The second on-stage reading of Studio Tenn’s inaugural New Works Series, Dharma by Nayna Agrawal, will be presented as a 90-minute reading followed by a 20-minute talk-back about the piece with the playwright, director, and New Works Director. There will be a cash bar.

Three first-generation, South Asian-American siblings in their 30s ask their immigrant parents to get a divorce so that they can fulfill their dharma, or cosmic duty: to house their parents during their sunset years. But none of the siblings wants to take both parents for fear that the dysfunctional marriage which informed their formative years will prey upon their adult lives. When the request is made, invectives fly, secrets spill forth, and the family dynamic is forever changed.

The New Works Series intends to cultivate and nurture the talent of the next generation of Southern playwrights, composers, and lyricists, as we feel it is our responsibility to follow in the footsteps of great American Southern playwrights such as Tennessee Williams, Beth Henley, and Wayne Kirkpatrick (among others). Furthermore, the Studio Tenn New Works Series strives to deconstruct the notion of what voices, themes, and stories historically come from the Southern region of the United States. We are thrilled to showcase the work of the next generation of Southern playwrights and composers, and in doing so give our community the opportunity to witness how new theater is created.

Studio Tenn Theatre Company

Studio Tenn is a professional regional theatre company and a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization based in Franklin, Tennessee. Its programming centers around innovative, custom-designed presentations of classic plays and musicals as well as an original “Legacy” series of theatrical concerts celebrating the work of time-honored musicians.