''Skeleton Crew'' is a

play Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * P ...

written by

Dominique Morisseau Dominique Morisseau (born March 13, 1978) is an American playwright and actress from Detroit, Michigan. She has authored over nine plays, three of which are part of a cycle titled ''The Detroit Project.'' She was a recipient of the MacArthur Fel ...

about an auto factory on the brink of closure in 2008

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

. It is the third part of Morisseau's Detroit Project, inspired by African-American playwrights, which also includes '' Paradise Blue'' and '' Detroit '67''.

Productions

''Skeleton Crew'' ran

Off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer th ...

at the

Atlantic Theater Company Atlantic Theater Company is an Off-Broadway non-profit theater, whose mission is to produce great plays "simply and truthfully utilizing an artistic ensemble." The company was founded in 1985 by David Mamet, William H. Macy, and 30 of their acti ...

in 2016 and subsequently at the Detroit Public Theatre in 2017. The Atlantic production was also directed by Santiago-Hudson. It ran on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

as a limited-run engagement at

Manhattan Theatre Club Manhattan Theatre Club (MTC) is a theatre company located in New York City, affiliated with the League of Resident Theatres. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Lynne Meadow and Executive Producer Barry Grove, Manhattan Theatre Club has g ...

's Samuel J. Friedman Theatre from December 2021 through February 2022 under the direction of

Ruben Santiago-Hudson Ruben Santiago-Hudson (born Ruben Santiago Jr., November 24, 1956) is an American actor, playwright, and director who has won national awards for his work in all three categories. He is best known for his role of Captain Roy Montgomery from 200 ...

and starred

Phylicia Rashad Phylicia Rashad ( ) (née Ayers-Allen; born June 19, 1948) is an American actress, singer and director who is dean of the College of Fine Arts at Howard University. She is best known for her role as Clair Huxtable on the NBC sitcom ''The Cosby S ...

as Faye. It was one of a series of Broadway shows in the 2021–2022 season written by Black playwrights, and parallels were identified between the play's story and the Omicron surge under which its run fell.

Awards and nominations

Original off-Broadway production

Original Broadway production

References

External links

* * * {{Playbill production, skeleton-crewsamuel-j-friedman-theatre-2021-2022 Off-Broadway plays Broadway plays Tony Award-winning plays Plays set in Michigan Plays set in the 21st century