Theatrefolk Featured Play - Magic Fairy in the Microwave

Welcome to our Featured Play Spotlight. Magic Fairy in the Microwave by Dara Murphy is a wild, fast-paced ride through imagination, identity, and a world that may or may not be real. There are knives. There is blood. There are kittens.

Brace yourself for a darkly funny, physical theatre adventure that keeps you guessing till the end. You’ve been warned.

Why did we publish this play?
Fun fact - Dara Murphy wrote her first play in high school for a class project and her teacher submitted it to us. (The Plucky Pie Murder) She now has five plays in the Theatrefolk catalogue. Whenever we see a submission from her in our inbox, we know it's going to be dark, funny, and left of centre. It's good to have the crowd-pleasers. It's good to have the large cast plays for beginner actors. It's also good to have plays that are very out of the box, like Magic Fairy, where we have a normal teenager with a normal life and an unreliable narrator who's trying to kill her.

I love this play. I love it because it’s funny, it’s absurd, and people die in a funny absurd way. Don’t bring this play to your Ultra PC Administrator - there’s guns and knives and blood. Kittens will be harmed and you have been warned. But did I mention that it’s absurd? And maybe everything doesn’t have to be happy rainbows? If you want to be fancy, you can tell your administrator that the play is inspired by the Grand Guignol style, founded by a theatre in Paris in the late 19th century. Which specialized in true to life horror plays. Wait, don’t tell them that part. Just read the play.

Let's hear from the author!

1. Why did you write this play?
I wrote Magic Fairy in the Microwave as a fun project. I had just returned from a summer of tree planting and was waiting for school to begin. I started writing the Narrator's first monologue, and since it made me laugh, I felt inspired to continue (plus my body was sore from tree planting, so sitting and writing seemed like a good use of time). I was influenced by Grand Guignol style plays, and my goal was to write something light but "bloody". I remember giggling as I wrote each section, and I enjoyed surprising myself with the wacky twists and turns.

2. Describe the theme in one or two sentences?
The theme is the power of imagination. The play also explores the mind-twisting process of writing or working on a creative project.

3. What's the most important visual for you in this play?
The Narrator dying at the end with all of his dead characters around him.

4. If you could give one piece of advice for those producing the play, what would it be?
I was lucky enough to see a production of this play where the cast spent a lot of time working on the fight scene choreography. The fight scenes between Tom and the Masked Villain were so electric! It was amazing to watch. If you've ever wanted to explore fight choreography, this would be a fun project. Since the fight scenes are in Sarah's imagination, they don't have to be realistic. They can be creative and over-the-top. Just make sure to warm up, go slow, and prioritize safety. Another thing I would add is that if you feel uneasy about using a prop gun, feel free to change the gun into a laser. A prop laser could light up, make pew-pew laser sounds, and it would probably be way cooler than a gun anyway.

5. Why is this play great for student performers?
If your students get a kick out of theatre games where they have to die dramatically, they will certainly like this play! Student performers love the action, energy, and imagination of this play. There is a lot of movement and teamwork, and not much standing around. Yes, everyone dies in the end, but the violence is not realistic. They might also relate to the main character Sarah, a teenager who retreats into her imagination when life gets difficult.

6. Who is your favourite character in the play?
I would happily be any character, but I would probably choose to be the Narrator because I like the Narrator's "bad guy" vibes and dramatic lines.

7. What is your favourite line in the play?
It's hard to pick a favourite! I like the Narrator's line, "So as the last of Sarah’s blood leaks from her body, her mother dies of a tragic heart attack." That line is so ridiculous. I also love Sarah's last few lines at the end because they finish the play in a satisfying way.