Polylogues
“Hilarious… Clark performs this skillful piece of documentary theatre brilliantly.”
— The New Yorker
Description:
Polylogues is an intimate, funny, and profoundly human documentary solo show about nonmonogamy—and love in all its forms.
After a sudden heartbreak, journalist-playwright Xandra Nur Clark interviewed people from across the world about their experiences with nonmonogamy, hoping to uncover what it truly means to love. In a style that The New Yorker calls 'ultra-verbatim,’ Xandra simultaneously listens to these interview recordings while performing them live.
From a polyamorous senior to a child worried about her open parents, from a resident of a commune to an evangelical swinger, from the critical to the committed, Polylogues examines what 21st-century humans want in relationships and the many ways we are capable of loving beyond what any one of us can imagine.
Developmental History & Honors:
MINI-TOUR - Roxbury Arts Group, University of Rochester, Marist College, 2023
SEMIFINALIST - New Dramatists Princess Grace Fellowship, 2022
PRODUCTION - Colt Coeur @ HERE Arts Center, 2021 (postponed from 2020 due to COVID)
NOMINATION - Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, 2021
WINNER - Foundation for Contemporary Arts Grant, 2020
FINALIST - NYFA’S NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music and Theatre, 2020
HONOREE - Kilroys List 2020
WORKSHOP PRODUCTION - Dixon Place, 2019 (sold-out)
WORKSHOP PRODUCTION - The Tank, 2018 (sold-out)
Also developed through a Queer|Art Fellowship and at The Flea, Judson Church, Queer Abstract, Caveat, Theaterlab, Undiscovered Countries, The Green Room, numerous house shows, and even an engagement party.
Press:
“Hilarious… Clark performs this skillful piece of documentary theatre brilliantly.”
— The New Yorker
“a thoughtful, layered, smirk-free show… love is the tender element that flows through these often self-scrutinizing monologues”
— The New York Times
“thought-provoking, engaging and often funny”
— The Reviews Hub
“compelling theater… superb”
— The Hangover Report
“Clark’s performance is funny and warm; tender moments sneak up on the audience.“
— Columbia Journalism Review
“This…is the theater we need.”
— Culturebot
Credits:
Upstate New York mini-tour, Fall 2023:
Directed by Jessi D. Hill
Designed by Kelvin Pater
Produced by Lucas Katler
Associate Produced by Kerrigan Quenemoen
Colt Coeur’s World Premiere Production at HERE Arts Center, September 17 - October 9, 2021:
Directed by Molly Clifford
Scenic Design by Jean Kim
Costume Design by Hahnji Jang
Lighting Design by Cheyenne Sykes
Projection Design by greer x
Sound Design by Michael Costagliola
Dialect Coaching by Joy Lanceta-Coronel
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Xandra Nur Clark performs an excerpt of Polylogues at Bizarre Bushwick for Undiscovered Countries in September 2017.