←Recommendations of The Kingdom of Ghosts

The community of national & local readers for the 44th annual Bay Area Playwrights Festival enthusiastically recommends THE KINGDOM OF GHOSTS as a Semi-Finalist at Playwrights Foundation out of 755 plays. We were deeply moved by the artistic merits in this blending of dramatic poetic styles of lyricism, mirage, allegories, quests, and masks. We were deeply moved by the play's promise as it explores military service, addiction, identity, culture, grief, and parenthood, questioning what it means to love while the world is in crisis. We hope this play is widely read, finds dedicated collaborators, and moves swiftly towards production. #BAPF2021

A play that magically transports us in the journey through grief, love and family. Terrific.

Beautiful, expansive, theatrical, lyrical, and yet very human--these are qualities that I've definitely come to associate with Darcy Parker Bruce's work. The characters that I began to be invested in and care for in "The Place That Made You" see awesome development and journeys in this piece. The visual/aural/sensorily acute landscape (that heliotrope!) is so vivid and unique. The incorporation of music and liminal spaces--physical and emotional--make me feel like this would be an awesome piece to work on as any member of a production team--musician, actor, director, movement coordinator, set, light, sound designer. Super-layered and compelling storytelling.

It's taken me a while to write a recommendation for this play because every time I think about it, I think about something new that resonates with me in an incredible and different way. Bruce's lyrical genius really shines through and each character is perfectly crafted. This is one of those rare plays where it's just as rewarding to listen to as it is to watch which makes it stands out as we move into a digital/aural era of theatre.

A lyrical cri de coeur that beautifully combines huge political themes (American militarism, queer and trans identity, the ontology of America, the ontology of the American soldier, American small-town life on the economic margins, just to name a few) with a sublime, magical realist plot and relatable (and frequently hilarious) characters. One of the hardest things to do in art is creating characters that are simultaneously poetic and realistic and this play has them in spades. The only thing I've ever read that reminded me intermittently of Wilder, King Lear and Angels in America. Highly recommended!

Darcy Parker Bruce has such a way with dialogue, small phrases with immense emotion that just hits every beat. Truly Nature is alive, magical and Darcy is intent on showing that. Designers of every discipline would have a field day with this play, it just radiates with unlimited potential!

In this fantastical, dreamy and emotionally rich piece, Darcy takes us on a journey of finding love, grappling with grief and finding family. The piece is ambitious and queer and joyful and is just what the american theater needs!!