A piece that captures the grandeur of American political decline and the intimacy of contemporary girlhood, Founders, Keepers shows Behlke's attention to detailed, nuanced, characters, laugh-out-loud, unexpected comedy, and caring attention to contemporary society that left me thinking about this play for hours. An honest, raw, and somehow also empathetic perspective on what it means to be a young person in America today.

"Founders, Keepers" is an exceptionally moving piece of work that explores its darkly comic premise with the humanity it deserves. Aurora Behlke's young characters navigate friendship, puberty, dreams, death, and what may prove to be the end of one country and the beginning of another - these girls have so much to say, and they don't always know how to say it, but they are trying their best with what they have. Frequently hilarious, even amidst heartbreak, "Founders, Keepers" deserves to be seen by audiences everywhere.

In the past several years, we’ve seen many excellent plays about adolescent girlhood; FOUNDERS, KEEPERS stands out amid the pack in its portrayal of tween girls rewriting the US constitution as the country burns. Exceptionally funny, tender-hearted, truthful and prescient, Aurora Behlke’s political allegory hits so many unexpectedly perfect notes. Her premise reminds us that America is a young country, that words are meaningless without action, and that nothing lasts forever. Our nation’s own painful adolescence may be just beginning, but with writers like Behlke making themselves heard, the kids may just be all right.