The play, "Everybody In This House"

Father O’Donnell, a man grappling with his own heavy burdens, makes a fateful decision to turn a deaf ear to Mary Turner’s pleas about her troubled marriage. When Mary is found dead just a few weeks later, Father O’Donnell is consumed by guilt. To soothe his conscience, he visits the Turner family in their home, only to discover that the house holds a terrifying web of domestic violence and secrets.

Now, caught between his moral obligations and the shocking truth, Father O’Donnell is forced to confront his own powerlessness in the face of what he believes is pure evil. The play exposes the chilling reality that what happens inside a home doesn't always stay there, and the lines between faith, guilt, and justice are far from clear.
 

As Father O’Donnell's worst fears are justified, he must face the darkness he finds within the family, and within himself. He knows he has to act, but can he leave the house with his conscience—and his faith—intact?

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Production History

 

• San Francisco State University

• City College of San Francisco

• Edinburgh Fringe Festival
   

Reviewed by The Stage (Edinburgh, Scotland), this powerful drama was called "superbly written and totally uncompromising."

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You can find more information, including casting and other details at the New Play Exchange.

An Excerpt from the essay, "Decades Later"

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I don’t like explaining my work. I have long figured that if I have to explain it, then I must not have done a very good job of writing it. A play should stand on its own. Don’t insert myself. Don’t interrupt the flow. Let people have their feelings.

 

What I discovered, however, is when people have a strong reaction to a play, they tend to blame the person they believe caused them to have the reaction. And that’s me, the playwright. You think I caused you to feel whatever you’re feeling right now. 

 

I didn’t cause you to have that reaction. You created it on your own. Okay, maybe I helped a little. Ultimately, however, you bring your beliefs, biases, experiences and expectations to everything you see, hear and do.

 

I’ve known this for a long time. Your reactions aren’t about this play; they’re about you. And your reactions have informed my work ever since.