←Recommendations of Hibernation

An accessible but nuanced short about small-town life, faith, belonging, and humanity. Perfect roles for a variety of actors and a great play for various audiences.

Scott Sickles is a master of character connectivity. What is said, what is unsaid, and the volumes of information in-between. Like Bergman, Sickles creates a sprawling world beyond the scene that the characters fully inhabit. I am left wanting more of these characters, their relationships, and their baked goods.

"Hibernation" is a beautiful soft and warm story of the relationship of three different characters whose common tie is their mutual respect. The characters are nicely developed and unique, that in a way, if you really look at it, they form a circle, holding hands like a band of gold. They demonstrate loss is not total and infinite, or alone. These are lovable human beings, and audio enhances the engagement and the location blesses it. Nice job, Scott Sickles

This is a cozy, feel good take on loss and the end of relationships. The sweet melancholy of Scott Sickles's dialogue matches the winter night setting. But don't let my descriptions paint a lopsided portrait of this play, it is wickedly funny. I could see this play taking place in Stars Hollow (of the Gilmore Girls)! Hibernation is a glimpse at the world the way it should be.

10/25/205: Each person deals with grief and loss in their own, unique way. Tinged with humor and compassion, Scott Sickle's brilliant play, "Hibernation," is a testament to the yearning for connection, compassion, and love among mundane, flawed people —people like us, people we encounter in our daily lives. This is the sort of play that fills the audience with a strange warmth as we all relate to the joys and sufferings life brings. Brilliantly done!

Caught this little gem at the 2025 Midwest Dramatists Conference and was hooked from the start. If you know Scott Sickles's work, you know he has a wicked and warped sense of humor (the kind I love), and while that humor occasionally flashes here, this is a story of loss, regret, unrequited love, and longing among everyday people. The emotions are universal, the moments as often poignant as they are funny. So easy to produce, and great roles for actors. Do this play!

I heard this charming and quirky-sentimental play read at the 2025 Midwest Dramatists Conference. Having lived in a part of the country where this takes place and among the folks like Gunnar, Max, and Ingrid, not only did I identify with the theme, I felt like I was with them. The quiet and patient longing for connection with other souls balanced with Scott Sickles' humor put me in mind of old friends and lost loves. And "Fargo."

10.21.25 - Scott Sickles may be known for his sick sense of humor, I have to acknowledge his capacity to write flawed, yet relatable people. Here's a wonderful example. Max, still affected by his wife leaving a year ago, is nevertheless bucked up by Ingrid and Gunnar in their own fashion and the results are so very human and heartfelt. (Although I will say that Gunnar reminds me of the author's biting wit and sass.) He never makes you think he's JUST writing jokes. He's writing us.

These characters are ordinary people (and I do not mean, uninteresting), fleshed out with care by the author. They are stumbling in the dark, just like the rest of us, as they experience the pain of loneliness, divorce, and self-doubt. This play is warm, funny, sad, and delightful. Scott Sickles writing takes the characters seriously, and therefore so do I.

As always, Scott Sickles' biting wit knows no bounds. In "Hibernation" he somehow finds a way to creep into our hearts and leave us with joy and hope. I had the great pleasure to watch a reading of this play at the 2025 Midwest Dramatists Conference.