←Recommendations of Drill

Packs a punch while it holds up a mirror.

This one-minute play about how active shooter drills have become a routine part of school life is powerful and infuriating. It says so much with so little - the mark of a successful one-minute play.

As a non-American, this still feels so alien to me, but the bored acceptance that these students and educator display as they endure yet another active shooter drill in their school really brings home just how this horror has pervaded the lives of youth today. The impact of this weary readiness is far-reaching, and deeply saddening. A well-executed point, made efficiently.

A vivid snapshot of the things our children can no longer see. The joys of childhood have been replaced by a constant fear for safety. Well done.

A sad and powerful reminder that the victims of gun violence aren't just those hurt in these all-too common massacres, but the bystanders to horror: Our children, and their teachers. A generation is growing up under the threat of armed assailants in their places of learning, and Kaplan's beautiful short play expresses a teacher's grief, for his students' innocence, and our collective humanity.

The aftermath of mass shootings is immediate, catastrophic loss. But there is insidious loss, too. Kaplan's short play shows this with its focus on tone, action, and coincidence. Very well written.

I saw this short play performed in Minneapolis at Safety Off, a production on gun control awareness and activism. A teacher's lesson on a poem is interrupted by a lock down drill, and the students and teachers react as if they've done this a million times. It's a sad play, but a powerful one that could do more than make you shake your head in disgust at America; it could inspire you do something, vote for politicians who are for gun control or simply start a conversation with others.

This snapshot of the now commonplace experiences of our children was shattering. How can they possibly be growing up with this? Kaplan kicks our guts with this understated piece.

This moving (and very short) piece is a great way to start off an evening or afternoon of gun-conscious work (it's a part of the Playwrights Say Never Again collection). Honored to be able to share this on our ONSTAGE: ON-AIR podcast. Gets you thinking and feeling in under two pages - bravo!