Alexis Scheer Talks Mixing Magic and Politics in ‘Our Dear Dead Drug Lord’ Play: ‘If People Are Offended, That’s Fine’
variety.comJenelle Riley Deputy Awards and Features Editor A few years ago, Alexis Scheer wrote a play and, by her own admission, figured “it was a little too crazy and weird and nobody would do it.” So she had her own theater company, Off the Grid, mount it in her hometown of Boston in 2018.
Called “Our Dear Dead Drug Lord,” the story is set in Miami on the eve of the 2008 election and focuses on four high school girls holding occult rituals to communicate with spirits – specifically that of the late drug lord Pablo Escobar.
As it turned out, plenty of others were interested in Scheer’s strange, comic, often magical play. It was a New York Times Critic’s Pick when it premiered Off-Broadway in 2019, and theaters across the country (including several colleges) have mounted the production.
It’s currently enjoying a run in Los Angeles at the Center Theatre Group’s Kirk Douglas Theatre in Culver City. Directed by Lindsay Allbaugh and produced in association with IAMA Theatre Company, the show is running through Sept.
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