"Daddy": A Melodrama

by Jeremy O. Harris

Franklin, a young black artist on the eve of his first show, meets Andre, an older white art collector, and before long their feverish connection develops into an unbreakable bond.
But when Franklin's mother, Zora, decides that her son is in peril, she enters into a battle of wills with Andre over the soul of the man they both call 'baby'.
Basquiats and Birkins, gospel and pop, fantasy and all collide around a Bel Air swimming pool in this deeply surreal exploration of intimacy and identity.
"Daddy" is Jeremy O. Harris's blistering melodrama, first performed in New York City in 2019, and at the Almeida Theatre, London, in 2022, directed by Danya Taymor.
'A masterpiece that doesn't so much pull the rug from under you as yank it, then stick around to laugh at you lying on the floor, dazed and bewildered... there's no danger of you forgetting "Daddy"' - Independent
'A gleeful killing spree of sacred cows and sensitivities... a thrilling, jolting experience, boldly conceived and staged' - Evening Standard
'Bold, brawny, and flamboyantly theatrical... thrilling' - Guardian

Genres: Plays

174 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 28, 2022

Reviews

[Krys · Rating 3 out of 5]

A provocative though unfocused play about how art, race and class intersect in a poisonous love affair between a younger black artist and an older, wealthier patron. There are some intriguing ideas about the use of black pain in art, the incestuous relationship between art and money, and what it means to own a piece of art, but therein lies the problem. The play can't quite seem to maintain its focus on a single idea to explore in depth, instead skimming across a broad range of ideas and expressing them in a very literal, if slightly cerebral, manner.

I loved the idea of Franklin the artist surrendering to his relationship with his patron and lover Andre by regressing from an adult to a child, as if he's been infantilised by this affair, but the play seemed to end abruptly after touching on this idea and his "daddy issues". Ultimately, the play asks: what does it mean to be part of something that has historically rejected you and people like you—to be part of the establishment?

ZORA
Why do you think so many of them leave?
The daddies?
It's not conditioning.
It ain't slavery.
That don't make much sense once you really dig down deep into it.
It's the realisation that
even their male-ness
can't brighten up
the utter darkness
of their child's future.
The only reason mothers stay
is because
we're prepared.
We've
been promised darkness since the day
we looked down and saw blood looming
black and scarlet
in the lining of our
lil two-dollar panties.

[Max · Rating 5 out of 5]

I felt extremely mistrustful of the messaging here because I read Slave Play first and I didn't need to be! He really sticks with the idea that larping as a child sexual abuse victim is a result/cause of extreme distress. As well-crafted and engaging as Slave Play, but feels much more honest because it clearly depicts the reality that the troubling sex practice/relationship dynamic depicted (while obviously erotically charged for participants) fails to solve the problems that provoked it and creates many new ones

[Emmanuel · Rating 4 out of 5]

At a loss for words with this one..

O'Harris is a special writer. I don't think he knows what it means to hold back, and I'm glad of it.

While I think the ending is a bit abrupt and conveniently, cleanly resolved, everything preceding it is highly entertaining and confronting, especially as a queer black male artist.

[Theo Chen · Rating 2 out of 5]

this didn’t really come alive for me.
I didn’t understand the function of the line break.
And I felt confused on the page by the different metaphors and performance vocabularies being used… I don’t know how to make heads or tails of this. Maybe something to revisit? And reread? But I mean, I was never bored: I did always want to know what happened next (but I think that’s more a function of JOH’s renown / the hype around this play than any actual narrative structure or plotting?)

[Zane]

"art should challange you"; at this point it's a bit ew. but it might have been aimed to be ew

[jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

thought-provoking but didn't entirely maintain focus throughout, and the vapid LA-speak was a little grating and detracted from the content slightly

[efin · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite plays of all time

[Diana Rendon · Rating 5 out of 5]

i am deeply disturbed!!! which is my favorite feeling after reading a play. bravo

[Joel Wall · Rating 5 out of 5]

I came into this play with high expectations and O. Harris met them and then some. A truly layered, beautiful, and creative play that has given me lots to think about

[Kade · Rating 5 out of 5]

In: Speedos, life-sized dolls, the gradual backsliding into adolescent hysteria.
Out: Private art collections, drugs in the daytime, baptism.

[James Delaney · Rating 3 out of 5]

in the words of claire, a half-baked play. would’ve loved to see it up on its feet though

[Rodrigo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very likely will end up the best play I've read this year. Was trembling everywhere by the end.

[Shannon Geier · Rating 5 out of 5]

This play is incredibly wow! Definitely not expected and Jeremy O. Harris' writing never fails to be a little shocking and insane! Reading interviews from him made me want to read this all the more.

[Michelle Capozzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This play is a collective view on how “we” see “Daddy” and how that view affects our relationships close to daddy. It’s of course melodramatic and super meta at times and personally this is the art I gravitate towards sooo 5 stars for moi.

I also saw this live at Almeida Theatre in London so maybe I’m biased but like the actor playing Franklin made me realize that those “close up movie moments” can also happen on stage, and because it happened in real time, it made the whole experience feel even more special!!