←Recommendations of AFFINITY LUNCH MINUTES

I read this play yesterday and haven't stopped thinking about it since. A tremendous piece of work that goes to some incredibly complex, nuanced, and furious places with such ease and confidence, only to end on a note of radical hopefulness. Gripping dilemmas, vivid, unforgettable characters - this was a true privilege to read!

I really love this play! It's amazing to see what happens when We write OUR stories. This play goes ways deeper than just what's on the surface. It not only tackles allyship for white people but also the complexities of intersectional allyship. I loved that everyone is so flawed and working through how to make sense of what is the best decision to make for themselves and for the good of the other. This is a show that makes you feel icky yet hopeful and I really love that uncomfortable and conflicting feeling.

This play is gripping, thoughtful, deeply felt, infuriating, and so so hopeful. I couldn’t stop the torrent of tears from coming out when I got to the final scene and Ben’s powerful moment of change. This play is so necessary for so many reasons, and I will be checking frequently to see if and when this incredible play makes it to NYC.

A great many well expressed words have already been written about this outstanding play. I let it sit with me for a few days before writing, because there's so much worthy of praise it's hard to sum up what hit me most. But for me it was that moment in the simple but powerful climax when a character who has long made excuses for himself and others stands up. He knows he has much to lose, and any gains will be hard fought and long term, but he will not continue to leave the 'heavy lifting' to others. Produce this!

I had the pleasure of seeing a virtual reading of AFFINITY LUNCH MINUTES as part of Orlando Shakes Playfest. This play made me laugh, made me think, and made me feel for the characters. In a time when it’s so easy to be divisive and force sides, this play is a nuanced look at the implicit biases and injustices at a predominantly white Quaker school. I genuinely hope to see a full production of this play soon!

Flawlessly utilizing academia as a microcosm of how the White status-quo effortlessly manipulates systems designed for them. The Quaker setting heightens the trope of the well-meaning, but self-involved White progressive-aspiring community.

Malakhow’s most ingenious feat is depicting the enormity of both the school’s inner world and the larger systemic conflicts of our world with only four main characters.

It’s taut and gripping and I couldnt put it down.

Powerful, truthful, heartfelt piece about the persistent microaggressions at play in a private Quaker school where there are only two Black teachers. Tackling systemic racism head-on, Malakhow writes with accuracy, pain and maturity about the complex and unresolved spaces in which the US and its education system find themselves when it comes to true diversity, equity and inclusion.

I thought I hated hearing plays described as "more relevant now than ever," until I finally read one that it actually applies to -- if a theatre company doesn't think it's time to do Affinity Lunch Minutes, they don't have a finger on the pulse of what theatre needs now. Watching a reading of this made me feel unexpected sympathies and a range of new perspectives on race. However, the value of this play is not just that it's timely, but that as these issues develop, the play will become more relevant over time.

Affinity Lunch Minutes is a captivating play that captures the difficult position marginalized teachers are placed in, when having to balance their responsibility to their students, to themselves and their own communities with the expectations of a system that is steeped in white supremacy and hides behind "tradition." The character development and pacing is exceptionally tight and creates a riveting 90 minute play that you don't want to put down. Above all, the way Malakhow treats characters with compassion without justifying or excusing their behavior is masterfully done.

Affinity Lunch Minutes is a sharp look at the way predominantly white institutions - even/especially those that espouse liberal values - recapitulate supremacist structures. The brilliance of the play lies in the way it shows us how systemic failures impact the lives and choices of the individuals involved. Ben's wrestling with his connection to the institution and its goals is powerful and, at times, heartbreaking. The personal and political mirror each other, pulling us deeply into the individual and structural issues. Great, complex roles, and exciting design challenges in the interludes.