Pipeline

A SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. TITLE

Pipeline

Full-Length Play, Drama  /  3w, 3m

"Pipeline is an emotionally harrowing, ethically ambiguous drama that raises barbed questions about class, race, parental duty, and the state of American education." - Variety

Image: 2017 Lincoln Center Theater Production (Jeremy Daniel)

  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    3w, 3m
  • Duration
    Duration
    90 minutes
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Adult

Details

Summary
Nya, an inner-city public high school teacher, is committed to her students but desperate to give her only son Omari opportunities they’ll never have. When a controversial incident at his upstate private school threatens to get him expelled, Nya must confront his rage and her own choices as a parent. But will she be able to reach him before a world beyond her control pulls him away? 

With profound compassion and lyricism, Pipeline brings an urgent conversation powerfully to the fore. Morisseau pens a deeply moving story of a mother’s fight to give her son a future — without turning her back on the community that made him who he is. 
History

Pipeline premiered at the Lincoln Center Theatre in New York City in June 2017 under the direction of Lileana Blain-Cruz.

NYA - Black woman, mid-late 30's.  Single mother.  Public H.S. Teacher.  Trying to raise her teenage son on her own with much difficulty.  A good teacher inspiring her students in a stressed environment.  A struggling parent doing her damndest.  Strong but burning out.  Smoker.  Sometimes drinker.  Holding together by a thread. 
OMARI - Black man, late teens.  Smart and astute.  Rage without release.  Tender and honest at his core.  Something profoundly sensitive amidst the anger.  Wrestling with his identity between private school education and being from a so-called urban community.  Nya's son.
JASMINE - Black or Latina woman, late teens.  Sensitive and tough.  A sharp bite, a soft smile.  Profoundly aware of herself and her environment.  Attends upstate private school but from a so-called urban environment.  In touch with the poetry of her own language. 
XAVIER - Black man, mid-late 30's.  Single father - struggling to connect to his own son. Marketing exec.  Wounded relationship with his ex-wife. Financially stable.  Emotionally impoverished.  Nya's ex-husband.  Omari's father. 
LAURIE - White woman, 50's.  Pistol of a woman.  Teaches in Public High School and can hold her own against the tough students and the stressed environment.  Doesn't bite her tongue.  A don't-fuck-with-me chick.  
DUN - Black man, early-mid 30's. Public High School security guard.  Fit and optimistic.  Charismatic with women.  Genuine and thoughtful and trying to be a gentleman in a stressed environment.  It's not easy. 
  • Time Period Present Day
  • Features Contemporary Costumes / Street Clothes
  • Additional Features No intermission
  • Duration 90 minutes
  • Cautions
    • Alcohol
    • Strong Language
    • Mild Adult Themes
    • Smoking

Media

REVIEWS 

"Pipeline confirms Dominique Morisseau's reputation as a playwright of piercing eloquence." - The New York Times 

"Pipeline is an emotionally harrowing, ethically ambiguous drama that raises barbed questions about class, race, parental duty, and the state of American education." - Variety, Read More 

"Pipeline is at once an homage to such authors as Lorraine Hansberry, Langston Hughes and Amiri Baraka and yet firmly the product of a unique, deeply resonant sensibility." - Deadline, Read More 

"A powerful, passionate, and intelligent new play." - The Village Voice, Read More

ON BREAKING CHARACTER

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by Becca Schlossberg
August 23, 2019

Creating Community Connections

Nikki Battestelli
February 28, 2019


Videos

  • Pipeline Montage from Lincoln Center Theatre youtube thumbnail

    Pipeline Montage from Lincoln Center Theatre

  • Dominique Morisseau describes Pipeline youtube thumbnail

    Dominique Morisseau describes Pipeline

  • Actress Karen Pittman discusses Pipeline youtube thumbnail

    Actress Karen Pittman discusses Pipeline

Photos

  • Pipeline

    Image: 2017 Lincoln Center Theater Production (Jeremy Daniel)

  • Pipeline

    Image: 2017 Lincoln Center Theater Production (Jeremy Daniel)

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: $130 per performance

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Authors

Dominique Morisseau

Dominique Morisseau is the author of The Detroit Project (A 3-Play Cycle), which includes the following plays: Skeleton Crew (Atlantic Theater Company), Paradise Blue (Signature Theatre), and Detroit ’67 (Public Theater, Classical Theatre of Harlem and NBT). Additional plays ...

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