La Jolla Playhouse’s ‘All the Men’ will offer different twist on family, trauma

The world premiere drama by Noah Diaz will have magical realism elements

by David L. Coddon

What makes a family a family? What makes a parent a parent?

Not so easy questions for anyone in our complex, ever-changing society but more so for Ty and Nora, the married couple trying to start a family in playwright Noah Diaz’s magical-realism-infused “All the Men Who’ve Frightened Me.”

In the La Jolla Playhouse-commissioned work about to make its world premiere, Nora (Kineta Kunutu) discovers she is unable to carry a child. Husband Ty (Hennessey Winkler), a trans man, decides to step in, forgo his testosterone treatments and carry their baby. Diaz has called his play a “house drama,” and it unfolds in Ty’s childhood home where specters from his past soon lurk. Look to the title.

“All the Men Who’ve Frightened Me” was developed four years ago as part of the Playhouse’s DNA New Work Series. A staged reading there was directed by Kat Yen, who is also directing the world premiere as the culmination of her two-year tenure as the theater’s inaugural directing fellow.

“This play is about three things,” Yen said. “Generational trauma, whatever you inherit from your parents and what your children might inherit from you. Also the theme of how the choices you make shape the person you need to be.”

Diaz began writing “All the Men Who’ve Frightened Me” six years ago, and he noted in email remarks that the play has undergone some transformation from its iteration four years ago in the Playhouse’s new play development series: “What began as a piece that leaned toward the experimental and expressionistic has gradually evolved into a play that feels more intimate and realistic.

“I believe this shift has given the story a clearer heart, one that audiences can hold onto, and I hope it resonates with them more deeply,” Diaz said…

Prior to this world premiere, Diaz’s play “You Will Get Sick” made its Chicago debut in July at Steppenwolf Theatre starring two-time Tony Award nominee Amy Morton. His newest, “Creature Feature,” enjoyed a staged reading, also this past summer, at the Colorado New Play Festival in Steamboat Springs.

Read More in The San Diego Union Tribune.