Stage

Memorial Grad Brings Conversation-Starting Play Back Home

Parker Reed |

MOTEL YOU WHAT. “Gun and a Motel Bible” is set to take stage at The Grand Theatre, August 23 and 24. The play was written by Eau Claire native Daniel Floren.
MOTEL YOU WHAT. “Gun and a Motel Bible” is set to take stage at The Grand Theatre, August 23 and 24. The play was written by Eau Claire native Daniel Floren.

An Eau Claire native is bringing his passion project back to the Chippewa Valley for a series of religiously challenging performances. 

Daniel Floren graduated from Eau Claire Memorial high school in 2009, and his post-graduation life has led him across the country to pursue his dream of making it big in Hollywood. Now living in Los Angeles, Floren’s current project is a play called “Gun and a Motel Bible,” a performance which revolves around a man with the intent to kill waiting for his victims at a motel. His moral and ethical beliefs are challenged by a look at a bible on the bedside table.

“Every step of the way I kept getting challenged and kept getting excited about it. I fell more and more in love with it and discovered myself in it.” –Daniel Floren, Actor

The production is set to take the stage at The Grand Theatre in Eau Claire on Friday, Aug. 23 and Saturday, Aug. 24 from 7:30pm-9:30pm both nights. The age recommendation is 14+ and tickets are $15 for the general public and $10 for students. 

“Gun and a Motel Bible,” has already established itself in California, appearing at the Hollywood Fringe Festival and as a feature film at festivals throughout the country. Floren wrote and stars in the play with his friend Bradley Gosnell, whom he met at Texas Christian University (TCU) while in college. 

“When I was at school in Texas I kept thinking I need to move to Los Angeles if I want to make it as a film actor,” Floren said. “And all throughout college I kept getting more and more excited about Los Angeles and then I went and visited in between my Junior and Senior years to see if this is something I could get into. I had a lot of really cool things happen that really encouraged me and showed me this is a place I need to go after I graduate.”

Now that Floren is living and working in Los Angeles, he said his ultimate goal is to continue to write, act and produce in plays and motion pictures with a production company. He said his love and passion for the craft began at Eau Claire Memorial and has blossomed over the past decade.

“All throughout high school I was a show choir guy,” Floren said. “I had some experience performing, but then I did a movie with a friend of mine, I did a sketch and towards the end of high school I felt a tug towards acting so I dove in. And every step of the way I kept getting challenged and kept getting excited about it. I fell more and more in love with it and discovered myself in it.”

With sights set on the Eau Claire stage and reestablishing a connection with the Eau Claire arts scene, Floren said hopes the play will both entertain and inspire Eau Claire attendees. 

“I hope they enjoy a good story well told,” Floren said. “On top of that, people who’ve come to the play have told us they feel whether they’re Christian, an atheist, whether they think about God or left the church or whether they are on the God spectrum they feel represented. People won’t feel preached at. The whole experience will be a great starting point for people of different backgrounds to be challenged and start a conversation with each other.”


For more information on “Gun and a Motel Bible,” you can visit the event’s Facebook page, Gun And a Hotel Bible.