Elizabeth Shannon:
6 Jun. 2023
“
A brilliant retelling of Macbeth. Both the dialogue and stage directions are perfectly crafted. Would love to be able to see it live!" ”
Recommendations
Recommendations
- Ursa Miles:13 Apr. 2021“ Wow! Equal parts chilling and hilarious. Alex Lin's dialog is so real and directions so witty that I couldn't put this play down. "some kids defenestrate themselves and run for the hills" might be the best stage direction I've read in my life. The gore and atmosphere in this play would be an exciting challenge for any designer or director, and the pacing is AMAZING for acting work. I truly hope I get to see "beth" staged some day. ”
- Hayley St. James:17 Feb. 2021“ One of the very coolest, funniest, edgiest, and necessary Shakespeare riffs - and one of my new favorite Macbeth riffs - I’ve ever read. I would KILL to see this staged. ”
- Audrey Lang:25 Jan. 2021“ An AWESOME Macbeth adaptation that is hilarious, terrifying, and poignant as it both illustrates the original story for me in a brand-new way, and tells an entirely new and thrilling story. And as someone who attended an elite magnet school on the east coast, the fierce competition among these teenagers is wildly familiar to me! I would love to see both the dynamic characters and the daring stage magic in this play come to life. ”
- Chandler Hubbard:19 Oct. 2020“ Blisteringly funny satire combined with deep dark emotionality, yearning and bloodlust. ”
- Hayley Haggerty:16 Oct. 2020“ beth goes to THAT place without any hesitation or qualms about difficulty or sensibilities and earns every precious second of raw, unfiltered emotions. This was so fun (and scary and terrifying!) to read, and even better because it's rooted in real life. Alex Lin does a wonderful job of capturing the characters on the page, but also leaving the reader with a strange mix of foreboding hope by the end. Can't wait to see/hear this staged! ”
- Shaun Leisher:15 Sep. 2020“ Best modern-day Shakespeare adaptation I've read in a very long time. Lin looks at things like gender, race and class in such a nuanced way. These characters are so complex and the constant raising of the stakes for them kept me engrossed the entire time. The elements of stage craft also make me excited about how terrifying this play could be in the hands of an adventurous creative team. ”
- Sarah Cho:8 Sep. 2020“ This may very well be my favorite Shakespeare adaptation about teens since She's The Man. This was incredibly delightful to read and I was laughing all the way through! The writing is so clever, fresh, funny, and poignant. I have a new profound appreciation for Shakespeare thanks to Alex's play "Beth". This play needs to performed and seen across all college campuses ASAP. Finally, a play that is INTENDED FOR YOUNG ASIAN AMERICANS. FINALLY. I would've loved to have seen this at my theatre department in college. (Maybe I wouldn't have fallen asleep in my Shakespeare class??? jkjk) ”
- Nick Malakhow:24 Aug. 2020“ Spectacular play and sharp, dark comedy/horror that theatricalizes the tropes of many genres wonderfully. Lin nods to the source material is extraordinarily clever ways, but this piece is also just a well-crafted tale exclusive of any Shakespearean origins. Beth is a compelling central character, and I loved how Macbeth's wishy-washy quest for power in the Bard's tale was translated into a defining character trait for Beth that served to comment on gendered and racial/ethnic expectations. The gleefully macabre theatrical world is cohesive and full of some vivdly-rendered and dynamic adolescents. I'd love to see this onstage. ”
- Cara Hinh:15 Aug. 2020“ Alex's revision of Macbeth is one that sweeps you into the world of Intel THE premiere STEM competition that guarantees a cash prize, admittance to any Ivy and a meeting with former president Obama. Beth, is our Asian American pro/antagonist who grapples with what it means to succeed and what the cost of winning can be. Alex's play examines identity and the cost of being an asian american woman in STEM and in America today. ”