Synkroniciti is delighted to welcome back Georgia playwright Peter Dakutis with a hilarious satirical play, Pardoning the Turkeys. Meet the Gibbles, an all-American, close-knit family with a Thanksgiving tradition that will flabbergast you. You see, every year the patriarch pardons each member of the family (including himself) for any wrongdoing and all is not only forgiven, but celebrated–be it philandering, tax evasion or worse. And there is worse, believe me. This year Billy has brought his girlfriend, thinking he has found “the one.” Is she prepared for this family? The Gibbles are completely authentic in their madcap sociopathy–it’s a requirement to be unphased by the harm inflicted by other members of the family. As his father says, “Always remember this. You’re a Gibble. You come from a long line of very fine people.”
Peter deftly weaves a parallel that speaks volumes about our current political climate–you think you know someone, and then realize that their happy-go-lucky nature is due to their complete amorality rather than any virtues. Read this terrific black comedy in our “Family” issue, available here: https://synkroniciti.com/the-magazine/purchase-individual-issues/.
As a child, Peter Dakutis read voraciously and developed a lifelong love of playing with words and language. In third grade, he had a poem published. He wrote for student newspapers in junior high, high school, and college. After a detour into teaching, he became a professional writer in several fields, including corporate communications, public health, and information technology. Returning to his creative writing path, he found that playwriting nourished his soul. Peter’s plays have appeared in numerous productions in the Atlanta metro area (where he resides), around the US, and in England, Ireland, Canada, and Australia. His work has been published in several publications, including two Smith & Kraus Best Ten-Minute Plays anthologies.