←Recommendations of WAKE

Husband, house, a mortgage, a baby… and a ghost? Most relationships are haunted, to some extent, both by the memories of past relationships and the “is this all there is?” boredom of hard-fought domesticity. But whose ghost is doing the haunting? Whose self-doubt is doing the damage? Gatton’s nifty thriller, a real “popcorn play” if there ever was one, ratchets up the tension, the doubt, and the stakes – almost imperceptibly at first, but faster and faster until one is left breathless, their box of Cheez-Its empty, and their nails bitten to the quick. Well done, Vince!

This piece appears to start as a simple plot of a couple 'having it all' but as the play unfolds the piece gets more and more interesting. The play continues to give its audience/reader more and more elements and if seen I have no doubt it would draw an audience in to the very end, it certainly did me.

“WAKE” by Vince Gatton follows a newlywed couple as they adjust to a quiet, domestic life with a baby. Tensions arise when one husband (Eric) suspects paranormal activity that stems from the other’s (Dan’s) mysterious past. Over the course of the play, secrets are revealed through the experiences of Dan and Eric’s family and friends, and the stories they tell. WAKE is an immersive tale of family, the importance of communication, and whether or not the dead ever really die.

An incredibly spooky ghost story that does so much more by unpacking some deeply secrets exploring the long term affects of the AIDS crisis on the present. Great work.

WAKE is a unique piece that explores weighty thematic material in a specifically told and compelling story. The specter of the AIDs crisis hangs over the present day issues of alienation, belonging, and a queer couple's search for normalcy in an ever-symbolic but never overbearing way. Esme's podcast interjections punctuate the multi-character scenes beautifully and provide a contemplative framework for Eric and Dan's narrative arc. Toss in some unsettling and spooky moments, and you've got yourself a genre-defying play that consistently surprises and enthralls.

Oh, it's just my favorite thing: A combination of genuinely funny, deeply spooky, and profoundly sad. Filled with palpable feeling without in any way being mawkish. Eminently ready for production. So get on it, theaters. Get. On it.

A truly engrossing read that hooks you from the very beginning and doesn’t let go, WAKE is a different kind of ghost story about the people and events that haunt us. It’s also a clever meditation on the power of storytelling. Wrapped up in a riveting paranormal mystery, Gatton offers us a reminder that the AIDS crisis wasn’t a singular, contained event, and more broadly, that what’s past is also always present.