PSKPlaywright

A new American play

Theatre of the
White Dwarf

“The stage is too big for the drama.”Richard Feynman
Enter the story Contact Peter

Written by Peter Simon Karp

01 / The Play

Theatre of the White Dwarf is a deeply human American play written by a 93-year-old, thirty-year cancer survivor—his first play in sixty years.

The play follows Broncko, an aging billionaire confronting the end of his life. He lives “on top of the world,” in the penthouse of the Geriatric Institute he co-founded. But his business partner has died, a younger generation has taken control, and Broncko is without a leadership role. He feels like a white dwarf star—its energy exhausted, awaiting one final explosion.

Battling “black dog” depression and a sense of uselessness, Broncko is introduced to the New Cosmology and the science of stardust. This perspective forces him to confront his deepest regret: dying without a loving family.

At the edge of the universe

One final
burst of light.

His surviving son, Broncko Junior, is an astronomer who has not spoken to him in years, unable to forgive his cruelty toward Maddie, Junior’s mother. Their other son died of brain cancer, shattering the family. Broncko became a manic workaholic, building his billion-dollar company as Maddie left him and later died.

02 / The Story

Grief. Ambition.
Science. Forgiveness.

Hard work and luck brought Broncko billions. But a “war” with Mafia-connected partners threatened his companies, and hired killers came after him. He sold his interests and co-founded the Geriatric Institute with Alan Pincus. Meanwhile, his depression deepened—the illness that drove his friend Harry to suicide.

Junior arrives, hoping to make peace before it is too late. Father and son must confront painful truths, seek forgiveness, and decide whether their family can be rebuilt. Junior reveals it now includes his wife—and a five-year-old boy. He also urges Broncko to accept treatment rather than surrender to Harry’s dream of a painless death.

Theatre of the White Dwarf is a story of grief, ambition, science, forgiveness, and the fragile possibility of one last burst of light.

Portrait of playwright Peter Simon Karp

03 / The Playwright

Peter Simon Karp

Playwright, author, researcher, and thirty-year cancer survivor.

Peter Simon Karp earned his BA from Hobart College, where he won the William Haight Turk English Prize, and an MFA in Playwriting from Columbia University. He became a client of theatrical agent Blanche Gaines, and Herbert Bayard Swope Jr. optioned his first full-length play for Off-Broadway.

He later founded and led BSI Global Research, working with major corporations including IBM, AT&T/Bell Labs, FedEx, GE, General Foods, PwC, and BusinessWeek. He co-authored two books with marketing consultant Mack Hanan, including Competing on Value.

After surviving colon cancer and three cancers of the voice box, Karp returned to playwriting. Theatre of the White Dwarf brings together a lifetime’s inquiry into power, mortality, family, and the New Cosmology. He is a member of the Dramatists Guild, and the play is listed on the New Play Exchange.

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peter@petersimonkarp.com