←Recommendations of The Return

This play starts off right at tension level 10, but as you think you are being released, instead you are being twisted. The things Elena tells Bob about holding her caged really hit home, it's a wonderful monologue. A very intense story of grief with a sci-fi spin.

THE RETURN is a chilling but also comforting drama by Abhisek Bhattacharya. Abhisek is becoming one of my favorite playwrights on NPX because each play feels different and holds so many unique factors that make his plays very memorable. THE RETURN is no exception. Bhattacharya writes with so much heart, grief, and humanity.

This is a time-machine play that play grabs you from the very beginning and doesn't let go through its twisty ending. It starts with a gun pointed at a head and ends with hair casually looped behind the ear, with the middle as an emotional ride that deviates through the agony of grief and remorse and parental guilt There are so many brilliant subtleties in this play with the nuanced roles of Stella and Elena, but all four actors are written with juicy parts. This will definitely be an audience favorite at any festival.

They say that a strong ten-minute play should begin in the middle of the action! In this unique sci-fi short, the playwright clearly took this to heart, starting us off with a high-stakes bang that had me leaning forward from line one! I am all about deconstructing grief through genre and exploring the ways that love can often be an antagonistic force. This piece does so beautifully. It is carefully structured, so the audience experiences a one-two punch of clever reversals in quick succession. A wild ride from beginning to end!

This play deals with regret in an interesting way, straddling the border between reality and science fiction, leaving the audience guessing what's going on. Even the ending is a surprise and does not only contain a twisting ending, but then delivers a second twist! Well done!