About the Show

An intimate, explosive, and poetic exploration of love in the face of catastrophe, English writer Philip Ridley’s provocative play comes back to New York in a reimagined, African-American production.

From the show:

This is the story of you and your first great love...

A young couple face an unnamed catastrophe. They wind their love back to its beginnings through a fantastical, erotic world of serpent slayings, monkey wars, alien abductions and a shipwrecked paradise. Dangerously and absolutely, they dream and dance themselves into the secret places of love and desire, back to the ecstasy of their first kiss. Explosive, poetic and brutal, Tender Napalm re-examines and re-defines the language of love…and how that love struggles to survive in the face of catastrophe.

With approval from playwright Philip Ridley, director David Norwood brings a unique vision to this acclaimed play, seen through the eyes of an African-American couple.

If you think you know love, think again.

Critic Reviews (2)

“The power and majesty of the theater are affirmed by this ravishing production of the acclaimed English playwright Philip Ridley's beguiling fantasia. A shipwrecked young couple engage with monkeys, aliens and serpents as memories and sometimes violent erotic feelings are expressed.”
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“The truth is: I saw ‘Tender Napalm’because it had a great title. Finding the delicacy of the language is half the battle, and Philip Ridley's script, originally presented in London in 2011, is challenging. In some aspect of this dreamlike, imaginary place, there's plenty to do, in the mind of the audience, to create a narrative that's built on the presence of this Man and Woman, who persist, always dancing, tempting the larger explosion.”
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Trailer

Creative team