←Recommendations of Natural History

Collin’s play is so funny, so honest, so fierce as it pulls apart an exhibit in a Museum and tears down the lies that made it real through rhymes and silences and pacts. This play is tight, character, plot, and set-wise, and artfully woven—I saw it twice, once inside and once outside, and so enjoyed it both times, both ways. For anyone who loves the Wild West and bisons in museum or just believes in the power of nature and exploration and the threats posed to them.

A sneaky, slow-burn of a play that, at first read, is a superbly paced real time heist. On second, third, and fourth consideration, the ways that it explores the intersection of history, legacy, climate change, nature, and the human impact on the world unfurl like a uniquely beautiful flower of sorts. Three thoughtfully chosen and constructed characters come together and brush up against one another with their own urgent needs and circumstances. The comedy and intriguing speculative future setting serve to disarm and prime the audience to consider truths about the sustainability of our current way of life.

I haven't stopped thinking about this haunting, sweet, sad play about what we've lost and what we still have left to live for since I saw it at the O'Neill. Collin's writing is so tender, hilarious, and whimsical. As funny as this play is, it's also devastating. Put it in a museum!

After seeing this play read twice at the O'Neill's National Playwrights Conference I've come to the conclusion that Collin Van Son is a poet, a folk historian, and a hilarious, thoughtful writer. A post-apocalyptic play that cleverly unfolds into a meditation on folk history, the gifts of our National Parks, and everything that is at stake in our rapidly warming planet with an ending that'll break your heart. I'd love to see this play produced, although I know I'd be a little devastated by the end of it—but maybe we deserve that?