←Recommendations of Babel

BABEL speaks many of the thoughts/concerns I have when I think of the future--when I think of how we try to "perfect" ourselves and "protect" ourselves. Funny and scary, this play is a fast-paced, witty-dialogued exploration of where humanity may find itself one day. I can't wait to see it on stage and experience it with an audience.

Social science fiction is my favorite kind and BABEL is a shining example of the genre. Our current reality is ratcheted just a few levels up to create sticky questions about politics, choice, privilege, and ethics. And all that provocation comes in a simple-to-produce package.

I have always wished there were more futuristic / science fiction plays, most thankfully Jackie has written one that is wildly inventive and extremely producible! Both hilarious and heartbreaking, Babel is an ominous vision of the future. Jackie’s play is quick-paced, features her Goldfinger branded dialogue that is both snappy and poetic and is a boldly unique take on a dystopian future where babies are judged and categorized before they’re even born.

In Babel, the future is democratic but that doesn't absolve it from being dystopian. Of course, you don't see it if you're one of the majority that’s been genetically fashioned for success. When Renee finds herself pregnant with a statistically problematic baby, she must decide if it’s better to offer her a child a life of oppression or no life at all. Goldfinger presents a timely story about privilege within a democratic society and who loses when others win. An enthralling societal meditation on who we are, who we should be, and who we may become.

“Babel is a timely view into a future world where choice and reproductive technology have progressed to eugenics. The play made me laugh out loud and also made me cry. It tracks the human journey of partnerships, trying to conceive, and dealing with genetic discrepancies with heart, humor and caution. The warning of Babel rings out clear and true: "humans please do not forget about the essential messiness, the imperfection as it were, of being human". The script integrates the idea of future technologies based on current human ideals in a smart and theatrical way. A great ride!

In this quick-witted dark-comedy, Goldfinger has traced a world where mankind creates a stringent rubric for the haves and have-nots through genetic manipulation. Her storytelling is deft, her humor is acerbic and her world-creation is so rich your imagination runs wild as you consider all the twisted possibilities of this not-so-distant-future.

BABEL lives at the intersection of what we can and can't control about genes, our children, their future. Goldfinger has situated these thorny questions in a near-future world -- far enough away that this genetic tweaking seems possible, near enough that we still see ourselves in this perilous landscape. This is a funny, quick-witted, tense and nimble play that explores what we'd do in the name of safety, what it would feel like to play God, what happens when playing God ends up being just as difficult and messy as you'd guessed. We'd like to be sure: we can't.

A deft delve into the world of what parents (and society) can and can't control in our children. A play that takes the simmering ideas of who is deserving and thrusts them into an end-game where children are tested in utero for 'pre-certification' or a pass into free society. By focusing tightly on two expectant couples and a smart sci-fi frame, this play becomes a lively, engaging, theatrical exploration of genetic testing and the limits of 'safety.' It jumps off the page, timely, relevant and ready for production.

This play needs to be produced as soon as possible. A story that is both fantastic and entirely plausible. A play that is very funny while also being deadly serious. A work that is political without being didactic. A piece that is energetic and playful while also beautiful and somber. I can't wait to see this one on stage.

Babel is a magnificent piece of work. Goldfinger has taken a simple futuristic conceit and used it as a springboard to tackle some of the most difficult cultural issues of our time. What starts out as a play about eugenics, quickly morphs into a play about privilege, political engagement, familial responsibility and individual courage. But it’s a very human story as well. There’s one moment in particular in which a character allows a phone call to go into her voicemail, that feels as dramatically potent as someone unleashing a virus into the water supply. Highly recommended.