←Recommendations of Big Black Balloon

This play went places I definitely didn't expect. Very rare to see a work of art about the male experience with body image and disordered eating.

A revealing look at the authentic truth of dealing with an eating disorder and body image struggles with insecurities abound in your head. Well done.

I love this play. The realness of the characters and their struggles balanced with the elements of magical realism make this a must see, must read, must produce. A story about body image, eating disorder and the voices that we listen to. The writing is powerful, funny, and excellent. WHAT A GOOD PLAY!

Loved this play. It's so rare to see eating disorders manifested onstage, ESPECIALLY a story that focuses on a male with body dysmorphia and exercise addiction. I loved how Henry and Cleo's insecurities manifest as imaginary friends. Because let's face it, who doesn't have a voice in their head sometimes?

The most wholly original and unique representation of body image and disordered eating I've read about onstage. Through highly theatrical scenes and conventions, Wardally illuminates these concerns with both absurd hilarity, gutting realism, and poignant poetry. The world of this play is defined, unique, and a much greater and more fantastical thing than the sum of its parts!

It is the Eugene O'Neill Theater Center's pleasure to recommend Eljon Wardally and their play "Big Black Balloon" as a finalist for our 2015 National Playwrights Conference. The play rose through a competitive, anonymous, multileveled selection process that took nearly nine months to execute. As one of 59 finalists out of more than 1,300 submissions, it is the value of the page that has allowed this work to prosper in such a competitive selection process. Our readers found that Eljon crafts a fascinating, truly unique world, and examines a timely subject from the perspective of an often unheard voice.