIAN, the new next-door neighbor, a God-Hates-Fags ordained minister come to spread the hate of Christ.
This aggressive black comedy explores the Great Replacement Theory to its logical, self-destructive ends. The desperate survivors band together in the flux of what’s real and unreal, fighting for their lives against the undead, against the machines, and against each other.
Trigger Warnings
Please be advised, this story involves references to, and representations of, the following issues that may cause discomfort: Slavery, Racism, Gore, Assisted Suicide, Graphic Language, Graphic Content, Graphic Violence, Political Satire, Abortion, Gun Shots, Impalement, Nuclear Bomb, Wokism, MAGA, Zombie Apocalypse, Flagrant Sexuality, Castration, Fellatio, Cannibalism, Child Birth, Eye-gouging, Branding, Vivisection, Animal Cruelty, Homophobia, Anti-Semitism and Anti-Christian Bias.
Link to NPX: https://newplayexchange.org/plays/3144866/last-supper-grand-guignol
David Simpatico, Dramatist 