A SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. TITLE

God's Country

Full-Length Play, Drama  /  3w, 7m, 1boy(s)

Steven Dietz

"Dietz intends his play to disturb playgoers, to prod them into thinking seriously about the radical right as a continuing phenomenon and not just as the occasional headline or TV sound bite. It surely does that." - Seattle Times

God's Country

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  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    3w, 7m, 1boy(s)
  • Duration
    Duration
    More than 120 minutes (2 hours)
  • SubGenre
    Subgenre
    Docudrama/Historic
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Adult

Details

Summary
This exciting, highly theatrical docudrama is about the growing white supremacist movement in America, those dedicated to violent revolution and the expulsion from "God's Country" of non Aryans. The play covers all of the right wing lunatic fringe while focusing on three narrative spines: the trial in Seattle of a paramilitary group which calls itself The Order; the career and death of Denver's Alan Berg, the outspoken, controversial, Jewish talk radio personality "assassinated" by The Order; and, finally, the hate filled career and death of The Order's founder, Robert Matthews. These narratives are skillfully interwoven, sometimes non chronologically, with statistics and facts into a kaleidoscopic and highly theatrical vision.
History

God's Country premiered at A Contemporary Theatre in Seattle, WA in August 1988 under the direction of David Ira Goldstein.

Keywords
Performing Groups

ACTOR ONE - man, 50s
Farrell, reitred Air Force colonel
Phillips, attorney for David Lane
Pastor One
Savage, attorney for Andrew Barnhill
Father
Detective Kerber
David Lane, defendant

ACTOR TWO - woman, 40s
Leatherman, attorney for Randy Duey
Judith Berg

ACTOR THREE - man, 40s
Alan Berg, radio show talk host
Candidate
Mister Jones, conspiratologist
Ruark, attorney for Bruce Pierce

ACTOR FOUR - woman, 30s
Mueller, prosecuting attorney
Wife of the farmer

ACTOR FIVE - man, 30s
Denver parmenter, witness for the prosecution
Candidate

ACTOR SIX - woman, 20s
Zillah Craig, mistress
Student
Anath White, radio producer
Ms. Wiggins, neighbor of Alan Berg

ACTOR SEVEN - man, 30s
Elliott, publisher
Ward, prosecuting attorney
Pastor Two
Robinson, prosecuting attorney
Randall Rader, witness for the prosecution
Dr. Ogura, coroner's pathologist
Gary Lee Yarbrough, defendant

ACTOR EIGHT - man, 30s
Chappell, attorney for Jean Craig
Farmer
Pastor Three
Peter Lake, filmmaker
Mister Smith, conspiratologist
Thomas Martinez, witness for the prosecution
Bruce Pierce, defendant

ACTOR NINE - man, 20s
Halprin, attorney for Ardie McBrearty
Candidate
Patrick Connor, promotion assistant
Officer Phelan

ACTOR TEN - man, late 20s
Robert Jay Matthews, martyr
Candidate
Skinhead

BOY - 10-12 years old

  • Time Period 1980s
  • Setting A Seattle courtroom, a Denver radio station, and numerous other locations across the United States.
  • Features Contemporary Costumes / Street Clothes
  • Duration More than 120 minutes (2 hours)
  • Cautions
    • Alcohol
    • Intense Adult Themes
    • Strong Language
    • Smoking

Media

REVIEWS

"Dietz intends his play to disturb playgoers, to prod them into thinking seriously about the radical right as a continuing phenomenon and not just as the occasional headline or TV sound bite. It surely does that." - Seattle Times

"Fast paced and emotionally gripping." - Variety

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: $110 per performance

Scripts

Available Formats:
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Authors

Steven Dietz

Steven Dietz

Steven Dietz’s 30+ plays and adaptations have been seen at over 100 regional theatres in the United States, as well as off-Broadway. International productions have been seen in over 20 countries. His work has been translated into a dozen languages. In 2019, Dietz was once aga ...

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