Inside the PlayGround Festival: The Bramford & Playwright Lauren Gorski

This weekend is the PlayGround Festival premiere presentation of Lauren Gorski‘s new play, THE BRAMFORD!

Playwright Lauren Gorski has a Master’s in Professional Writing with emphasis in Stage and Screen from the University of Southern California. She writes fiction, poetry, screenplays, and stageplays. Her fiction and poetry have been featured in “apt”, “Badlands”, “Jersey Devil Press”, “Underground Voices”, and elsewhere. Her plays have been performed for the Hollywood Fringe, PlayGround (including the Best of Festival), PianoFight’s ShortLived series, and more. She is a past playwright-in-residence with PlayGround San Francisco. She is also the Comics & Film Editor of Exposition Review, a multi-genre digital literary journal.

We asked Lauren a couple questions about THE BRAMFORD and what audiences should expect.

PlayGround: What is this play about?

Lauren: The Bramford is a reimagining of Rosemary’s Baby and explores the intersection of three women in one apartment: Gloria, Betty, and Rosemary. Through reading the novel Rosemary’s Baby, neighbors Gloria and Betty find new interpretations of the work. As the story is told, the characters of the novel—Rosemary, Guy, and Satan—come to life. Besides the famous novel, the play is also loosely inspired by Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan, along with the 1960s women’s movement and New York’s famous Dakota building (the inspiration for The Bramford featured in the film).

PG: What is the emotional journey that you’re hoping to take your audiences on?

LG: This is a haunted house story, as most stories are. With that in mind, there are elements of suspense, supernatural, and a bit of humor. Besides the genre expectations, what I darkly love about the original novel is that even though there are cults, magic, and even the Devil’s claw marks on Rosemary’s body, the most horrific part has nothing to do with fantasy. The most horrific part is her husband’s betrayal, which is the also something that could really happen to anyone. Similarly, The Bramford plays in the world of the fantastical, however the emotional journey itself is grounded in the very real search for one’s identity in the face of absolute grief.

PG: Why was this a story that you feel is important to share now?

LG: From when the book was published in 1967 up until today in 2023, many steps forward have been taken in favor of women’s rights–and many steps back as well. Roe v. Wade came and went! It’s interesting to me the juxtaposition between the importance of mothers in society, and yet we infantilize women as if they aren’t powerful enough to take care of themselves. I hope this play starts conversations around the complexity of the lives women lead and how this carries over into relationships, friendships, etc. Each choice we make is rarely with only ourselves in mind.

Join us for the PlayGround Festival premiere presentation of THE BRAMFORD by Lauren Gorski live in-person at Potrero Stage and simulcast online, this Saturday, May 27, and Sunday, May 81, at 7pm PDT and available on demand through June 4. Online admission is free (donations gratefully accepted; in-person suggested donation of $21/$31/$51) but advance reservations are required. For more information or to reserve tickets, visit https://playground-sf.org/thebramford.