←Recommendations of Bandera, Texas

This often side-splitting play packs a poingnant message about 'angels' that feels true. When we are desperate and at our worst, which is where the main character finds herself, angels appear to save us.
In this case, Liz's dead grandmothers have found her -- pregnant and in a trailer, far from home (NYC) in Bandera, Texas with her drunk, gun-shooting husband. What has Liz done? Wonderfully written scenes between all the characters allow this play to give many antedotes about life, love and the pursuit of happiness; it also has a message about angels that is lovely & uplifting.

I greatly enjoyed BANDERA, TEXAS, for it's wonderful writing and great use of humor to explore family dynamics and expectations of women across generations. Lisa Dellagiarino Feriend writes each character with such realism and perspective as they navigate identity shifts and challenges in marriage and life. This play would also be a delight for a director and performers to bring alive on stage with its magical realism and poignant storytelling.

I loved the intergenerational aspect to this piece, as well as the centering of these three women's voices. It made the piece a really interesting exploration of the evolving (and not evolving) expectations women face in society concerning love, relationships, and motherhood in subtle and nuanced ways. Additionally, folks of all genders can appreciate what Lisa says about dynamics within relationships and how one's identity shifts and changes in partnership with someone else. It was also funny and charming to boot!

Bandera, Texas is a heart warming and delightful play. A young and pregnant woman uprooted from her beloved NYC by her husband's a job is utterly unsure of how to approach a new life. The down to earth arrival of her grandmother's ghosts, both witty and wise in their very different ways, allows her to gain some perspective into her own marriage and pathways forward into the next stage of her life. The play explores the complexity of life choices, marriage and families, but always maintains a light and humorous touch, charming the reader at every turn.

A beautiful story filled with humor, quips and heartbreak. I loved this play and could not put it down, wanting to continue living in the world of quirky characters and fast dialogue, that Lisa created. With a fantastic, funny and lovable main character leading the story and her two wonderful grandmothers' ghosts giving her advice, joking and telling their life stories, the piece doubles as a beautifully written love letter to mothers and grandmothers and their daughters. After reading this play, I called my own grandmothers, as Lisa's beautiful words have reminded me to not take them for granted.