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Conor McShane

Recommended by Conor McShane

  • The Aisle by Dominic Finocchiaro
    3 Aug. 2023
    “ A whirlwind of a play that pushes the limits of our assumptions, our beliefs, and our biases to the breaking point...and then breaks them. I really appreciated the way it manages to challenge the social norms that we collectively hold true, showing that even the most open minded of us still have our limits, while refusing to offer one concrete answer about what's "right" and "wrong." Our social contract really is hanging by a thread at all times, isn't it? ”
  • Next Door by Hanna Kime
    1 Aug. 2023
    “ I love any play that seems to exist in a reality that's just ever so slightly skewed from our own; it's a tough thing to pull off but this play does it beautifully. To my mind it feels like, among many other things, a cracked funhouse mirror version of our world, and the contradictions between asserting our individualism while also attempting to be part of a community. Frequently hilarious and just as frequently spine-chilling, with an ending that really "goes there." Great stuff. ”
  • The Innkeepers by Novid Parsi
    11 Jul. 2023
    “ I have to admit, sometimes when I see a play is pushing 100 pages, I think to myself, "couldn't this be cut down to a tight 80?" But when the play is as expertly crafted, deeply compelling, and wonderfully tense as this one, the page count flies by. A brilliant meditation on constructed truths and the realities we create for ourselves to get by, written by an author in full command of their craft. It's a beautiful thing to behold. ”
  • Lightning From Heaven by Scott Sickles
    22 Jun. 2023
    “ I'm a sucker for a good literary historical tale, and this one is so very good. In our current era of banning books, its story of conviction in the face of governmental oppression, of art's potential to reach hearts and minds, is more resonant than ever. It gives voice to the people behind the artist who influence the work, and presents a great love story worthy of its source material. ”
  • Modus Operandi by David Lipschutz
    13 Jun. 2023
    “ A very funny spin on the classic interrogation room scene with all kinds of delightfully unexpected twists (the "human lie detector" bit really got me) culminating in a wonderfully bonkers reveal. Beyond being a fun scene in its own right, it also functions as an absurdist take on the pageantry and mind games inherent in police interrogation. ”
  • Not Unusual by RJ Silva
    13 Jun. 2023
    “ A sweet, big-hearted intergenerational story that gets at some hard truths about aging and the autonomy we lose when we get old. I loved the cultural specificity and the use of Tagalog in the script that makes the dynamic between Kyle and Corazon feel deeply rooted and lived-in. A lovely, heartwarming piece! ”
  • Kangaroo (Ten Minute) by Paul Donnelly
    22 May. 2023
    “ A wonderfully frank, sex positive discussion around boundaries and compromise within a relationship, about the struggle to give your partner what they need while also standing up for your own needs. The friendship between Lily and Sophia feels lived-in and authentic, like this is just a tiny sliver into their longtime relationship that goes back way further and will continue way after. ”
  • BOX OFFICE by Paul Smith
    22 May. 2023
    “ Like many here, I also used to work front of house/box office, and I wish I could say the questions Jack gets are an exaggeration, but...
    This piece really nails that feeling of working on the sidelines of something you love, knowing that ultimately it's both a whole lot and very little that separates you from the people who actually get to "do it." Fingers crossed that Jack will have his moment someday! ”
  • The Alley by Christopher Soucy
    15 May. 2023
    “ I was interested in checking this play out after several writers I really like have recommended it, and it absolutely does not disappoint. It moves with a sort of dreadful inevitability; we know not headed somewhere good, and when the details are revealed, it's devastating. A moving commentary on the way our systems dehumanize and blind us to others' suffering. ”
  • Nurture by Johnna Adams
    4 May. 2023
    “ Hoo boy. Writing this sort of carefully crafted sense of non-reality is very tough to pull off, and this play manages to sustain it for over a hundred pages while also tapping into some deep seated fears around parenting: wanting to protect kids from the harm the world can bring, while knowing that there's ultimately little you can do to prevent that harm, all rendered here in a vivid and deeply unsettling way. ”

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