Alabama Mermaid
After Mabel’s child falls into a river, Mabel must confront the demons who live below the surface to get him back.
Performed as part of Deathscribe 2011: The International Festival of Horror Radio Plays
WINNER - first place
Length: 15 minutes
Genre: horror
Credits
ALABAMA MERMAID by Jessica Wright Buha
Inspired by a story from Darren Meyers' family history
Directed by Carolyn Hoerdemann
Featuring Casey Cunningham, Kennedy Greenrod, Steve Herson, Erin Myers, Mallory Nees, Michaela Petro, and Sadie Rogers
Foley Artists: Aly Amidei, Ele Matelan, Krista Soli Foster
Producer: WildClaw Theatre
MABEL: Give my baby back to me.
MERMAID #1: We can’t. He’s just an empty shell.
SFX: THE RIVER GURGLES AS TWO MORE MERMAIDS EMERGES.
MERMAID #2: His soul has wandered away.
MERMAIDS #1, #2 and #3: You’ll have to catch it.
MABEL: How?
MERMAID #1: Oh! How dry it is up here!
MERMAID #3: My big, pale eyes can’t stand it!
MERMAID #2: My skin is getting warm.
MERMAID #3: You’ll have to come below.
MERMAIDS #2: We won’t talk anymore up here.
SFX: WATER SPLASHES AS THEY SUBMERGE.
Listen to the Deathscribe 2011 performance of Alabama Mermaid.
PRESS
-
"In the evening’s most complex and masterfully imagined production, director Carolyn Hoerdemann and her gifted ensemble took this bewitching script and brilliantly created a beguiling musical account; mixing gospel, bluegrass and blues to hauntingly evoke the sirens, spirits and specters, thereby realizing a heartbreakingly gruesome and musically marvelous lullaby of death."
Venus Zarris, Chicago Stage Review
Productions
Premiered December 2011, WildClaw Theatre, Chicago, IL
National tour:
WildClaw Theatre (Chicago/Miami 2016)
Produced by:
Speck of Dust Productions, Eau Claire, WI (2018)