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Tom Coash

TOM COASH

  
Nationality:    USA
email:    Click here to contact     Website:    n/a

Literary Agent:    Robert A Freedman Dramatic Agency  represented by Marta Praeger

A New Haven, Ct. playwright and director, Tom Coash also worked as the Director of New Play Development at Stageworks/Hudson for several years. Prior to New Haven, he spent three years in Bermuda and four years teaching playwriting at the American University in Cairo, Egypt. Coash was a Co-founder of the Offstage Theatre in Charlottesville, VA and has worked for such Theatres as the Manhattan Theatre Club and Actors Theatre of Louisville. His plays have been produced around the world and have won numerous playwriting awards. VEILS was recently named the Grand Prize Winner of the Clauder Competition at Portland Stage (Maine) where it will have it's Equity Premiere there Feb. 2014. His play CRY HAVOC was recently produced at the 2013 South African National Arts Festival (Main Programme).

Research:    Member of the Dramatists Guild of America (as at 2015)

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below is a list of Tom Coash's plays - click on a Play Title for more information

         Be the Hunter         Cairo Stories         Cry Havoc         Inside/Out         Kamasutra         Khalass         Khamaseen         Thin Air         Ukimwi         Veils         Veils

Be the Hunter

Be the Hunter
A once gung-ho United States Marine, on home leave from Iraq, asks a hunting buddy to help him stage an accidental shooting which would excuse him from returning to the field of battle.

Notes:
Dubuque Fine Arts Players National One-Act Contest, Winner. Also available from Attic theatre Online Publishers

1st Produced:
Attic Theatre Ensemble (Los Angeles)    2006

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
in 2007: the Best Ten-Minute Plays For 2 actors, Smith & Kraus; Lawrence Harbison edition (July 15, 2008)   978-1575255897

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
One-Act Drama

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  -            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Cairo Stories

Synopsis:
A trilogy of one-act plays all set in present day Cairo, written by Tom Coash, an American playwright who spent a number of years teaching at the American University in Cairo, Egypt. Includes UKIMWI, KHALASS, and VEILS. (See each play's description under each individual title here on Doolee.

Notes:
CAIRO STORIES can be done with 4, 5, or 6 actors as desired. Calls for simple sets that can be easily changed between plays.

1st Produced:
Western Kentucky University    2007

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
A collection of three one-act plays

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  4            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Cry Havoc

Synopsis:
Set in present day Cairo, CRY HAVOC explores the troubled relationship between the western world and the Islamic Middle East. Cultural imperialism, religious fundamentalism, political repression, and personal sexuality are deftly unfolded in this tender and shocking play about the dissolution of a loving relationship between a British expatriate writer and his young Egyptian lover. Both men are forced to examine the fine line between conviction and obsession as they confront a repressive government and their own identities.

Notes:
Tom Coash, who spent four years teaching playwriting at the American University in Cairo, has written a small, sensitive romantic drama that also tries to be about the tangled relationship between East and West. --NY Times--. Winner of the West Coast Ensemble National New Play Award. Winner of the Humboldt State University National New Play Award. Nominated for Best New Play, Barrymore Awards, theatre Alliance of Philadelphia

1st Produced:
Interact Theatre (Philadelphia)    2003

Organisations:
South African National Arts Festival

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Drama (Full-Length)

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Inside/Out

Synopsis:
Love, intimacy, and the ability to communicate are all at risk in this intensely emotional play. Set in a prison trailer used for conjugal visits, a married couple's first night together in several years turns frightening as husband and wife discover how truly disconnected their lives have become during this enforced separation.

Notes:
theatre 40 delivers a gem. --Los Angeles Times--. Lorraine Hansberry Playwriting Award (First Prize) Kennedy Center's National Program on Cultural Diversity, the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts. George R. Kernodle National Playwriting Competition, Winner

1st Produced:
Theatre 40 (Beverly Hills, Ca)    1993

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
This Month On Stage, Nov 1995   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
One-Act Drama

Parts:
Male:  1            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Kamasutra

Synopsis:
the question of sex raises it's head when Doris and Harold, a nice older couple from Hackensack, visit the Chandela Temples in India, famous (or infamous) for their erotic carvings celebrating the Kamasutra religious rituals. Amidst the highly suggestive surroundings, Doris and Harold reexamine their love and marriage.

Notes:
George R. Kernodle National Playwriting Contest, Winner. American Stage theatre Co. 10 X 10 Festival, Co-Winner

1st Produced:
Stageworks/Hudson, (Hudson, NY)    2007

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
One-Act comedy

Parts:
Male:  1 - 50+ years old            Female:  1 - 50+ years old            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Khalass

Synopsis:
An unlikely romantic rendezvous on top of the great pyramid of Giza between Sara, an outspoken, proudly bohemian Jewish American girl working on location in Cairo with a film crew, and her new Egyptian friend Khalid, is the setting for this light-hearted but revealing examination of the passions stirred by the complicated history of Arab - Israeli relations.

Notes:
aka Min El Alb Lilalb (From My Heart To Yours). Winner of the Middle-Eastern Playwriting Competition - American University in Sharjah, UAE. Khalass, with its humor and its quicksilver changes in mood, shows the craft of an artist who knows what he's doing. --Orlando Sentinel--

1st Produced:
Golden Thread Theatre    2000

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
One act

Parts:
Male:  1            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Khamaseen

Synopsis:
Set in post 9/11 Cairo, Egypt, KHAMASEEN explores a culture-shocked, young, expatriate woman's triumph over psychological dislocation, fear of terrorists, and a troubled relationship. Donna is an American woman trapped in an abusive marriage. Her husband's oil job brings them to the Middle East, where the burden of her "secret" is made heavier by the isolation she feels trying to adapt to a radically different culture. When her situation reaches a critical point and the usual support systems of family and friends are thousands of miles away, she is forced to reach out to those around her. Discovering that Egyptian culture is very "user-friendly", she embraces it and is able to make use of the oddly healing quality that many people find in Egypt. Although dealing with serious subjects the play is alive with belly-dancing, music, and humor.

Notes:
Coash observes his subjects with creativity and sensitivity. there is much humor in the play and the dialogue is excellent, using puns on Arabic and English to sparkling effect. --the Scotsman, Edinburgh Fringe Festival--

1st Produced:
American University In Cairo    1996

Organisations:
Western Kentucky University

1st Published:
Heartland Plays, online publisher   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Drama (Full-Length)

Parts:
Male:  2            Female:  6            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Thin Air

Synopsis:
A tightrope walker confronts her fears and tries to regain her balance on the wire after a tragic accident.

Notes:
Thin Air is a 10 minute monologue of theatrical magic, as smartly crafted a play as you're likely to see all season. Thin Air is for anyone who loves theatre. --Metroland, Albany, NY--

1st Produced:
Theatre Of Note (Los Angeles)    -

Organisations:
Dogwood National One-Act Competition - Winner

1st Published:
Eleven Eleven Journal for Literature & Art, Online (2011)   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
10 minute monologue

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Ukimwi

Synopsis:
This encounter between an American oil worker and a young Kenyan prostitute in a Cairo bar offers a glimpse into the miasma of ignorance and superstition that haunt Africa's struggle with their devastating HIV epidemic.

Notes:
Ukimwi is a stunning portrait of attitudes toward Americans in AIDS-ravaged Africa, written by Tom Coash, who spent four years teaching playwriting at the American University in Cairo. --Curtain Up Review--. Poignant, mesmerizing, gripping. --Pittsburgh Post-Gazette--

1st Produced:

Organisations:
Offstage Theatre (Charlottesville)

1st Published:
Arcadia Literary Magazine, Univ. of Central Oklahoma (2011)   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
One-Act Drama

Parts:
Male:  1            Female:  1            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Veils

Synopsis:
When the American University in Cairo bans the wearing of burkas on campus, Intisar, an African-American Muslim girl doing a year abroad, and Samar, her Egyptian roommate, discover that cross cultural friendships in a post 9/11 world require courage and understanding.

Notes:
Winner of the Middle-Eastern Playwriting Competition - American University in Sharjah, UAE

1st Produced:
Western Kentucky University    2007

Organisations:
American University in Sharjah

1st Published:
-   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
One-Act drama

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  2 college age women of color            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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Veils

Synopsis:
Intisar, a veiled African-American Muslim student, thought she might finally fit in when she enrolled for a year abroad at the American Egyptian University in Cairo. Samar, her Egyptian, non-veiled roommate, enlists Intisar's help in creating an internet blog about the controversial practice of wearing veils..or not and hopefully helping to bridge the gap between the West and the Middle-East. they and their project, however, are overtaken and in danger of being overwhelmed by events leading up to and including the beginnings of the recent Egyptian revolution. In struggling with events such as a university ban on wearing burkas, an anti-American protest/riot, and Samar's arrest and forced virginity test, Intisar and Samar are surprised to find themselves on opposite sides of a bitter cultural divide. Will the violent events and emotions leading up to the revolution salvage their friendship or shatter it?

Notes:
Winner of the Clauder Competition for New Plays

1st Produced:
Portland Stage (Maine)    Feb 2014

Organisations:
-

1st Published:
http://www.indietheaternow.com/Play/veils   -

Music:
-

To Buy This Play:
If Publisher (above) is underlined then the play may be purchased by direct click from the Publisher, otherwise (below) are AbeBooks for secondhand, signed & 1st eds and other Booksellers for new copies

Booksellers:

Genre:
Drama (Full-Length) 100 min

Parts:
Male:  -            Female:  2 (College age women of color)            Other:  -

Further Reference:
-

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