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Clarkston (play)

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Clarkston
Written bySamuel D. Hunter
Characters
  • Jake
  • Chris
  • Trisha
Date premieredDecember 3, 2015
Place premieredDallas Theater Center
Original languageEnglish
SettingClarkston, Washington

Clarkston is a 90-minute, one-act play written by Samuel D. Hunter, that won the 2015 Edgerton Foundation New Play Award. The play is set in Clarkston, Washington, with a focus on American narratives of isolation, mortality and human connection against the backdrop of a Costco warehouse. The play was crafted as a companion piece to Lewiston, with both plays examining descendants of Lewis and Clark grappling with the remains of American frontier spirit.

The play premiered at the Dallas Theater Center in December 2015. A joint production with Lewiston premiered Off-Broadway at the Rattlesticks Playwrights Theater in 2018, earning a Clive Barnes Award for Edmund Donovan (playing Jake), and a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Play nomination. In 2025, Trafalgar Theater hosted the West End premiere, featuring Joe Locke as Jake.

Synopsis

[edit]
View of Lewiston and Clarkston (WA), from the north

Jake ends up in Clarkston while retracing the voyage of his distant relative William Clark. While working night shifts at Costco, Jake meets Chris, who is saving up to leave Clarkston for a writing workshop, but whose life is shadowed by a troubled mother, Trisha.[1]

Production History

[edit]

Origins

[edit]

Hunter stated that the play was partly inspired by a trip taken with his husband to northern Idaho. While driving, his "husband jokingly said, 'you should write a play called 'Lewiston' and a play called 'Clarkston.' And immediately I thought it was such a great idea, writing two plays set in these two towns, sort of unremarkable western towns, but with the backdrop of the Lewis and Clark journey looming over them."[2] The play first received staged readings at Boise Contemporary Theater's 5X5 Reading Series in April 2015.[3]

Dallas Theater Center (2015)

[edit]

The play had its world premiere at the Dallas Theater Center's Wyly Theatre on December 3, 2015, running through the end of January 2016.[4] The production was directed by Davis McCallum, who had also worked on half a dozen other productions with Hunter, including The Whale and A Bright New Boise.

The production garnered a number of positive reviews,[5][6][7] and some more negative reviews.[8] DMagazine praised the "wonderful, natural performances" from the actors, concluding that the play "captures the mundane drama of life and how those around us are going through things we might never suspect or understand, how we are all explorers of our own futures, much like Lewis and Clark's exploration of the American West. It doesn't matter if others have come before you on your pathway. It only matters that you're brave enough to make the journey."[6]

Off-Broadway (2018)

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In 2018, the Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, an Off-Broadway theater in New York City, hosted a back-to-back production of both Lewiston and Clarkston, with an intermission meal break. McCallum once again directed the production, which had an extended run from October 10-December 16.

The production received positive reviews.[9] It was a New York Times Critic's Pick, with reviewer Jesse Green noting a "plot both surprising and inevitable" with a "perfect ending".[1]

West Coast (2024)

[edit]

The play had its West Coast premiere at the Atwater Village Theater on September 11, 2024, running until October 21. Chris Fields directed the production, with a minimalist design that incorporated Stephen Stills' "4+20".[10][11][12]

West End (2025)

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In 2025, the play was produced at Trafalgar Theater, in London's West End, with direction by Jack Serio. The production was also Joe Locke's West End premiere.[13] In a 9-week limited engagement, the play ran from September 17 to November 22.

An average of graded reviews collected by LoveLondonCulture was 3.35 stars, suggesting generally mixed to positive reviews.[14] This ranged from 2 stars given by The Standard, which critiqued the how "generic" the play was, to The Telegraph's 4 stars noting "the funny and touching" portrayal by Locke,[15] and City AM's 5 stars that braising the play as "brimming with vital questions about happiness and identity."[16]

Other productions

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  • Boise Contemporary Theater (February–March 2019).[17]
  • Bridge Street Theatre, Catskill, NY (April–May 2022). Directed by Daniel Elihu Kramer.[18]
  • Penobscot Theatre Company, Bangor, ME (September–October 2022). Directed by Jonathan Berry.[19]

Cast and characters

[edit]
World Premiere Off-Broadway Premiere West Coast Premiere West End Premiere
Dallas Theater

Company

Rattlesticks Playwrights

Theater

Atwater Village

Theater

Trafalgar Theater
2015 2018 2024 2025
Jake Taylor Trensch Noah Robbins Michael Sturgis Joe Locke
Chris Sam Lilija Edmund Donovan Sean Luc Rogers Ruaridh Mollica
Trisha Heidi Armbruster Heidi Armbruster Tasha Ames Sophie Melville

Awards

[edit]

Pre-premiere

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Year Award Category Nominee Result Ref.
2015
 Edgerton Foundation New Play Award Samuel D. Hunter Won [8][20]

2018 Off-Broadway Production

[edit]
Year Award Category Nominee Result Ref.
2019 Clive Barnes Award Excellence in Theater Edmund Donovan Won [21]
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Play Nominated [22][23]
Outstanding Actor in a Play Edmund Donovan Nominated
Outer Critics Circle Award Outstanding New Off-Broadway Play Nominated [24]
Outstanding Lighting Design
(Play or Musical) 		Stacey Derosier Nominated

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b Green, Jesse (25 October 2018). "Review: In 'Lewiston/Clarkston,' America at a Crossroads (Plus Dinner)". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
  2. ^ Olsen, Elizabeth White (16 December 2015). "Clarkston at Dallas Theater Center". Arts and Culture Texas. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
  3. ^ "Production History – Boise Contemporary Theater". Retrieved 10 December 2025.
  4. ^ "Taylor Trensch, Sam Lilja and Heidi Armbruster to Lead Samuel D. Hunter's CLARKSTON Premiere in Dallas". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
  5. ^ Bentley, Alex (15 December 2015). "Dallas Theater Center's latest world premiere acts much bigger than its size". Dallas Culture Map. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
  6. ^ a b Fritsche, Jessica (24 December 2015). "World Premiere Clarkston Explores Emotional Territory at Dallas Theater Center". D Magazine. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
  7. ^ "STAGE REVIEW: 'Clarkston'". Dallas Voice. 29 December 2015. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
  8. ^ a b Liner, Elaine (4 January 2016). "Oversized Emotions Crowd the Underwhelming Clarkston". Dallas Observer. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
  9. ^ Gardner, Elysa (25 October 2018). "Lewiston/Clarkston: A Western Landscape, Majestic and Tragic". New York Stage Review. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
  10. ^ Rabinowitz, Chloe (7 August 2024). "West Coast Premiere Of CLARKSTON By Samuel D. Hunter to be Presented At The Echo Theater Company". BroadwayWorld.com. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
  11. ^ Klugman, Deborah (17 September 2024). "Clarkston". stageraw.com. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
  12. ^ Frankel, Tony (18 September 2024). "Theater Review: CLARKSTON (The Echo Theater Company)". Stage and Cinema. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
  13. ^ Steven, McIntosh (10 July 2025). "Joe Locke to follow Heartstopper movie with West End debut". BBC News. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
  14. ^ "Review Round Up: Clarkston, Trafalgar Theatre". Love London Love Culture. 29 September 2025. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
  15. ^ Cavendish, Dominic (26 September 2025). "Heartstopper's Joe Locke could convert Gen Z to theatre with his West End debut". The Telegraph. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
  16. ^ Bloodworth, Adam (26 September 2025). "Clarkston review: Joe Locke proves he's bigger than Heartstopper". City AM. Retrieved 3 December 2025.
  17. ^ "Boise Contemporary Theater Announces 2018-19 Season". AMERICAN THEATRE. 27 April 2018. Retrieved 10 December 2025.
  18. ^ Levin, Macey (11 May 2022). "REVIEW: "Clarkston" at Bridge Street Theatre". Berkshire on Stage. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
  19. ^ Aylesworth, Emme. "Penobscot Theatre Company opens their 49th season with a stellar performance of "Clarkston" – The Maine Campus". Retrieved 4 December 2025.
  20. ^ "2015 - Edgerton Foundation New Play Awards". circle.tcg.org. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
  21. ^ Musbach, Julie (11 February 2019). "Edmund Donovan And Zoey Anderson Take Home Clive Barnes Awards". Broadway World. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
  22. ^ "2019 Awards – Nominees and Recipients". Drama Desk. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
  23. ^ Ruthie Fierberg (2 June 2019). "Tootsie, Hadestown, and The Ferryman Lead 2019 Drama Desk Award Winners". Playbill. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
  24. ^ "Outer Critics Circle Awards: 2018-2019". About The Artists. Retrieved 10 December 2024.