About the Play:

pppeeeaaaccceee is a full-length comedy by Darren O'Donnell. From the unfettered imagination that brought you [boxhead] and White Mice, comes an hilarious and provocative philosophical comedy on the nature of existence. In life after the revolution, three souls come together and face the fact that the world is a place of overwhelming contradiction, filled with love and plagued by hidden monsters.

pppeeeaaaccceee unfolds around three people discussing life about life Before, During and After the Revolution, and how to make the world a better place. Which revolution? Good question. A gently aggressive meditation – in Darren O'Donnell's inimitable rapid-fire style – pppeeeaaaccceee examines our being, asks us what we're doing and reminds us that there are monsters in here. Peace. Say it slow, stretch it out, make it last forever. With numerous photos and with contributions by the actors, technical staff and producer, pppeeeaaaccceee is more than just a play script – it is a document of the process of creating such a remarkable piece of alternative drama. This edition also includes Darren O'Donnell's manifesto on theatre, Even a Broken Clock Occasionally Tells the Correct Time.

pppeeeaaaccceee premiered in 2003 as part of the Six Stages Festival at Theatre Passe Muraille in Toronto. The darkly hilarious hit was remounted as part of Theatre Passe Muraille's 2004/05 mainstage season, and subsequently produced in 2006 by Downstage Theatre in Calgary.

Cast: 3 male; flexible

What people say:

"Challenging theatre that really sings... pppeeeaaaccceee can induce a sharpening and tilting of perception comparable to a bona fide altered state." — The National Post

"pppeeeaaaccceee is as light, but as delicious, as meringue ... a world stripped of conflict – a game in which winning or losing or even understanding is secondary to simply being and playing." — The Sun (Toronto)

"A skilful blend of philosophical thoughtfulness and theatricality – an elegiac mood rules here, tempered by irony and subtle humour." — NOW Magazine (Toronto)

About the Playwright:

Darren O'Donnell is a Canadian urban cultural planner, novelist, essayist, playwright, filmmaker, performance director and the Artistic and Founding Director of Mammalian Diving Reflex. With a BFA in theatre and a M.Sc. in urban planning from the University of Toronto, he brings a rigorous and robust social scientific approach to his art-making and the advice he offers to others through his consulting practice.