New York-based playwright and writer Matthew Gasda joins Udith Dematagoda to discuss his forthcoming novel The Sleepers (2025), a timely and very Balzacian work that deals with the love lives of three New Yorkers - an actress, a socialist academic and a cinematographer - during the momentous year of 2016, just as the cultural ruptures that would soon explode across the social field began to emerge.
Through what becomes at times a rather meandering and nostalgic discussion, both Matthew and Udith discover many parallels in their artistic and intellectual development.
In sharp, compelling prose, Gasda reveals how choices often betray ideals. Each character in The Sleepers pursues success and fulfillment, yet stumbles into self-deception and hypocrisy, blurring the line between professed values and private desires. Gasda offers a riveting exploration of identity, ambition, and moral compromise—a nuanced critique of a generation caught between who they claim to be and the messy realities they inhabit.
- Cover Blurb
You can pre-order The Sleepers here:
https://a.co/d/7B95b5P
And a collected edition of his plays:
https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781493090228/Zoomers-and-Other-Plays
Both are forthcoming in May 2025
Share this post