15-year-old Sunny wonders about the universe, God, and her own creation story. When a DNA test reveals a complicated truth, her journey gets... well... complicated. Sunny in the Dark is a play about mysteries, yearnings, and lies. Oh, and astrophysics!
Sunny in the Dark
- By Elaine Jarvik | Workshopped in SLAC's 23/24 New Play Sounding Series
- February 4 - March 1, 2026
- World Premiere
- Sunny in the Dark is a play about mysteries, yearnings, and lies. Oh, and astrophysics!
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- Playwright: Elaine Jarvik
- Director: Marion Markham
- Running Time: TBD
- Cast: Matthew Ivan Bennet, CoCo May Berwald, Alexandra Harbold*, Jason Andrew Hackney, Micki Martinez*, and Paul Mulder*
- Creative Team: Marion Markham (Director), Gage Williams** (Set Designer), James Padilla (Lighting Designer), Spencer Potter (Costume Designer), Jennifer Jackson (Sound Designer), Jessica Graham (Props Designer), Calvin Vinson (PTP Asst. Sound Designer), Adriana Lemke (Intimacy Director), Bridgette Lehman* (Production Manager/Stage Manager), and Tahra Veasley* (Production Manager/Assistant Stage Manager).
- Other Notes: *Member of Actors’ Equity Association, the Union of Professional Actors and Stage Managers in the United States. **Represented by United Scenic Artists Local USA 829 of the IATSE.
- Open Captioned Performance: Sunday, February 22nd at 6 PM
- Audio Described Performance: Sunday, March 1st at 6PM
- Sensory Friendly Performance: Saturday, February 28th at 2 PM
- ASL Interpreted Performance: Saturday, February 28th at 2 PM
- Reviews:
- "What initially appears to be a coming-of-age story about a curious teenager asking big questions soon unfolds into something far more ambitious—an exploration of how people search for meaning when truth is withheld, filtered, or strategically managed.", Keolanani Kinghorn, Rhetorical Review
- "Ultimately, Jarvik’s play successfully incorporates a universal theme of what it means to believe, especially as it relates to politics, religion, science, and family dynamics. It also carefully considers the very human trait that is yearning for a North Star when feeling adrift.", Sydney Naegle, BroadwayWorld
- "Searching the Stars and the Self in SLAC’s Sunny in the Dark: A Cosmic Coming-of-Age Story.", Alisha & Jason Hagey, Front Row Reviewers
- "Showcasing phenomenal wit and riveting wordplay Sunny in the Dark proves itself to be a star in the ever-expanding playwriting universe.", Ellie Smith, Utah Theatre Bloggers
- "Elaine Jarvik Turns Her Curiosity to the Cosmos in Sunny in the Dark", Artists of Utah, 15 Bytes
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We are proud to partner with ACLU of Utah on this production.
