Exclusive: Nicholas Braun, Kara Young, Neil Pepe, & Rajiv Joseph talk Gruesome Playground Injuries
Gruesome Playground Injuries will begin performances off-Broadway at the Lucille Lortel Theatre on Friday, November 7 for a limited run through Sunday, December 28.
Spanning three decades, Gruesome Playground Injuries charts the magnetic connection between two childhood friends (Kayleen and Doug) drawn together through pain, accidents, and unseen wounds of the heart.
From hospital beds to schoolyards, their lives collide in moments both comic and devastating, revealing an unconventional love story that is as raw as it is unexpectedly hilarious. With biting humor and piercing honesty, Pulitzer Prize finalist Rajiv Joseph’s acclaimed play explores how we search for intimacy within the fractures that shape us.
Young made history as the first Black performer to win two back-to-back Tony Awards and to be nominated four times in a row. She was most recently seen starring in Purpose on Broadway (winning a Tony), and previously starred on Broadway in Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch, for which she won the 2024 Tony Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play. Other Broadway credits include Clyde’s and Cost of Living.
Young made history as the first Black performer to win two back-to-back Tony Awards and to be nominated four times in a row. She was most recently seen starring in Purpose on Broadway (winning a Tony), and previously starred on Broadway in Purlie Victorious: A Non-Confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch, for which she won the 2024 Tony Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play. Other Broadway credits include Clyde’s and Cost of Living.
Blackfilmandtv.com correspondent Miriam Spritzer spoke with Three-time Emmy Award nominee Nicholas Braun (“Succession”), two-time Tony Award winner Kara Young (Purpose), Pulitzer Prize Finalist Rajiv Joseph, Tony Award Nominee Neil Pepe (American Buffalo) on the new play Gruesome Playground Injuries