A Case for the Existence of God

by Samuel D. Hunter

A heartrending yet hopeful play about two men’s parallel desires to build a secure foundation for their families even as everything around them is falling apart.

Samuel D. Hunter’s latest play introduces us to two men who at first glance have nothing in Ryan is undereducated, awful with money, and reeling from a painful divorce with the mother of his child, while Keith is polished, financially savvy, and the gay single caretaker of a foster daughter. When Ryan seeks Keith’s help to secure a loan and buy back twelve acres that formerly belonged to his family, the two men bond over their love of their daughters, as well as “a specific kind of sadness” that emerges in the gap between their dreams and their realities. While never shying away from the inevitable heartache of life on the margins, Hunter’s play ultimately affirms, if not the existence of God, then at least the possibility that something sacred can emerge from the connection between two people.

Genres: Plays, Drama, Theatre

78 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 3, 2024

Reviews

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Through a chance encounter at a daycare center in Idaho, two guys in their 30s (one white / straight; one black / gay) slowly develop a bond. The first guy (a struggling worker / divorced) needs help with a property deal; the second is a mortgage broker. (The brokering itself is well-researched but how it plays out is a bit far-fetched.) Their bond is cemented by the issues of custody / adoption that they each convincingly battle. 

For a long time, we think they're strangers. Turns out they're not. (That's explored with a satisfyingly awkward realism.)

A two-hander like this can act like catnip on actors, esp. if the playwright writes the way that people actually / believably talk. Fortunately, Samuel D. Hunter is quite adept at that. For dramatic effect, Hunter ultimately has an ace up his sleeve; but what that ace has to do with the play's title is - well, a stretch. (I didn't quite buy it; though I'll admit the concluding, WTF-transition has a sly appeal anyway and it can certainly lead to an after-play conversation.)  

What works here can work well for two talented actors and an inspired director. It could be a rewarding challenge to bring riveting life to a situation that simmers and bubbles in a work cubicle, in which the actors almost always sit. Badly done, this material could be deadly - but there's built-in wiggle room for ingenuity.

Overall, it's a slightly flawed play but the layered straight-gay dynamic in particular is of refreshing note and, as is, the laced-with-empathy conflict makes for intriguing entertainment.

[Doug · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hunter has quietly been churning out one amazing play after another, all set in his native Idaho, for many years now. He finally made a breakthrough to the mainstream when his devastating play The Whale got the triumphant film adaptation that won Brendan Fraser his Oscar. This subsequent endeavor won universal praise and many awards off-Broadway two years ago and is just now being published - so that hopefully more groups will produce it.

It follows two single fathers - Keith - black, gay, educated, with a daughter he's fostering with hopes of adoption; and Ryan - white, blue-collar, and sharing custody with his ex-wife of a daughter the same age as Keith's. They meet in day-care, and Ryan seeks Keith's help in obtaining a mortgage loan. For much of the play, neither leave their seat; but slowly come to see that they share the same hopes, fears and sadness that draws them together. Hunter has an unerring way with naturalistic dialogue; it really is uncanny how this feels 100% authentic.

I was not quite sure of the ending, but the reviews assure me it plays beautifully, especially in director David Cromer's initial production. Am hoping some intrepid company will take it on in SF son - it would be a must-see.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/05/02/th...
https://www.newyorktheatreguide.com/r...
https://www.thewrap.com/case-for-the-...
https://stageandcinema.com/2024/01/28...

[Jonathan Perkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bro I really have to go on with the rest of my life after having read this play.

Dawg...

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful two hander. Samuel D Hunter is hit or miss with me but I really felt a very personal perspective from this.

[lumpslumps · Rating 4 out of 5]

the interactions and struggles feel real

[Maureen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just wonderful! Deeply moving

[Jack Reynolds · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was one of the plays picked for a local theater's yearly season, and it was between going home for a performance of it or hearing Roxanne Gay talk (you can guess which one won out in the end). I did know a physical edition was being released through Theatre Communications Group this year (like Everybody, their copy gets getting delayed for some reason). When I requested this for my grad school's play collection, I was surprised this came in as fast as it did. Turns out Samuel French also put out their own edition.

Hunter crafts two compelling characters who, in a sense, "reunite" after years apart. He's able to spin several different topics into a drama that's emotional gratifying and depicts how depression and single fatherhood bring Keith and Ryan together. The dramatic and homosocial tension builds nicely, and the time skips in text show how the two men become closer. I was a little confused about the last scene; I can only guess that was a few years after the second to last one. Although I wasn't able to see this live, I'm still happy I went ahead and made a request to get the script. A Case for the Existence of God was hard to put down.

[Christian · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5/5
I'm finally taking time to read the scripts I got in New York, and this one was a rich experiment in empathy. Exploring themes of parenthood and financial security, it really seeks to bridge disparate experiences of marginality. While at surface level you may think it's one thing, it is everything but.

At its heart, I believe the play argues for hope even in the face of extreme disappointment. The title might throw some of you off, but I highly recommend to anyone and everyone.

[Shawn Aebi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Imagine "The Breakfast Club" but there were only two participants and they were now 30-somethings lamenting their life choices and the curves which life had thrown them. And it's the same two people talking about the same two themes. And there was no miasma of Ally Sheedy turning into a beautiful princess to behold.

[David Smadja · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short but effective play about the stronger forces that can link two people and two destinies. Simple yet moving. It must be challenging to bring this script to the stage, like many other two-character, one-setting plays.

[Dalton Dear · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bought this after loving Grangeville. Idk it didn’t do as much for me and was expecting more with the title. Might be better live but felt like it didn’t go much of anywhere. There were some tender moments tho between the main characters, and I think it portrays male intimacy uniquely

[Tom Elliott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice two hander that allows middle-aged men to be emotionally vulnerable (although it took me a bit to accept the plausibility of a gay black man who grew up in Twin Falls, ID sticking around there as an adult).

[Alex Nagler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Was this as devastating on the page as it was the stage? Yes. Yes it was.

[Vera Morina · Rating 5 out of 5]

mocht deze tekst vertalen :)

[Ella Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Samuel D Hunter’s brand of empathy.

[Claire · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was really enthralled by this!

[Brian McCann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful new, two-person play packed with emotional, heart-wrenching situations and an ending I never anticipated. It would be great to experience this in person.

[KT Schearer]

read this while i took myself out to lunch for a brie and turkey baguette sandwich & grapefruit juice. i enjoyed

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

sad ending ow.

good feelings on that one musical chant bit.

i like the discussion of the race and poverty in rural america . yay.

[meta · Rating 4 out of 5]

mmmmhm

[Victor Wong · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely enjoyed the interaction between the two characters in this play.

[Sean Gordo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hunter does something really powerful with the minimalist staging. (Two characters seated for almost the entire play) And the whole script operates in sort of a similar way, simple yet impactful.