Tracy Letts

Killer Joe Tracy Letts US edition

"One of the best American plays of the past quarter century." - Terry Teachout, Wall Street Journal

"An immensely entertaining pop artifact. Written with neon-lit flamboyance." - Vincent Canby, New York Times

"A brilliant play. A major theatrical event." - Michael Billington, Guardian

"A tense, gut-twisting thriller ride in the theater. An astonishing piece of work." - Richard Christiansen, Chicago Tribune

"One of our most valuable playwrights." - Time Out New York

The Smith family hatch a plan to murder their estranged matriarch for her insurance money. They hire Killer Joe Cooper, a police detective and part-time contract killer, to do the job. Once he enters their trailer, their simple plan spirals out of control. Letts's shocking and unforgettable first play, originally staged in 1993 in a cramped theatre in Evanston, Illinois, quickly became a must-see and ran for eight months before later runs in Edinburgh, New York and London, including four months on the West End. It's been performed in fifteen countries in twelve languages and is now slated for Broadway in Spring 2015. It was recently released as an acclaimed motion picture directed by William Friedkin and starring Matthew McConaughey.

Tracy Letts is a playwright, actor and ensemble member of Steppenwolf Theatre Company. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama for August: Osage County.