←Recommendations of A Split Second

Heart-stopper of a play! Beautifully rendered with the split-stage and the consequences of a story we put together in the audience as the 2 women relate their stories in 2 different states (metaphorically and actual). O'Grady has written a terribly real tragedy.

A 10-minute play with the intensity of a raw nerve. Lyrical, rhythmic dialogue spirals inward toward a double dose of tragedy. The playwright ventures into a highly topical subject while deftly avoiding the pitfalls of becoming didactic. She aptly creates a human portrait of the opioid epidemic.

An interesting short play that puts us in a position where we know more than the characters do, creating a devastating dramatic irony as we feel for the characters who don’t know what’s going on or how their lives interconnect.

An effective treatment of addiction, this play in its sparseness, clearly reveals a tragedy. The technique of overlaying dialogue brings a gradual realization of those who suffer, most completely innocent. Ms. O'Grady's play moves almost as fast as a film. It reminds me of "Riders to the Sea", an Irish play.

A magnificent ten minute play. Breathtaking, poetic, gorgeous, truly stunning. O'Grady paints a masterpiece with only a few strokes. Utterly devastating. If you are not familiar with O'Grady's work, now is the time to rectify that--and start here.