Abigail C. Onwunali

Writing (Plays & Poetry)

Abigail alone on stage in The Grove
The Grove, The Huntington · photograph by Marc J. Franklin

First page of the manuscript of Blood Be Sweet, a play by Abigail C. Onwunali

Blood Be Sweet

New York Theatre Workshop · previews 21 April 2027, closes 30 May 2027
Dir. Awoye Timpo
2026–27, final production of the season

In an otherworldly realm, three spirits breathe life into a young girl to protect her destiny. When Death comes for her too soon, the girl—along with her family and the spirits—must confront what it truly means to offer oneself in the name of love.

Composer Michael R. Dudley Jr. · choreographer Adesola Osakalumi · dramaturg Arminda Thomas
Developed with Cynthia Erivo, Lena Waithe, Jamila Ponton Bragg


Plays

First page of the manuscript of ROSE, a play by Abigail C. Onwunali

ROSE

Every time the gate of the Garrett household swings open, change rushes in. Set in Baltimore after the Great Depression, Rose follows a young woman determined to hold her family together, even as it threatens to crumble. But like the house they live in, they are worn, weathered—yet still standing. Death looms. Secrets rise. Hearts break. And at the center of it all is Rose, fighting for love, for survival, for the hope that something better lies ahead.

Inspired by the character Rose from August Wilson’s "Fences", this play imagines the life she might have lived before. A story of resilience, faith, and the unshakable strength it takes to keep a family alive.

First page of the manuscript of IJU, a play by Abigail C. Onwunali

IJU

Chika has never seen anything like it. A creature without eyes, without bones, without flesh—something that shouldn’t exist, yet does. Pulled from the sterile walls of her hospital room and into the unknown, she takes the creature home, determined to understand it. But life has a way of unraveling plans. As Chika confronts her own struggles, she forgets the silent, hungry thing lurking in the shadows. Forgotten but not gone, the creature learns to survive—by any means necessary. IJU is a ferocious, uncanny fable about survival, appetite, and the terrifying cost of being remade by something we cannot fully understand.

First page of the manuscript of House Gyalz, a play by Abigail C. Onwunali

House Gyalz

House Gyalz is a fierce, darkly comedic thriller inspired in part by The Maids, set inside the lavish home of a Nigerian socialite whose world begins to unravel overnight. As Sorochi and Chidi, two housemaids, spiral deeper into dangerous roleplay, buried desires and impossible loyalties erupt into chaos. Blending razor-sharp satire with explosive theatricality, House Gyalz reimagines Jean Genet’s classic through a contemporary Nigerian lens, examining class, power, womanhood, and what it costs to finally break free.


Poetry

Abigail performing “Promise Land” at Write About Now

“Promise Land”

Write About Now, TGS 2018


Rooms and fellowships

Developed at New York Theatre Workshop · Ensemble Studio Theatre · La MaMa · Red Bull Theater · Yale Cabaret · Fault Line Theatre (Irons in the Fire — IJU)

Writing résumé (PDF)