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Daddies  By  cover art

Daddies

By: Paul Kruse
Narrated by: Barbara Chisholm, Gabriel Vaughan, Hale Appleman, Jennifer Kidwell, Karina Kruse, Ken Bolden, Mark Linn-Baker, Mary Poole, Piper Goodeve, Sydney Harcourt, Tonilyn A. Sideco
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Publisher's summary

Joseph is having a comically rough year. His job sucks, his relationship ended, he’s plagued by prank phone calls, and he nearly lost his father to the virus. When his best friend asks him to donate his sperm so that she can start a family, Joseph just can’t understand why anyone would bring a child into this calamitous world. The only bright spot is an intriguing new online relationship with an attractive internet “daddy” that has him rethinking his isolation until a series of revelations have him facing even bigger decisions about his future.

Portions of this audiobook contain mature language. Listener discretion is advised.

Playwright Paul Kruse was awarded a commission through the Audible Emerging Playwrights Fund, an initiative dedicated to developing innovative original plays driven by language and voice. As an Audible-commissioned playwright, he received funding and creative support to develop Daddies.

Directed by Adil Mansoor. 

©2022 Paul Kruse (P)2022 AO Media LLC

About the Creator

Paul William Kruse is a playwright, film/video maker, and teaching artist from western Wisconsin. His work flows from his queer identity, Catholic roots, and ever-evolving experience of family. He is a founding member and resident playwright of Hatch Arts Collective in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Paul often writes collaboratively, drawing from his years of experience as a videographer and documentarian. Paul recently completed his MFA at UT Austin where he was a fellow with the Michener Center for Writers.

About the Director

Adil Mansoor is a theatre director centering the stories of queer folks and people of color. His current project "Amm(i)gone" adapts Sophocles’s "Antigone" as an apology to and from his mother. "Amm(i)gone" is a National Performance Network (NPN) Creative and Development Fund Project co-commissioned by Kelly Strayhorn Theater, The Theater Offensive, and NPN. Mansoor has developed work with New York Theatre Workshop, The Poetry Project, Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance, Tofte Lake Center, NYU Tisch, and PearlArts Studios. Directing projects include Chickens in the Yard by Paul Kruse (Hatch and Quantum), Gloria by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins (Hatch), Desdemona’s Child by Caridad Svich (Carnegie Mellon), and Plano by Will Arbery (Quantum). Mansoor is a founding member of Pittsburgh’s Hatch Arts Collective and the former Artistic Director of Dreams of Hope, an LGBTQA+ youth arts organization. He has been a NYTW 2050 Fellow, a Gerri Kay New Voices Fellow with Quantum Theater, and is currently an Art of Practice Fellow and Community Leader with Sundance. He is part of the inaugural Artist Caucus gathered by Baltimore Center Stage, Long Wharf, St. Louis Rep, and Woolly Mammoth. Mansoor received his MFA Directing from Carnegie Mellon.

Featuring

Featured Article: Best of the Year—The 10 Best Audible Theater Listens of 2022


Audible Theater takes what you thought you knew about going to a play and turns it on its head. With a vast array of extraordinary voices that go beyond the stage (and the book), we're delivering a new vision of what theater can be. Some of the best productions this year were recorded in front of a live audience at our own Minetta Lane Theatre, while others were honed and polished in our studios, created strictly to be heard.

What listeners say about Daddies

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not the ending I expected


good story but could use a part 2 great actors just seemed unfinished

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4 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

You’ll want more…

I did not want this story to end where it did, and I wish it was a complete novel!

The performances popped to life through this audible experience and I could not stop listening. It is so relatable, fresh, and funny.

Listening is quick, easy, and it will leave you wanting a part II.

TG

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    5 out of 5 stars

Wow! This short story has EVERYTHING!

It was funny, interesting, sad, deep and thought provoking. The story took an interesting turn in the middle. I loved the multiple actors and music/sound effects. Highly recommend.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Original

Original. Even after you realize something unusual is going on and more or less what it is, I, at least, couldn't tell where the story would go with it. More positive a vibe than you might think if I summarized the plot. Seemed like a work that could be worked into a longer piece and I enjoyed that feeling of possibility.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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Pandemic Relatable

Definitely not the ending I was expecting !!! This Audible was much better then expected.

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2 people found this helpful

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clever awesome performance

excellent production you feel like you are there the whole time. The voice performerces are wonderful. I love the premise I have 100% had some of these conversations

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2 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Okay, kinda relatable (in Aug 2022), kinda weird

Performances were good, voices were pleasant and emotive. Ensemble portions were funny.

Story is set back to the early days of the pandemic and BLM, when emotions were at the highest points and opinions were loudest (which may turn some people off). There are some funny moments throughout (mostly about videoconferences), a little bit of cursing (only Fs) and, if you re-listen to certain conversations, you'll notice the author left the breadcrumbs that lead to the final sci-fi twist. Yet, the resolution came abruptly and the story seemed like it did not fully developed.

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    4 out of 5 stars

Intense and Interesting

I loved how this play played with form, it felt really immersive and true to the early pandemic setting. The voice acting was incredible, they got really talented people to really emotionally portray every character. Ultimately, it made me think about what people are we each other and how we can grow through our flaws and friendships. Great and fast.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Hilarious/relatable pandemic about relationships

The thing I love about how Paul Kruse writes relationships is you can find at least one relatable character trait, if not more. This play pulls us through the beginning of the pandemic, including all the funny and ugly truths of the world we live in today. The story is one of those stories where after you know the ending, you just have to go back and listen again to see what you missed the first time around.



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3 people found this helpful

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Excellent

Surprising and beautifully written with great performances from the actors. It is a play that is both current and timeless.

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3 people found this helpful