←Recommendations of The Fierce Urgency Of Now

Fast-paced, frantic and funny AF, Doug DeVita's ode to office politics and advertising reads like a screwball comedy with Tourette's. I thought the characters were delightful and the story perfect for inventive staging. And I now need to find a reason to call someone a "swamp donkey." That was the funniest thing I read all day. Terrific job, Doug!

This play does an incredible job of diving deep into office politics from the power plays, favoritism, and the surprising relationships that evolve. Questions are answered at exactly the right time, keeping the audience on their toes throughout and each character is so uniquely specific and filled with their own agency that we know they have a full life outside of their scenes. Doug's use of language to enhance and create characters is an incredible lesson on dialogue and crafting honest and compelling characters.

Don't be fooled. Doug DeVita's razor-sharp wit, his multidimensional characters, and energetic pacing will have you thinking "The Fierce Urgency of Now" is just some madcap Madison Avenue romp in the vicious world of advertising. But that's just a cover for a deeply moving play about love, commitment, friendship, and the growth of character, and you will find yourself gasping back sobs as you laugh and truly feel these people. Even if I knew nothing about the world he shares with us, I would still know exactly what happens here and love seeing how it soars.

I was reading "The Fierce Urgency of Now" while riding the train into New York, and almost took an unintended ride back to Philly! That's how engrossed I was in this wonderful comedy. Everything about it is pitch perfect from the pace of agency life to the crazy demands of the clients to the relationship between Kyle and Dodo. Reading it put me right back in my days in an advertising agency. And it's funny and incisive to boot. Can't wait to see it on the stage.

Despite the advertising world setting, I forgot about “Mad Men” in the first couple of pages as this piece is driven by a delirious wit and verve that are distinctly DeVita’s. The dialogue is sharp, the characters glorious in their backstabbing, and the pace snappy. Kyle, Kate, and Dodo are all unique and unforgettable characters. The ad world details all ring true, and we are so immersed in the milieu that the stakes always feel heightened, yet throughout the corporate warfare the play maintains perspective and revels in the dream of flying high above it all. Masterful work.

This play succeeds for me where other fictional takes on advertising - i.e. "Mad Men" - fall short. It critiques without simultaneously glamorizing, all the while maintaining an understated, even tone that keeps your eye trained on the masterfully subtle characterization that is the play's lifeblood. Any audience/reader is the richer for experiencing this piece!

Beyond the high level of craft and form, this play has heart. The playwright has constructed a piece that allows you into the world of the characters, both professionally and personally, and lets you see their wants and needs without showing the writer's hand. This play is a masterful achievement and I hope has a long life in the theatre. It deserves at least that much.

DeVita has assembled a compelling and distinct collection of colorful characters. While Kyle's journey is at the center of the piece, DeVita ensures that the entire supporting cast receives satisfying story arcs themselves. The advertising world also comes alive in these briskly moving scenes in a skillful example of theatrical "showing vs. telling." The fast-moving plot kept me engaged enough to read it through in one sitting, and I loved the way that the scene transitions toyed with the flexible boundary between the cinematic and the theatrical. Hope to see a production of this some day soon...

I loved this play. Mr. DeVita clearly knows the advertising world and both the story and the characters absolutely pop with authenticity. The plot twists are surprising and moving, and each character has a clear voice. I also liked the "Auntie Mame" references, as it is my favorite movie. Dodo is a great character and to find out that she really existed was a lovely coda to the experience of reading this lovely play.

Doug DeVita's The Fierce Urgency of Now offers a deft exploration of the modern workplace as well as examining the cost of denying one's inner truth. The zingers may fly fast and furious, but there is a big heart at the center with Mr. DeVita's keenly observed characters. Kate Miller could give Miranda Priestly a run for her money!