Full-Length Play
4 a.m. Friends
- 4 a.m. Friends
Synopsis
Marlene Dietrich is quoted as saying, “It’s the friends you can call at 4 a.m. that matter.” We all have those friends: the ones who understand you when you think no one will, who gently break your heart about love because you know they speak truth, the ones who pick leopard bras when all you want is a pink bow, who surprise you with an alligator in a garden to propel you forward, who might talk you into a misdemeanor or two when necessary. Becca, Tammy, and Kim are those kinds of 4 a.m. Friends with humor and heart the ties that bind. A myriad of iconic moments, people, and fashion from the 1970s to present day propel these friends through six short plays as they fight, argue, support, and love through some of life’s most challenging hurdles, growing from their teens to their sixties. You know, just like you might do with your 4 a.m. Friends.
If you’d like to meet my 4 a.m. Friends, I’d love to introduce you. You may even recognize a few of your own.
- 4 a.m. Friends
Play & Journey
With 4 a.m. Friends, I knew that I wanted designers, directors, and actors to be able to play with this play. The play has 20 elements that can be personalized to the geographic location of the performances. I envision 4 a.m. Friends performed in a linear fashion from playlet one to six, with a modular set, three female-presenting actors, accessories or single pieces for changing costumes, and projections between each playlet to signify the changing decades. But I also love that idea of other theatre makers playing perhaps with two casts of three, or sound/songs to show time shifts, or not following a linear timeline. Play! That’s what theatre is about!
4 a.m. Friends
Productions & Readings
Celebrating the productions, readings and creative teams that have brought the work to life.
Rolling World Premiere Fourth Production-2026
The Crest Theatre and Barton Community College
Karen Gore and Jack Greenwood, Directors.
Rolling World Premiere Third Production-2026
Endangered Species Theatre Project & Confidence Theatrics, Frederick, MD
Rikki Howie Lacewell, Director. Starring: Katie Barnett & Danielle Curry as Becca, Rebecca Husk as Kim, Pamela Northrup & Marissa Liotta as Tammy
Rolling World Premiere Second Production-2025
Brownville Village Theatre-2025, Brownville, NE
Jack Danter, Director. Starring: Rachel Curtis as Becca, Lena Cigleris as Kim, Kim “Howie” Howard as Tammy
Rolling World Premiere First Production-2025
Cone Man Running Productions. Houston, TX.
Debra Schultz, Director. Starring: Mary Mink as Becca, Angela Aguirre as Kim, Debra Schultz as Tammy
Workshop Production-2025
Goshen Players, Goshen, CT.
Sharon W. Houk, Director. Starring: Martha Irving as Becca, Lauren Jacob as Kim, Lyn Nagel as Tammy
Workshop Production-2025
UNO Theatre, New Ways, New Works. Omaha, NE
Alice Baker, Director. Starring: Emile Rothanzl, Katelyn O’Neill as Becca; Erin Weidenhamer, Kenya Leon as Kim; E. Dona-Muniz, Lily Pope as Tammy
Staged Reading-2025
Gracewell Productions, Waterbury, CT.
Sharon W. Houk, Director. Starring: Christine Mitchell-Robinson as Becca, Lauren Jacob as Kim, Lyn Nagel as Tammy
Staged Reading-2025
Shelterbelt Theatre, Omaha, NE.
Scott Glasser, Director. Starring: Delaney Jackson as Becca, Lena Cigleris as Kim, Rachel Curtiss as Tammy, Christine Burright as Christine
Staged Reading-2024
Truro Playwright Collective, Truro, MA.
Starring: Jen Cabral as Becca, Darlene Van Alstyne as Kim, Braunwyn Jacket as Tammy
4 a.m. Friends
Words of Praise
Praise from theatre professionals, playwrights and audiences moved by the humour, heart and enduring friendships of 4 a.m. Friends.
“4 a.m. Friends offers a refreshing reminder of why it’s worth the hard work to cultivate close friendships — to have people who know you well enough to challenge you, to support you, and to love you, even at 4 a.m.”
Morgan Feddes Satre, DC Theater Arts
“4 a.m. Friends hits the sweet spot of today’s ticket-buying audience! A delightful, poignant, laugh-out-loud funny play. Bring tissues!”
Michele Clarke, Co-founder Playwrights ETC, co-founder Playwrights at Road, past trustee Cape Cod Theatre Company
“Watching 4 a.m. Friends through this tech week has been emotional. It is a beautiful, and often funny story of female friendship through the decades… It has made me think of the friends I have been lucky enough to know and love for years”
Christine Mosere, Artistic Director & Founder
“The differentiation between the three was really well developed, but not without seeing the enduring ties that bonded them in a kindred way. The ending was such a nice surprise…it really hit hard. With this being a small sized cast, the fun of traveling through the decades, and the story of bonding – this could easily be a hit on any level.”
Michael Weems, Artistic Director, Cone Man Running Productions, Playwright, Educator. Houston, TX
“Through laughter and tears, companionship and strife, these friends navigate life. 4 a.m. Friends is a poignant portrait of resilience, friendship, and the enduring bonds that stand the test of time, and Donaghy creates three characters that I want to call at 4am or any time.”
Catherine M. O’Neill, Playwright, Theatre Maker
“Filled with genuine warmth and humor, Donaghy’s look at female friendships – told over six decades – reminds us that there is no greater power on earth than the love of a family we find and choose for ourselves.”
Ellen O’Brien, Playwright, Journalist
“4 a.m. Friends, by Charlene Donaghy, is a beautiful depiction of “The Good Life.” Omaha audiences will smile at the familiar schools, shops, and streets which root this story deeply into Nebraskan soil. But it branches far beyond its Heartland setting because, at its center, are three completely unique and captivatingly universal women. I laughed and cried as they tripped through life in my hometown. They were raw and honest and perfect examples of how powerful and transformative true friendship can be. Simply put, this play and these women are magic.”
Tacheny Perry, Writer, Managing Editor The Good Life Review, Omaha, NE
- 4 a.m. Friends
It’s the friends you can call at 4 a.m. that matter.
4 a.m. Friends began as one short play about three thirteen-year-old friends confronting the heartbreak of a dad at war, growing up too quickly because of things beyond their control, and discovering the truths, support, and love we find in friendship. Those thirteen-year-olds became playlet one: White Bra with a Pink Bow.
I realized I wanted to live with Becca, Tammy, and Kim longer, to see where their lives might take them. That desire became Freak Out. When my friend Sharon W. Houk, who directed both plays, shared my enthusiasm for these characters, I began imagining something larger: six connected playlets that would allow us to live with these women from their teens into their sixties, through the pivotal moments they endure and celebrate together.
My friends and I are woven throughout the quilt of each character. In my writing art, I live in Becca. My friend Kim can be found dancing in Kim, and my cousin Wendy twirls through Tammy’s being. Wendy and Kim are my 4 a.m. Friends – Wendy literally since birth, and Kim since we were toddlers watching our moms, Joan and Shirley, bond over gin and tonics while supporting each other through raising a passel of headstrong, sometimes unruly, surely too-smart-for-their-own-good daughters.
Many years, copious amounts of ice cream, and speckles of truth molded into fictional journeys allowed Becca, Tammy, and Kim to grow with us, exploring how friendship endures through sorrow and joy, challenges and celebrations.
And the name 4 a.m. Friends? While considering a title, I came across a quote attributed to Marlene Dietrich:
“It’s the friends you can call at 4 a.m. that matter.”
I know those friends. They are the people I can call at 4 a.m., or anytime, to share laughter and celebrations, tears and support.
My hope is that audiences recognize some of their own friends in Becca, Tammy, and Kim. During the UNO New Ways, New Works Festival, Kenya Leon, who played Kim, told me she had begun calling two of her own friends “Becca” and “Tammy” because she recognized so much of them in the characters. And Kim? Kenya said that had to be her.
THAT is the heart of 4 a.m. Friends.
They are my friends and, I hope, your friends as well.
~ Charlene
THEATRE PRODUCTIONS & CAST
Actors & Directors
A record of the theatre companies, directors and performers who have brought Becca, Tammy and Kim to the stage.
Directors
Endangered Species Theatre Project, Frederick, MD. Rikki Howie Lacewell
Brownville Village Theatre. Brownville, NE. Jack Danter
Cone Man Running Productions. Houston, TX. Debra Schultz
Goshen Players, Goshen, CT. Gracewell Productions, Waterbury, CT. Sharon W. Houk
UNO Theatre, New Ways, New Works. Omaha, NE. Alice Baker
Shelterbelt Theatre, Omaha, NE. Scott Glasser
Actors who have played Becca
Danielle J. Curry. Frederick, MD
Katie Barnett. Frederick, MD
Nicole “Howie” Howard. Brownville, NE
Mark Mink. Houston, TX
Martha Irving. Goshen, CT
Christine Mitchell-Robinson. Waterbury, CT
Delaney Jackson, Emile Rothanzl, Katelyn O’Neill. Omaha, NE
Jen Cabral. Truro, MA
Deidre Mattox. Emily Klaumann. Nebraska City, NE
Actors who have played Tammy
Pamela Northrup. Frederick, MD.
Marissa Liotta. Frederick, MD
Rachel Curtiss. Brownville, NE
Debra Schultz. Houston, TX
Lyn Nagel. Waterbury and Goshen, CT
Rachel Curtis, E. Dona-Muniz, Lily Pope. Omaha, NE
Braunwyn Jackett. Truro, MA
Kara Davidson. Rachel Curtiss. Nebraska City, NE
Actors who have played Kim
Rebecca Husk. Frederick, MD
Lena Cigleris. Brownville, NE
Angela Aguirre. Houston, TX
Lauren Jacob. Waterbury and Goshen, CT
Lena Cigleris. Erin Weidenhamer, Kenya Leon. Omaha, NE
Darlene Van Alstyne. Truro, MA
Christine Burright. Emmy Potter. Lena Cigleris. Nebraska City, NE
Awards & Nominations
Recognition celebrating the original writing and theatrical impact of 4 a.m. Friends.
20th Annual Omaha Arts & Entertainment Awards
Nomination Category
New Original Script
Recognised Work
4 a.m. Friends
Playwright
Charlene A. Donaghy
Presented by
University of Nebraska Omaha Theatre
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