←Recommendations of Man Up

Poignant, funny, heart wrenching, and hopeful; Kyle Smith has created a brilliant story of coming into your own as a queer person, amidst the pressure (on the court and off) of a men’s water polo team. Anyone who loathed having to go to the locker rooms to change after gym class will recognize the casual cruelty (that seemed almost essential to building team moral) that Smith has managed to capture near perfectly in this examination of toxic masculinity, identity, and community.

A funny, heartbreaking, and nuanced play about young adult masculinity, sexuality, identity, and athletics. Kyle Smith pairs these dexterously written/orchestrated group scenes that juggle a huge amount of characters with Titus' very compelling sweet, sad, and profound arc in which they begin to truly understand various aspects of their identity. The play doesn't shy away from the many pitfalls/negative impacts of masculinity while treating each character with humanity.

It would be an understatement to say this is truly one of the most beautiful, funny, haunting, and raw piece of theatre I’ve ever read (and hope to soon see). Smith’s witty and powerful voice sings in this play— an emotional roller coaster I never want to get off of. Each character is incredibly specific and dynamic, and my goodness, what a bold way to get us into the world! How lucky are we to have art like this to dive into.

This play rocks. This play makes me cry. This play makes me feel like I'm seeing something I really shouldn't be. Kyle writes boy-speak and big group scenes so well, but it's the quiet moments with Titus alone onstage that really get me. Read this play!

Rare is the play that sells itself in the opening stage directions. A blend of intimacy, shame, and resentment result in a palpable atmosphere rife with intimacy, shame, and resentment. Even in the dark we posture for our brothers in arms, burying genuine emotion under the boot of competition.

Smith's play is a tale of queer peril in the heart of the tiled jungle where young men become monstrous versions of themselves in the name of a dying paradigm. Yet somehow, hope is the last man standing.

Changing rooms are a minefield of confused sexuality, body insecurity, and emotional vulnerability. Playwright Kyle Smith ratchets this milieu up by centering the painful journey of a trans/agender character whose painful coming out results in his relationship with his water polo teammates disintegrating as their camaraderie grows over the course of a contentious season. The audience viscerally feels Titus’ pain and isolation as they come into their own, and anger at the team’s treatment of them. A fantastic and powerful play about what we lose to become our true authentic selves.