Diplomatic Relations

To lure tourists to her city, the mayor of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania has built an embassy for the fictional country of Portikrania. But when the State Department and mafia get involved, her scheme explodes into a comedy of Pennsylvanian proportions.

Read a selection from the script.

Characters

• VEENA GERALDINE HINCKLE, mayor of Wilkes-Barre, mid-50s
• TONY MALONE, a "contractor," late 20s
• JENNIFER HINCKLE, Veena's daughter, early 20s
• DESMOND WESTWOOD, inspector for the State Department, 40s

Productions

• Riant Strawberry One-Act Festival (New York, August 2010)

Backstory

My childhood babysitter grew up in Wilkes-Barre and moved back fifty years later to find the city well past its prime. I started thinking about what a politician would have to do to save Wilkes-Barre; Diplomatic Relations was my best guess.