The Sequence
The Sequence
Paul Mullin
Renegade researcher Craig Venter develops a controversial “shotgun” technique for sequencing DNA, then quits the National Institute of Health in frustration over an institutional lack of imagination. He quickly makes a fortune in the private sector, and becomes simultaneously the most loved and hated figure of contemporary science.
A folksy doctor named Francis Collins inherits the U.S. government’s colossal Human Genome Project from no less a giant in the field than James Watson. When his victory in the sequencing race is threatened by Venter, he quickly makes the transition from apparent bumpkin to fierce competitor.
Kellie Silverstein, an eager young journalist, cuts her teeth on the biggest science story of all time, the race to decipher the dynamic code of life hidden within the human genome, while she simultaneously runs a race with her own mortality.
In the competition to sequence the human genome, will the grand prize be the public good or private profit? And how will three people, amid the frenzied race to determine what makes a human being, discover their humanity?
Available
2013
978-1-934962-56-5
Drama
Original Works Publishing
Paul Mullin was recognised by Seattle’s preeminent alternative weekly, The Stranger with a “Genius Award” for achievement in theatre. His plays have been staged across the United States as well as Canada. “Louis Slotin Sonata” won the L. A. Drama Critics Award for Outstanding World Premiere, and was read by invitation before scientists at the Los Alamos National Laboratory prior to its Off-Broadway run. Most recently a French translation, “La Sonate Louis Slotin” was produced in Quebec. “The Sequence” premiered at The Theatre @ Boston Court in Pasadena and “The Ten Thousand Things” at Washington Ensemble Theatre in Seattle. Both Louis Slotin Sonata and The Sequence, were commissioned by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, in collaboration with Ensemble Studio Theatre.
Mullin conceived, co-wrote and co-produced NewsWrights United’s series of Living Newspapers, “It’s Not in The P-I: A Living Newspaper About a Dying Newspaper” and “The New New News” which enjoyed tremendous audience and media acclaim.
In addition to work for the stage, Mullin has had several poems published, most recently with the King County Metro’s Poetry on Buses program. He has written several feature film scripts and television documentaries, including “Hitting The Ground”, an independent feature in which he also starred as an actor. He has also contributed regularly as a writer and actor to Sandbox Radio Live.
His memoir “The Starting Gate” was published in early 2016.
Born in Baltimore, Paul now makes his home in Seattle with his wife and two sons.