"McCraney's rich, flavorful dialogue rushes out compellingly from the persuasive cast of eight, and snags just when it should. . . . McCraney is a huge talent." -Adam Feldman, Time Out New York

"What Mr. McCraney, the extravagantly gifted author of The Brother/Sister Plays, is doing here is tearing down the warm and cozy house of feel-good African-American family portraits."-Ben Brantley, New York Times

Inspired by the Book of Job, Head of Passes flips the conventional family play on its head-transforming the kitchen-sink drama into something heavier, murkier, and ultimately more surprising. With preparations for her birthday party underway, Shelah, the domineering and religiously devout matriarch, gathers her relatives around her. As the evening unfolds, the intended celebration collapses around them both figuratively and literally as the raging storm outside begins to tear down the house itself. For Shelah, the Job figure in Tarell Alvin McCraney's compelling allegory, what begins as an organized visit with her family escalates into a crisis of faith.

Tarell Alvin McCraney is the author of The Brother/Sister Plays: The Brothers Size, In the Red and Brown Water, and Marcus; or the Secret of Sweet. Other works include Wig Out!, The Breach, and Choir Boy. Awards include the 2009 Steinberg Playwrights Award and the Paula Vogel Playwriting Award. McCraney's semi-autobiographical script In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue was turned into the acclaimed film Moonlight, which won the 2017 Academy Award for Best Picture. He was recently named the new chairman of the playwriting department at the Yale School of Drama.