←Recommendations of The Lover and the Fighter

Heyman skillfully crafts this tender coming-of-age drama through shifts in time which allow the story to reveal the characters of two boys and their shared history in fragments. The result is a portrait of true friendship shaped as much by their absence from one another as by their presence. Oh, the ache of it all. Well done.

I love the way this play handles flashbacks and how thoroughly theatrical the structure of the play is, when it would be so easy to write a version of this memory play which is far less engaging. What a great example of playwriting done to perfection! I love these characters and the real-life messiness depicted in the play. So, so good!

Sam Heyman has crafted a deeply moving tale of friendship between two young men who must face certain truths about their feelings during a period of separation after high school graduation. While Lee goes off to college and Shawn joins the army, both meet someone they can confide in who helps them examine their relationship. Heyman presents richly drawn characters that we can’t help but root for, even knowing there are limits to what their friendship can become. There are certainly no limits to what this play can become. Perhaps a main stage production?

In this LGBTQ romantic dramedy, THE LOVER AND THE FIGHTER, Sam Heyman shows us an illustration of a poignant love story, a story that reminds us that loving someone doesn't necessarily just mean consummating the relationship but rather, letting them leave an irreversible mark on you for better and for worse. What I especially enjoy about this play is how we see both Lee and Shawn engage with their past through the (welcomed or not) help of other significant relationships in their life!

This tender study of a relationship is deftly sketched using a back and forth time structure that matches the back and forth nature of the dialogue and of the relationship itself.

This is a beautiful play about friends, gay-straight crushes and the ways people change between high school and adulthood. I particularly loved the nuanced ways that relationships with the supporting characters bring out new revelations about Lee and Shawn, in ways both surprising and completely natural.
"The Lover and the Fighter" is yet another play in Sam Heyman's portfolio that demonstrates what a master he is at crafting lovely relationship-driven dramas. Bravo!

As Salieri is the Patron Saint of Mediocrity, so I am the Patron Saint of Straight Crushes. As such, I can attest with absolute authority: Sam Heyman gets it right!

Even when the straight guy knows and can deal, as Shawn does with Lee, there's plenty of mutual drama, strife, and emotion. This brought back vivid memories of listening to my heterosexual objects of affection waxing about their heterosexual objects of affection. (I could practically smell the beer in the carpet.)

The culminations are powerful and honest. The affection, frustrations, and revelations are unique and surprising. Lovely stuff.

This is amazingly nuanced, engaging, and someday I hope to see it performed. Thank you for writing such a three dimensional, well crafted story.

What do we owe the people we've loved? How responsible are we for our effects on a friend's life? This finely rendered coming of age story presents these questions without providing easy answers. This is so much more than a standard queer coming of age story, although it explores that story brilliantly. Lee and Shawn are richly drawn and complex young men with most compelling journeys.

This is a sweet, subtle queer coming-of-age story filled with fantastic roles for college-aged performers. It uses its nonlinear structure to fantastic effect to shed light on the complexity of the central friendship. The character voices are specific and consistent throughout. I love the way the timeline goes from a set fixture to a legitimate storytelling element that the actors interact with, allowing them to revisit and replay scenes with honesty. I think a lot of young people will be able to relate to and connect with these characters, and those who don't will leave the theatre with newfound empathy.