Penny Candy

Life in Dallas’ Pleasant Grove was both sweet and sour.
by Jonathan Norton

Growing up in a candy house sounds like every kid’s dream. But for 12-year-old Jon-Jon, helping his father run Paw Paw’s Candy Tree out of their run-down one-bedroom apartment isn’t quite a dream come true. As their neighborhood sees a surge of violence fueled by epidemic drug use and increasing racial tensions, the business begins to fail and danger looms immediately outside Jon-Jon’s front door. Oh and then there’s the looming threat of Vacation Bible School. Worst summer ever! A world premiere from Dallas playwright Jonathan Norton, and set in Dallas’ own Pleasant Grove, Penny Candy follows one family as they seek to balance their responsibilities to their community and to one another.