Shipwrecked!
by Donald Margulies

Name: Shipwrecked!
Brand: Donald Margulies
SKU: 9780822223412
Rating: 3.83 (69 reviews)

Off-Broadway

Shipwrecked! Book Cover — Shipwrecked! Cover

Highlights

Small Cast

Female

Male

90 mins Victorian (British and American) Expandable Casting Multicultural Casting Bare Stage/Simple Set Period Costumes American Comedy

What readers are saying

Readers appreciate the wacky and entertaining nature of the play, noting its clever exploration of truth through storytelling. Many find the narrative engaging, highlighting the artistry of a one-man show despite occasional shortcomings in dialogue. The performance quality and the unique character of Louis de Rougemont are frequently lauded by audiences.

Wacky and entertaining Great storytelling Fabulous acting Occasionally lacks compelling dialogue

Synopsis

Book by Donald Margulies

Press Reviews

"The Pulitzer Prize–winning playwright Donald Margulies scampers to the defense of good old-fashioned yarn spinning with Shipwrecked! The breathless story of a Victorian gentleman [and] seafaring wanderer springs to life like a theatrical pop-up book. The audience is left to judge whether he is an inspirational figure touched by imaginative genius or a mere con man. We can also consider the possibility that the hero of this true story based on an untrue story is a little of each."
— The New York Times

"Recreating the pleasures of 19th-century platform entertainment with a tart contemporary twist, Donald Margulies’ Shipwrecked! offers a self-promoting fabulist a forum to inform and persuade, and it delights in both respects."
— Variety

"Margulies gives a sympathetic nod to the audacious autobiographer’s creative overreach in Shipwrecked!, a deft literate narrative folded into a vaudevillian romp with radio theater overtones. Colorful [and] compassionate speculations on the real-life deficiencies and pain that may have been at the root of Louis' need for self-aggrandizement."
— Los Angeles Times

Characters

Character	Gender	Age	Description
LOUIS DE ROUGEMONT	—	—	—
PLAYER #1 (female) contributes sound effects and portrays or gives voice to:	female	—	(female) contributes sound effects and portrays or gives voice to:
LOUIS’ MOTHER	—	—	—
CAPTAIN JENSEN	male	—	—
YAMBA , an aborigine princess, later HIS WIFE	female	—	, an aborigine princess, later HIS WIFE
FITZGERALD , a magazine editor	—	—	, a magazine editor
A SOCIETY LADY	—	—	—
ALBERT’S MOTHER	—	—	—
AN OCTOPUS EXPERT	—	—	—
A MAP MAKER	—	—	—
A REPORTER	—	—	—
A LIBRARIAN	—	—	—
PLAYER #2 (male) contributes sound effects and portrays or gives voice to:	male	—	(male) contributes sound effects and portrays or gives voice to:
A BARKEEP	—	—	—
BRUNO , a dog	—	—	, a dog
GUNDA , Yamba’s father, a tribal chief	male	—	, Yamba’s father, a tribal chief
BOBO , her brother	female	—	, her brother
AN AUSTRALIAN PROSPECTOR	—	—	—
A SOCIETY LADY	—	—	—
ALBERT , a boy	male	—	, a boy
QUEEN VICTORIA , a queen	female	—	, a queen
A TURTLE EXPERT	—	—	—
A WOMBAT EXPERT	—	—	—
DR. LEOPOLD , an alienist	male	—	, an alienist
A PICKPOCKET	—	—	—