Reversal of Burdens
On April 4, 1968—the night Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated—a young white woman raised under apartheid arrives in Washington, D.C. to work as a nanny for a prominent black family deeply involved in the Civil Rights Movement. Expecting privilege and familiarity, she instead finds herself trapped in a household that challenges everything she believes about race, power, and identity.
As riots erupt outside and the city descends into chaos, the family is forced into close quarters with fear, grief, and one another. When violence reaches their doorstep, tensions escalate between nonviolence and self-defense, justice and survival. Over the course of one volatile night, each must confront what they truly believe—and what they are willing to risk to protect it.
Reversal of Burdens is a single-set, ensemble-driven historical drama exploring race, family, and social justice at a moment when the country—and its people—are pushed to the breaking point.
The Characters
Alice de Vries
Description: A privileged young woman from South Africa.
Character Age: 20–25
Gender: Female
Casting Requirements: White woman or non-binary actor, age range: Teens to 20s.
John Roland
Description: A man in his late 30s; patriarch of the Roland family.
Character Age: 35–45
Gender: Male
Casting Requirements: Black, African, Caribbean, or African American man or non-binary actor, age range: 30s to 50s.
Janet Roland
Description: A woman in her 30s; matriarch of the Roland family.
Character Age: 30s
Gender: Female
Casting Requirements: Black, African, Caribbean, or African American woman or non-binary actor, age range: 30s.
Berna Roland
Description: John and Janet’s daughter.
Character Age: 7
Gender: Female
Casting Requirements: Black, African, Caribbean, or African American girl, age range: Child.
Ralph Roland
Description: John and Janet’s son.
Character Age: 5
Gender: Male
Casting Requirements: Black, African, Caribbean, or African American boy, age range: Child.
Maurice
Description: A man in his 60s.
Character Age: 60s
Gender: Male
Casting Requirements: Black, African, Caribbean, or African American man or non-binary actor, age range: 50s to 60s.
Officer Jimmy Lee Towns
Description: A DC police officer in his 20s.
Character Age: 20s
Gender: Male
Casting Requirements: White man or non-binary actor, age range: 20s to 30s.
Officer Montis
Description: A DC police officer in his 50s.
Character Age: 50s
Gender: Male
Casting Requirements: White man or non-binary actor, age range: 40s to 60s.