- My name is Taylor A. Blackman, and the play I have written is called, "It's Karen B****!"

The premise of the play is that it's about an all Black family and the daughter has a secret to share.

When I think about the Black family or the Black structure of families, I think sometimes we have this standard of having to be so successful because we want to give our lineage validity and we're always held to the standard about having to be excellent in these things.

I think there's a kind of toxicity that surrounds that kind of thinking.

And the title, "It's Karen B****!"

comes from the famous popular line of "It's Britney, [beep].

So that comes from just my childhood growing up in the 2000s and bringing kind of the hilarity of that culture to the story.

- What kind of girl are you not allowed and why are you so bent outta shape over them being here?

- Because it causes extra money from our city to do things when children get injured because of, - I'm sorry, so you're saying that they're going to hurt children out here?

[background chatter] [background crosstalk] - They don't...they, they're not usually involved.

You know my dad's friends own the store.

♪ See ya, I like to meet ya ♪ What you say ♪ She ain't no diva [audience laughing] ♪ She ain't no diva ♪ Girls, who run this mother, uh uh ♪ ♪ Girls, who run this mother uh ♪ ♪ Who run the world, girls ♪ Who run the world Oh.

[humming "Runs The World (Girls)" by Beyoncé] Oh God.

Oh, damn.

Oh damn, damn, damn, damn, damn, damn, damn.

- What's good, baby?

- Oh, Darrell, thank God you're here.

- I know that's right.

- You better give thanks to God for this sexy chocolate man.

[audience laughing] Give praise to the Messiah for giving you a husband in Christ.

- Okay, Darrell.

- Praise to God for giving you a partner that is emotionally and sexually available anytime you desire.

You trying to feel the pump on this tool of salvation.

- Ooh!

Darrell, wait, no, no, stop it.

Have you checked your phone?

- Not recently.

- Niani texted us.

- "Mother and father, I'm traversing home from school and hope to acquire a moment of your time."

Acquire?

Since when she start saying words like 'acquire?'

Must be using that Chat GP-Two.

[audience laughing] AI everywhere- - No, no.

Keep reading.

- After extreme consideration, I have decided it is time for me to step into the person you have raised me to be.

I am leaping out of the closet and into the fray of truth.

Oh my God.

Our baby is coming out.

- Yes, Darrell, and she's gonna be here any minute.

It is time to execute "Operation Queer."

- No!

Wait.

We need more time.

We don't have time.

We're not ready.

We are not ready.

- There is no more time.

[slapping] [audience laughing] Now get the T-shirts.

Now!

[clapping] [audience laughing] - Heads up.

- Oh, all right.

Pop quiz, boogie butt.

What does LGBTQIA2S+ stand for?

- Okay, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning...and two spirit.

- Caw-caw, caw-caw.

[audience laughing] - All right, your turn, alright.

What is the difference between gender, gender identity and sex?

- Okay, gender is a social, man-made construct that determines how we should look, think, and act as women and men.

- Ding.

- Okay, gender identity refers to the feelings on the inside and how we predict our gender through clothing, behavior and personal appearance.

- Ding.

- And sex refers to the genitalia and the genes we were born with at birth.

- Ding, ding, ding - All right, all right.

[audience laughing] - What is your role as a Black father of our queer child?

- My role is to hold safe space for the ideas, feelings and intellect of my child.

- Yeah, that's good, that's good.

- Speed round.

Name three Black queer icons.

- Oh, Niecy Nash, Bayard Rustin, Oprah.

Okay!

[audience laughing] - Baby, Oprah's not queer.

- What?

[audience laughing] I thought her and Gayle was a thing.

The Shade Room posted something about it.

- Baby, that's not a reliable news source.

You can't use- - It is.

They have all the tea, honey, and I sip it.

You can't sip that tea, baby.

- Yes I can.

Ooh.

- [Both] She's here.

- Get the lights.

[audience laughing] - Pa?

Pops?

- [Both] Surprise!

Happy "be proud of who you are" day!

- Get it, get it, get it, hey, hey.

[audience laughing] - We are so proud of you, Niani!

You are our biggest achievement.

- Being your parents is a joy.

Against all the odds, you have become the standard of Black excellence.

You never let us down.

We are so happy to support you on this step of your journey.

- Guys- Know that we love you for whomever you choose to become.

And we love you for whoever you choose to love.

- We don't care if you wanna coochie or dangalang.

We are progressive.

We are forward thinkers.

- Wait, stop.

- Oh, oh, oh.

This is a vulnerable space you're in.

Okay.

Okay, and we just want you to know, we just want you to know that we will not judge you.

We are not God.

- And if I'm being honest, I think God knew that Jesus maybe down with a swirl or two.

- Okay.

[audience laughing] - I mean, come on, John wasn't his favorite apostle 'cause he had his head only in the scripture.

[audience laughing drowning out speaker] - Can you please just listen to what I have to say?

- Listen, listen to the sound of your freedom.

Oh, we are listening and it is screaming.

It wants to dance.

- [Both] Hey, hey, hey, hey.

- That's right baby.

Let that freak flag fly!

- [Both] Hey, hey, hey, hey, - Stop!

Stop!

I'm not gay.

- [Both] Whoa.

- Okay, no one is saying that you're gay.

We're just saying that we understand you're queer.

- No, I- We love you.

- No, I'm not queer.

- I'm not...I'm, I'm, I'm, oh, uh, uh, uh.

- Hey, hey, hey, hey.

Dad's here.

Look.

Look.

Breathe in for five, hold and release.

Ready?

[all exhaling] One more baby.

[all exhaling] Yeah.

- Listen, it doesn't matter what you are.

We love you and we should have been listening.

- Yes, your father is right.

Okay, you can tell us whatever you want, whenever you want, on your terms.

- Okay, well, I'm not queer and I'm not gay.

It's not about any of that stuff.

- And that's okay.

So what is it about, baby?

- Well, well, I'd rather show you.

Could you both turn around for a sec?

- Of course.

- Of course.

Yeah, not, not gay.

- Okay, she's not gay, she's not queer.

[audience laughing] - She could be [audience drowns out speaker].

- She could be trans-robot... Oh my God.

I read that in "Wired" magazine.

[audience laughing] They doing trans-robots these days.

[audience laughing] - You may turn around.

Mother, father, my name is Karen Harper and I am a white woman.

[audience laughing] - A white woman?

Is there a new acronym that came out?

Did we miss something?

- Oh, you know what, let me check Black Twitter real quick.

- My name is Karen and there's nothing to research.

I have transitioned to the lifestyle of a Caucasian woman.

And while I do cherish the ethnic experience you both have provided me with- - The ethnic experience that we... - I have chosen to divert the rest of my earthly journey to the body, mind and spirit of a white woman.

Karen Harper is who I am now.

- Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

- Darrell, Darrell... - Hold up.

So you mean to tell me you marched your narrow behind down to the Party City Outlet, huh?

- [Mom] Darrell- - Got yourself a 2.99, wash-and-go wig, learned some new vocabulary words and then all of a sudden, magically, you are a white woman?

- Okay, Darrell, take a second.

- I sense that this is a bit overwhelming for you.

- Hmm.

- But this decision is one that rests well within my inner being and what I truly desire and if y'all quit b-...

I mean, if you would respect and accept my choice, our path forward would be one without any inconveniences.

Does this relieve your inner conflict, Darrell?

- Darrell, since when we start using first names in this, - Okay, okay, okay, okay.

What your father is trying to say, Niani, - My name is Karen.

- Get your girl.

- Karen, we, we wanna understand you.

Okay, but girl, [chuckles] yeah.

This, this is just really just out there, okay?

Okay, so you're, you say you are a white woman, but, but just yesterday you were a proud, beautiful Black girl.

I mean, the walking emblem of budding Black excellence.

I mean a straight A student, early admission to Harvard, president of the debate club.

- Madam President.

- I mean the, the definition of Black girl magic.

I mean, why in the world would you wanna throw all that away?

- I am feeling triggered and I don't wanna talk about it.

[audience laughing] Can we just accept the fact that this is what I've chosen?

- No ma'am, that is not how life works.

If you wanna make a switch this massive, as your parents, we deserve, at the very least, a civil conversation.

- Wow, really?

What happened to this conversation being on my terms?

- Oh, oh, that ship sailed when you came in here looking like the Dollar General version of Britney Spears.

- Can you stop making jokes about my identity?

- Darrell, you are not helping.

- This ***** sound crazy, Michelle.

- I know Darrell, but we still have to, to try and listen.

- My God, y'all are ****** hypocrites.

- Excuse me?

- Who you think you're talking to?

- Nah, because y'all wanna sit here and pat yourselves on the back for being tolerant parents when that is, in fact, a lie.

I could walk in here gay, trans, non-binary, whatever the ****, and y'all would still love me because that concept of existence is one that you have deemed acceptable.

But the moment that I step into something that is outside of the confines of what you deem tolerable, I must bow and bend to your expectations.

I must become the subject of transracial jokes, of looks of disgust.

It is not safe here!

[audience laughing] If I am to live up to the standards that you two set, and you know what, all this does is prove that I am beyond this.

I am beyond y'all.

- Okay, Niani, you better watch your mouth right now.

- I pity you.

[audience laughing] I really do.

This is why I'm transitioning because you don't take me seriously.

Nobody does.

Everybody wants me to be something for them, but never asks me what I wanna be.

I'm not given that respect.

But everyone respects white women.

They have power.

And in this new life, I will have power.

And I will never allow myself to end up anything like you two.

I mean, look at you.

All you'll ever be is an overworked housewife and a construction worker.

- And what the **** are you?

- Get her 'Chelle.

- You parade your hotdog leg having *** in our house with a crusty *** blonde wig and think you finna disrespect us?

The woman who birthed you?

And the man who breaks his ****** back every day to provide you with everything you have?

Oh, you are truly smelling the **** outta yourself.

And I'll be damned if I let a little girl who can't even remember to flush her own **** down the toilet half the time.

- [Darrell] Poo-poo!

- ...talk down to me or my husband.

Oh, you so badly wanna be one of them?

Oh, but they are a different type of beast, Niani.

You talk about this power they have, the power that comes at the demise of someone else.

You know, they'll be at your job playing nice in your face, but quick to label you combative or argumentative when you call them out for the way they treat you.

- They consume our culture, our vernacular, innovation, turn it around, whitewash it and sell it to the highest bidder.

- And they'll have you believe that they're an ally for the causes of the disenfranchised.

Oh, march up and down the streets with you.

Oh, take pictures of themselves at rallies, but quick to rescind their allyship the minute you show sympathy and outrage for the side of the oppressed in what is a very clear cut example of genocide!

- Preach!

[audience applauds] - And you know what?

You right.

We don't have the power they have and maybe never will.

- And if the only way to gain power in our own lives is to master and will the tools of the oppressor, I don't want it.

- We have morals.

- And we raised you to choose the right path.

- Choose?

I was never given that choice.

I was raised to be exceptional, excellent and outstanding at all costs.

I'm to be the Black girl who must always show up and be better.

I must always be the bigger person even when people screw me over, always play by the rules when they don't even play the game.

They just get the ****** prize, no questions asked.

I want to be mediocre.

- Oh my God.

[audience laughing] - I am repulsed at the idea of being my ancestors' wildest dreams.

I wanna be unexceptional.

Why do they get to be normal?

Why do they get to just exist?

It's not fair.

It's not fair.

It's not fair.

It's not fair.

That's not fair.

That's not fair - Niani!

My name is Karen!

- Hey, hey, hey, baby girl.

- We don't have all the answers, but we can figure this out together, okay?

Okay?

Darrell, get her.

- Hold on.

[screams] Oh my God!

Are you okay?

- 911, I am being attacked by a Black man.

- Niani!

- My name is Karen Harper - Stop.

and I am a white woman.

Please help me.

- Get her, get her, get her.

[audience laughing] [audience applauding] [light music] [light music continues]