Hurricane Diane
Carnegie Mellon University
School of Drama
Spring 2026
by Madeleine George
Co-Dramaturgy with Jesús E. Feliciano-Batista
Dramaturgy Adv. Wendy Arons
Director Kaycee Swierc
Asst. Director Sean Barnett
Look below at the dramaturgy website, lobby display, Dionysian ritual, program note, and photos from a student talkback.
Lobby Display
Located in the lobby, the team crafted a devotional altar to Dionysus, complete with artifacts from all 3 of the versions of the God that have been revealed to humans.
On the right, the version of Diane that lived through Greece as Bacchus with wine, a lyre, and fruit abounding. Next on the left, possibly one of Diane's most successful attempts at gaining worshipers, living as Elvis with records and women surrounding. Finally, front and center, we have Diane's most recent ventures as a lesbian in Vermont, archived by her tambourine, plants, and a photo of her with some adoring gardeners. To finish off our devotional process, we invited the audience to give up something in Dionysus' name - maybe even a donation to the theatre!
Devotional Dionysian ritual
Our team had the great pleasure to discuss the play with writer Madeline George and during that conversation, we received a recommendation from her first production of the play. The team had set pieces that were not operating properly, and as their last hope, they did a ritual in honor of Dionysus, asking him if it was okay to represent him. The next day, the set worked!
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Inspired by their process, our team created our own ritual for Dionysus, complete with a prayer, tea candles, and anything we could sacrifice that represented Dionysus and our particular incarnation Diane.
Program Note
Student Socratic Seminar
The dramaturgy team was grateful to hear the perspectives of ~70 students who joined us from the CMU LEAP: Leadership, Excellence, Access, Persistence High School Education Program. This talkback was run similarly to a Socratic Seminar style discussion, with prompts such as "What design choices in the production stood out to you? Did this show make you think differently about climate change? And what do you think it means for society that Diane doesn't win?" It was fulfilling to allow the students an opportunity to connect with the play's subject matter on a deeper level.
News Coverage for Hurricane Diane