Tales from the hill is an honest, hilarious, and heartbreaking look into what it means to be a young queer person today. Over the course of eight short plays, Sam Heyman dives deep into the lives and struggles of a group of college students as they navigate what it means to be queer both on their tiny college campus, and the greater world outside. From the fears of coming out for the first time, to the frustration that you’ve been sexiled by your roomate AGAIN, Heyman has created a beautiful story of friendship, love, and resilience.

[1/14/25] This one is a cute, queer-forward collection of stories from college. What I love about Sam Heyman’s anthology play TALES FROM THE HILL is the slice-of-life scale of each individual play, showing us what the college experience is like (or at least, was like for me): a collection of small interactions that create emerging storylines. Full of heart, good humor, and believable characters, this is a great selection for black box and/or student performers!

This play is both tender and honest in its depiction of college life. As a Gen Zer who is currently in school, I definitely could recognize each and every character in this collection of plays (whether I personally know them or not). Although this play can be performed as a whole, the writing in each individual scene gives enough of an arc for each character. There’s room for every actor taking this on to find their own footing, which any great piece of writing should be able to offer.