The Unboxing Match

A man tries to improve his self-image with some mail-order clothes, but meets some strong resistance from himself.

A man tries to improve his self-image with some mail-order clothes, but meets some strong resistance from himself.

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The Unboxing Match

Recommended by

  • Philip Middleton Williams: The Unboxing Match

    I can't think of anyone I know who won't identify with the dilemma Mark faces when he opens the box containing what he hopes is the way to the "new" him, even those of us who buy their clothes from the next aisle over from Auto Parts. Adam Richter has given us a plausible and thoroughly relatable situation of self-doubt and budding confidence, battling with not just his own self-perceptions but those of the inner self. Add to that deft back-and-forth dialogue and this is a piece that would be so much fun to watch.

    I can't think of anyone I know who won't identify with the dilemma Mark faces when he opens the box containing what he hopes is the way to the "new" him, even those of us who buy their clothes from the next aisle over from Auto Parts. Adam Richter has given us a plausible and thoroughly relatable situation of self-doubt and budding confidence, battling with not just his own self-perceptions but those of the inner self. Add to that deft back-and-forth dialogue and this is a piece that would be so much fun to watch.

  • Doug DeVita: The Unboxing Match

    Brilliant. Who’d have thought a mail-order box of clothes could trigger such a hilarious orgy of self-sabotage? A funny, touching, pointed, and spot on piece from Richter with one of the most endearingly quirky pessimists ever put in front of a mirror. One wants to scream “Take the whole box, Mark!” (Maybe one did?)

    Brilliant. Who’d have thought a mail-order box of clothes could trigger such a hilarious orgy of self-sabotage? A funny, touching, pointed, and spot on piece from Richter with one of the most endearingly quirky pessimists ever put in front of a mirror. One wants to scream “Take the whole box, Mark!” (Maybe one did?)

  • Jacquelyn Floyd-Priskorn: The Unboxing Match

    Do clothes really make the man? What about the man inside the man? Adam Richter's short play gives an inside look at one man's insecurity on how others perceive him and the ugly voice inside all of our heads that tell us to just give up. Although, when Chloe offered such a good deal on that box of clothes, I was tempted to buy them myself! Mark is a very relatable and likable character, battling himself for control of his life and status. I have a feeling he is on the right path by the end of this play!

    Do clothes really make the man? What about the man inside the man? Adam Richter's short play gives an inside look at one man's insecurity on how others perceive him and the ugly voice inside all of our heads that tell us to just give up. Although, when Chloe offered such a good deal on that box of clothes, I was tempted to buy them myself! Mark is a very relatable and likable character, battling himself for control of his life and status. I have a feeling he is on the right path by the end of this play!

Mark and Marcus may be played by any age or any race, but they must be the same.

Production History

  • Type Fringe, Organization Reading Theater Project annual Five-Minute Fringe Festival, Year 2020