Commencement

by Clay McLeod Chapman

One actress plays three women drawn together in the grim aftermath of a high school shooting - the mother of the shooter (staph infection), one of the shooter's victims (early release), and the mother of that victim (keynote speaker). It is a deep exploration of the lives of three women that, according to SEE Magazine "... will leave you wringing your hands in helpless empathy."

Genres: Plays

32 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2010

About the author

Books. Children's books. Comic books. Film.

Reviews

[behsforensics]

Cutting is for Staph Infection from Commencement
By Clay McLeod Chapman

[Neil Schleifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'd heard that Chapman was an edgy writer, but I found this play to be pretty derivative. The story of a Columbine-like school shooting is told from the perspective of the shooter's mother, one of the shooting victims and the victim's mother. The setup (shooter's mother) is a bit over-written and the ending (victims mother) is predictable in its sentimentality. Only the victim's story is compelling. I wish Chapman had developed this as the entire play -- the other two points of view added nothing.

This tale has been told before (GIVE A BOY A GUN by Todd Strasser; the film ELEPHANT by Gus Van Sant), and told better. Sadly, as bullying and gun violence continue, this story will no doubt be told again.