Time to get Dirty, folks! Tickets now available! Click HERE!
"There is no one remotely like Alex Dawson in Gothic New Jersey or anywhere else. A riveting, one-of-a-kind storyteller." Joyce Carol Oates, The Gravedigger's Daughter, Bellefleur
"Dawson is the Chuck Norris of storytelling. He can blow bubbles with beef jerky. The Devil and Daisy Dirt has the dense graininess of a piece of dried muscle meat. With all the wonder and whimsy of a bubble blown heavenward. Leathery and magical." - Clay McLeod Chapman, Ghost Eaters, What Kind of Mother
"Is Garden State Gothic a thing? It should be. Daisy Dirt is the literary daughter of Carson McCullers and The Boss. Born to Run by way of Sad Cafe. The devil is real, folks. And it lives in New Jersey." - Jason Rekulak, Hidden Pictures, The Impossible Fortress
"Diners, piners, and devils, plus a knot of dried up meat that makes Pork Roll feel like filet mignon. OG Jersey Devil Dawson puts the Dirt in Dirty Jerz with a twisted yarn that could only happen in my home state." Mike Edison, Raunch Hands, I Have Fun Everywhere I Go
"Dawson cracks that cryp with a whip-smart tall tale that leaves a mark. It's not too late to cryptid, cryptid good. You'll be glad you did." Will Rogers, Blackwood, Earth Break, Guide to the Unknown
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On the night of an annual appetite contest called "I 8 the Devil," Daisy Dirt finds something strange - winged and antlered, wounded but alive - in the dumpster behind Lucille's Luncheonette (aka the Devil's Diner). With the help of a Piney palm reader named Effie and a piece of magic muscle meat from the basement game locker, Daisy evades a villainous poacher named Tasty (Murder) and risks everything to save it.
Think Pine Barrens “Our Town” meets E.T., with a shoulder-shot cryptid instead of a stranded extraterrestrial, deer hunters instead of federal agents, and a portal that opens above the Apple Pie Hill fire tower after a midnight lightening strike instead of an alien mothership shaped like a Christmas tree ornament. All backed by a high lonesome sound.
Written/directed by Alex Dawson. With songs written/performed by Arlan Feiles. And an eight foot puppet designed, fabricated, and operated by Dan Diana. Featuring Alex Dawson, Arlan Feilies, Dan Diana, and Devon Borkowski (as Daisy). Many of the performances will also include an exhibition of dark, surrealist art inspired by Devon's childhood in the Pine Barrens (see ART).
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PREMIERE! The Devil & Daisy Dirt premieres at The Old Franklin Schoolhouse, an alt folk, cow punk music venue in Metuchen, NJ. 7:00 & 9:00 PM (doors open at 6:30 & 8:30), Thurs - Sat, April 11 - 13, and 1:00 PM Sun, April 14. $15 (includes courtesy glass of Jersey Devil mead/port or courtesy shot of Jersey Devil Apple Pie Moonshine or bottomless cup of Jersey Devil punch AND a complimentary piece of jerky). Tickets available now. For subsequent dates see CATCH THE DEVIL.
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BOOK THE DEVIL! The Devil & Daisy Dirt is a self-contained, 55 min, mixed-media, alt folk, Garden State gothic theatrical event with live music and puppetry. It's PG 13. Performances require a cleared space at the head of a room that can go dark, easy access to an electrical outlet, and ten foot ceilings. To book the Devil at your library, community center, cultural venue, bar, barn, or barbecue joint, contact raconteurbooks@gmail.com.
Click white arrow to watch event teaser. Note: Temp music.
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Grant funding has been provided by the Middlesex County Board of County Commissioners through a grant award from the Middlesex County Cultural and Arts Trust Fund.