And so yes, well, I'd simply dropped that whole idea of being a good person, I'd dropped it right down into some hole in the street, and down it had gone into the city's sewers, and no one ever saw it again.
Set in a rather privileged world of intelligent and gentle people, a father, mother, son and the father's long-time mistress tell the intimate story of their lives. Wallace Shawn, a student of morality whose plays have brought us frank truths about politics and sexuality, here takes on the subject of love - suffocating and freeing. Remorse, resentment, joy and sorrow play out against the background of a pleasurable and sophisticated but violent city.
'We don't understand ourselves, and we don't know why we do what we do. Ideally, then, dangerous weapons should be kept out of our hands at all times, but in romantic, sexual, and familial relationships we carry the weapon of our own feelings strapped to our chests whether we like it or not.' Wallace Shawn
What We Did Before Our Moth Days premiered at the Greenwich House Theater, New York, in March 2026.
About the Author :
Wallace Shawn is most recognisable as an actor, from, among others, The Princess Bride, Clueless, Young Sheldon, Manhattan, and the voice of Rex in Toy Story. The Fever (1990), a modern classic, was first performed by Shawn in his friends' apartments, then transferred to the Royal Court and the West End. The Designated Mourner (1997) was first performed at the National Theatre. With André Gregory, Shawn made the films My Dinner with André and Vanya on 42nd Street. He has won three Obie Awards.
Review :
"No one pricks the conscience of right-on, left-leaning theatergoers better than this impish, idiosyncratic polymath." - Matt Trueman, Variety
"Wallace Shawn writes like no one else. His stuff is scary, gripping, and hilarious." - Ben Marcus, New Yorker
"Wallace Shawn always takes you on an unexpected journey. You come home bruised, perplexed, laughing, afraid. And, because he's such a good writer, very happy." - Caryl Churchill
"Wallace Shawn is at once the US's most profound and most overlooked playwright." - David Hare
