Full-length Plays
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UNDER AMERICA script
Under America is an epic ensemble play that explores the way that the prison industry in America effects the lives of characters from a variety of backgrounds. It begins in Chicago in spring, 2003, and follows Sam, a lesbian journalist who wants out of the closet but fears her family’s disapproval, and Michael, a black 16-year old living in public housing who is arrested and wants out of his cell. Eventually the lives of these two become intractably intertwined, throwing their families and loved ones together.
Under America was given a staged reading by Gallery 400 as part of its “Captive Audience” exhibit that featured artifacts by, for and about prison inmates.
PDF of brochure
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image copyright 2005 by Ronit Bezalel Productions
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LOBSTERS AND LIFERS script
In this dark romantic comedy set in a grocery store deli, two outsiders struggle with the possibility that they may have something in common. It explores the costs and benefits of sanity and friendship, of labor unions and romantic unions, ultimately showing the desiccation of the American dream in the narrowing options of minimum wage workers.
Infamous Commonwealth Theatre presented a staged reading of Lobsters and Lifers at Steep Theatre on Monday August 29, 2005.
PDF of postcard
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A KIND OF SURRENDER script
A man is lost in his own apartment. A woman from his past observes his confusion from her balcony. Exploring his unfamiliar surroundings, the man wrestles with regret while the woman mocks him, challenges his memory and helps him reminisce. Sifting through the rubble of their relationship, the man rediscovers what he now lacks: “the little things, the details… not hearing her breathing…” Reinventing the “memory play,” playwright Jacob Juntunen allows the memories of these moments to help the man discover his lost “home.” A Kind of Surrender is honest and genuine, exposing psychological barriers laid to waste after the end of an intimate affair, revealing that the most beautiful moments of love and life which make up a “home” too often pass by unnoticed.
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KANTOR! KANTOR! script
The life and theatrical works of Polish director/playwright Tadeusz Kantor form the basis for this haunting assemblage of text, performance and poetry. Out of the rubble of post-war Poland, and under penalty of death from first the Nazis then Stalin, Kantor created a new kind of theatre, a radical experiment in performance whose influence is still felt today. Combining Kantor’s critical writings with excerpts from his theatrical pieces and recreations of his rehearsal process, award-winning playwright Jacob Juntunen creates a complex meditation on war, remembrance, and the place of art in society that is at once a work of history, of performance theory, and a profoundly moving tribute to to a visionary artist.
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SKISM script
Something happened to Tristan on Halloween. He came home bruised and afraid. He won’t say what happened, but Tristan’s mother, Toni, knows what happens when black boys go out alone at night and come home bruised. Even in wealthy suburbs, there are creatures on the street in white sheets who aren’t trick-or-treaters. Tristan won’t tell his mother what happened; his father is too busy to find out. So Toni asks an old lover, William, to talk to her sixteen year old son. Somewhere along the way, William lost his idealism; Toni’s phone call brings him into contact with a woman he never forgot and with her strange and intriguing son. Can forming a new relationship with these two be a way to recapture what he’s lost? Or will it simply complicate the lives of everyone involved? The ultimate question posed in Skism is not what happened to Tristan, but rather, how can we know?
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PICTURE ROCK script
Atlas returns home to Gila Crossing, Arizona to be with her dog before he dies. She reunites with high school friends who still talk of leaving town but never move. She thought college would help her escape, but in the end she may stay in Gila Crossing selling rocks to tourists. In this tragicomedy, Juntunen explores an absurd cast of characters and situations through which Atlas must attempt to navigate.
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Commissioned Scripts
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BORDER LINE script
Written on commission for Scrap Mettle SOUL, this script adapts true stories about immigration as told by Chicago's Uptown residents. Jacob worked with director Stefan Brün and composer Steven Rasberry and a diverse ensemble of non-professional actors from Uptown to create this unique performance. The goal was not to make literature but to give voice to these often ignored residents of Chicago.
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Short Plays
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KILLING DAVID MAMET
script
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WHO ARE YOU FIGHTING FOR?
script
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