John Muggleton

Playwright

Ottawa Little Theatre set design for Burn 2020

"I had the pleasure recently of directing Burn at the Curtain Club, Richmond Hill. The joy (and
occasional frustration) of the unexplained and unexpected in the script led to a very lively and
rewarding rehearsal process. With a strong cast, exciting script and fine production crew we had a
massive success. Ticket sales in what is normally a slow slot (early winter) were unusually brisk and
with word of mouth as well as repeat patrons we had an unprecedented hit."

- Julian Mulock, Director

Burn

​

​Thriller
100 minutes; no intermission (optional with permission)
4 characters (2 m, 2 f)
**There are also 2 minor roles appearing in the beginning of the play as a flashback voice-over
Mature content, strong language

Full synopsis

Three friends meet in a stylish downtown loft apartment. They have history. They are awaiting the arrival of the estranged daughter of a fourth friend, who is recently deceased.  Why has she come, and who is she really?  Over the course of the evening, the friends must face the truth of their past in order to make sense of the present and save their futures. As the characters are skilled murder mystery writers who share a love of games and storytelling, tension builds as the audience must discern what is fact and what is fiction. Eventually each character is revealed for who they really are. Running in real time, "a taut script is the highlight of this psychological thriller."
- Curtain Club Theatre, Richmond Hill, ON.​​


Three longtime friends have had little contact since the death of the fourth member of their close-knit group, a best-selling horror writer. Now his estranged daughter has brought them all together again – but why?  Burn is “a highly suspenseful ghost story that holds you in its fiery grip right up until the final moments” (Onstage Ottawa). 
- Ottawa Little Theatre, Ottawa, ON