←Recommendations of The Calorie Counters

Such great characters and dialogue, Wagner does a super job of putting the issues of size, body shaming and body positivity and self-acceptance into this play without making it feel at all heavy-handed. Here are 2 great roles for women. I was impressed with the journeys each character takes so the relationships deepen and the characters can actually grow. Brava!

I saw the Los Angeles production - what a fantastic play. There's so much here for actors to delve into and for audiences to be swept into and take into themselves... it's an issue play that never seems to be self-conscious or overdone or obvious, it's all about these beautiful, utterly believable characters and their complex relationships to each other, but their personal journeys just happen (courtesy of the amazing writing) to navigate and illuminate a society that is weight-obsessed.

Molly Wagner's, THE CALORIE COUNTERS, takes us on a journey that is funny, touching, challenging, and refreshing. The play roots itself firmly in the lives of its beautifully drawn characters while exploring an incredibly important larger social question of body image and self worth. This nuanced piece invites us to challenge our own weight-based biases and meaningfully engage with insecurity, vulnerability, shame, and acceptance. Looking forward to seeing this produced!

With THE CALORIE COUNTERS, Molly Wagner has created a quick-moving, accessible script that still smartly gets at the many contradictions even those in the body positivity movement struggle with—the tension between loving yourself and wanting, on some level, to change; the interplay between the shame the outside world projects onto you versus the painful narratives you impose on yourself; wanting your weight to not define you, but thinking about it constantly. This is a script that should be read and produced widely! Well done.

I thoroughly enjoyed this subtly told, nuanced piece about self image, self-worth, relationships, and sisters. Maggie is a compelling protagonist who is realistic, charming, and goes through a powerful journey throughout. Jordan is an excellent foil for Maggie. Wagner makes her, at first, a sympathetic antagonist before Jordan's own complex and poignant baggage is revealed as the story unfolds. I particularly loved how this piece avoided melodramatics. Its moving conclusion was founded on small but effective seismic shifts within and between characters. The ending was satisfying even though it wasn't tied up with a neat bow.

A lovely piece about the expectations we put on ourselves and others in life and in love. The characters are real and effortlessly fleshed out, caring and unthinking in equal parts, both ambitious and happy just to get by, in other words complex and human to the core. The play is fiercely honest about body image and explores the issues from all angles without ever preaching or proposing easy solutions. Wagner’s dialogue is consistently funny and true in its depictions of everyday awkwardness. Another wonderful work from a writer to watch.