←Recommendations of In the Garden of the Hesperides

This exquisitely painful, touching work is a masterclass in the long lasting effects of bullying on both the bully and the bullied. Gill delicately and skillfully picks at wounds long scabbed over but still throbbing painfully deep beneath the surface, and while he (rightly) doesn’t offer a traditional happy ending, he does give his characters — and by extension us — a cathartic, if not redemptive experience. A must read.

A childhood bully begs for absolution from his victim in this affecting, LGBTQ-themed two-hander. The piece succeeds based on the strength of its well-drawn, relatable and sympathetic characters, who both journey through entirely believable arcs. It’s a play about (belatedly) growing up, and about just how lived experience can change a person – or calcify them. Recommended for anyone who’s ever experienced bullying, either as a victim or a perpetrator.

A beautifully written exploration of the lingering effects of bullying - on both ends. I was privileged to see the reading at the Valdez Theatre Conference, and the impact on the audience was palpable. A powerful, moving play that gives profound life to two multi-faceted characters.

At the end of the reading at the Valdez Theatre Conference 2025, I asked members in the audience to raise their hand if they had been through what David Adam Gill so well depicted on stage. Nearly all raised their hands, and few of them were middle-aged gay men. Bullying hits all of us in some form, and the aftershocks are permanent. The confrontation between Boris and Dil may be universal, but in this short, sharp play, we see how two people can come to terms with their own demons.

Forgiveness is difficult. We know we're meant to be the bigger person and show that we're beyond the pain inflicted on us by the abusive ones in our lives. And yet...it is just so difficult. David Adam Gill gives us a portrait of abuser and abused wrestling with a fraught past and finding grace in the hope of an innocent future and new generation. A beautiful, raw, honest, yet hopeful play.

This play touches the fraught currents of abuse, shame, and forgiveness with an astonishing sensitivity. Everyone knows what it is like to be one of these two characters, most of us have been both of them at one time or another. Yet the story does not take any expected route. The revelations are organic and moving. More than anything, this piece touches on our common humanity with grace and understanding. There are no easy answers, but we all have the capacity to mend our flaws. Lovely play.