What does A stand for? That question hangs over the protagonist—referred to only as A in the script—of Marin Ireland's deeply personal play Pre-Existing Condition. Her ex-boyfriend hit her so hard that she ended up on the floor, and although she didn't seek medical attention, the incident left her with emotional and psychological scars and split her life into before and after. Everyone wants to know what A wants now: Money? Justice? Revenge on her abuser? The problem is, she’s not sure she knows.
If A’s intense, halting, often uncomfortable exchanges with the people in her life—a dismissive lawyer, her no-nonsense therapist, her support-group facilitators, her dates, her friends, her self-involved mother—sound unsettlingly authentic, that's because Ireland is writing from firsthand experience. But Pre-Existing Condition isn’t just a memoir à clef. Delicately directed by Maria Dizzia, the play offers a deep dive into the messy aftermath of domestic violence. Unlike many stories about abuse, it’s not about escaping or standing up; it's about navigating an inadequate system while trying to process what happened. (The difficulty of doing so is reflected by the fact that Ireland has been working on this play for 14 years.)
Pre-Existing Condition | Photograph: Courtesy Jessica Kourkounis
In a poignant illustration of how abuse can happen to anyone—A’s group leader says that one in three women is battered in her lifetime—six different actors are scheduled to play A during Pre-Existing Condition’s four-month run. The first is Lupita Nyong’o (through Sept 26); she will be followed by Phillipa Soo (Sept 28–Oct 17), Susannah Flood (Oct 18–Nov 7), Hari Nef (Nov 9–28), Edie Falco (Nov 30–Dec 19) and Whitney White (Dec 21–Jan 8). It will be interesting to see how each of these women navigates A's harrowing journey. A walking wound who looks disturbingly vulnerable in costume designer Enver Chakartash's oversize sweater and mom jeans, Nyong’o's A seems to expend most of her energy trying to keep herself together. There are moments when she says “thank you," especially to men, when it's clear she would rather have the guts to say “fuck you” instead.
Pre-Existing Condition asks you to confront your preconceived notions about what domestic violence looks like and how it comes about. There are no perfect victims—the very word victim makes A wince—and A feels particularly guilty about having slapped her ex in a drunken fight a few days before their final blowup; that detail, taken directly from Ireland's life, makes some people in A's circle question her culpability, as she sometimes does herself. Her interactions with mostly well-meaning folks range from empathetic to accusatory; when one date asks playfully, "What did you do?," he's not inquiring as to whether she called the cops.
Pre-Existing Condition | Photograph: Courtesy Jessica Kourkounis
Dael Orlandersmith, Sarah Steele and Greg Keller inhabit all the people in A's orbit, with the latter portraying all the men (and, intriguingly, A’s mom). In keeping with the production’s bare-bones set and costumes, there are no grand gestures when the actors shift characters; overt theatricality is stripped away so that the play can focus on A's journey. Although Ireland includes a few teaching moments—sharing ugly statistics and facts, including about discrimination by health-insurance companies—her emphasis is on how the process feels.
When I saw Pre-Existing Condition's world premiere two years ago at the now-defunct Connelly Theater, I thought it felt a bit too much like therapy in public. Yet I couldn't stop thinking about it. "This lives in my body now," says A of her experience. Revisiting the play helped me realize how much it has lived in my head.
Pre-Existing Condition. Greenwich House Theater (Off Broadway). By Marin Ireland. Directed by Maria Dizzia. Starring Lupita Nyong’o, Greg Keller, Dael Orlandersmith, Sarah Steele. Running time: 1hr 20mins. No intermission.
Follow Raven Snook on X: @ravensnook
Follow Raven Snook on Instagram: @ravensnook
Follow Time Out Theater on Twitter: @TimeOutTheater
Keep up with the latest news and reviews on our Time Out Theater Facebook page
Pre-Existing Condition | Photograph: Courtesy Jessica Kourkounis
