Skeleton Crew

The third play in Dominique Morisseau’s cycle of plays called The Detroit Projects, Morisseau’s undertaking to examine the socio political history of Detroit, Skeleton Crew explores the effects that the Great Recession had on the people of Detroit. Skeleton Crew focuses on three workers, Faye, Shanita, and Dez, and their fear of being laid off when there are rumors of their auto-plant closing. Faye, who is coming up on 30 years at the plant, has to decide where she will live and how, Shanita has a baby on the way and nobody to help her support it, and Dez must figure out how to follow through with his ambitious dreams. Reggie, the manager of the plant, has to support himself and his family while simultaneously trying to soften the blow for his workers. The factory’s downfall doesn't only affect the futures of these workers we get to know and love, but we see how it brings people closer or begins to tear them apart. The desperate decisions that they have to make gives audiences a first hand view of how the economy affects a hardworking, blue collar community such as the auto-plant workers of Detroit. The experiences of the characters in Skeleton Crew can be applied to many industry towns in America that struggled through the Great Recession of the 2000s.