←Recommendations of Alond(R)a

WOW. What a jungle gym of life. The good, the bad, the ugly. Really in awe of the characters and their voices. I would love to see this on a stage.

A fantastic coming of age play that is full of grit I would love to see a production of this anywhere.

What a beautiful play that is both tender with and fair to its nuanced teenage characters. Gloriously hilarious at certain points, heartbreaking at others, it is unpretentiously yet consistently profound in scope! The highly theatrical world of wrestling is also seamlessly integrated and so crucial to the piece. I can't wait to see an awesome production of this some day!

There are so many moments in this play that stick with me on a daily basis. Someone needs to produce it. Gina knows how to write the heart of a teenager in such a profound way. It's comforting, funny, alarming, full-bodied and beautiful. I look forward to seeing the amazing production this amazing play deserves one day soon.

I love this play. Great for teens or anybody who has ever BEEN a teen. The friendship found in this story is so warm and I wish I could just sneak in and be a part of their magic. Gina does marvelous work with the people and the relationships in this little slice of Brooklyn. Potential for some great physical work and design. I can't wait to see a production of this play.

Perfect for young actors -- and teen audiences -- this play is a joy for physical performers. It's refreshingly unsentimental and frequently hilarious. Brooklyn is a character in this play, the sense of place is so acute, but Allonda's story is universal.

I'm so glad to have seen Joust's reading of this script, because not only is it beautiful on the page, it blooms onstage. Gina's words are heartfelt, honest, poetic, and real. She captures the three-dimensionality of coming-of-age in the shadow of abuse. When actors channel those words through their performances, and Gina's stage directions come to life, magic happens. Gina is one of the most emotionally honest writers working today, and this play is an excellent example of her power!

Allond(R)a is irresistible - it aches and swells with the wonderful bawdy humor, outsize joy, and sunlit heartbreak of small lives and loves in the big city. Gina is one of the great empathy experts of the theatre, loving her characters in a way that makes them full-hearted and nuanced in their every sunny, sad, soulful, or searing interaction. Allond(R)a does for Brooklyn what Wim Wenders does for Berlin or what Trainspotting does for down-and-out Edinburgh -- glorifies its sweaty, silly, wayward, wonderful heart.

As a former teenage backyard wrestler, this play had me nostalgic and ready to smile on every turn. As a playwright, this play had me marvel at the way the story tackled the hard subjects between the lines of growing up. As a Femia fan, I can't wait to see this play produced. What a great coming of age story told the way only a New Yorker can tell it.

Beautiful, heartbreaking play. I love the world, the tags, the language, the characters, and the heat of it, the physicality will be so wonderful staged - a director's dream of a play.