Recommended by Paul Donnelly

  • Paul Donnelly: What's Up Pig?

    Bob uses an unusual collaboration to solve his annoying sibling problem. A classic fairy tale gets a dark spin in this deliciously macabre spoof.

    Bob uses an unusual collaboration to solve his annoying sibling problem. A classic fairy tale gets a dark spin in this deliciously macabre spoof.

  • Paul Donnelly: Boys Will Be...

    This seemingly gentle coming of age story builds to gut-punch of an ending. Every word rings true from their first interactions as five year-olds (well, two five and one six), through adolescence, to the struggle for identity that fractures their bond. Always thoroughly engaging, this story has a gripping and shocking, but thoroughly earned conclusion.

    This seemingly gentle coming of age story builds to gut-punch of an ending. Every word rings true from their first interactions as five year-olds (well, two five and one six), through adolescence, to the struggle for identity that fractures their bond. Always thoroughly engaging, this story has a gripping and shocking, but thoroughly earned conclusion.

  • Paul Donnelly: Performance Anxiety [Or, On Being Late To A Virtual Work Call]

    This giddy farce builds from a seemingly mundane workday Zoom call to dazzling meta madness. The juxtaposition between stage Josh and Toni and video Josh and Toni is hysterical. The surreal conclusion is a fitting, but surprising, button to all that came before. All-in-all, this is a most entertaining short play.

    This giddy farce builds from a seemingly mundane workday Zoom call to dazzling meta madness. The juxtaposition between stage Josh and Toni and video Josh and Toni is hysterical. The surreal conclusion is a fitting, but surprising, button to all that came before. All-in-all, this is a most entertaining short play.

  • Paul Donnelly: This God Damn House

    This is a devastating portrait of a true monster mother and the lengths to which she will go to retain control over her sons. This family's painful history spills out over the course of the night before the mother is to be evicted from her home. This deadline creates a sense of urgency that spurs heated emotions. There were moments in this play that had me shaking and the whole of it has left me deeply shaken.

    This is a devastating portrait of a true monster mother and the lengths to which she will go to retain control over her sons. This family's painful history spills out over the course of the night before the mother is to be evicted from her home. This deadline creates a sense of urgency that spurs heated emotions. There were moments in this play that had me shaking and the whole of it has left me deeply shaken.

  • Paul Donnelly: The Butterfly Anchor

    What a powerful drama of the costs and gifts of encroaching mortality, of trauma and healing, of grace and connection. This play is populated by vivid, complex, and compelling characters whose journeys it is a privilege to share. The sense of urgency created by Brian's ALS informs every beat. I was riveted and moved throughout.

    What a powerful drama of the costs and gifts of encroaching mortality, of trauma and healing, of grace and connection. This play is populated by vivid, complex, and compelling characters whose journeys it is a privilege to share. The sense of urgency created by Brian's ALS informs every beat. I was riveted and moved throughout.

  • Paul Donnelly: Abandon All Hope

    Three recently deceased college students, each flawed, but striving, find themselves in a purgatorial dorm room. Their demon host sets a high stake quest before them. How they each react to the quest and to an exploration of their histories is the meat of this suspenseful, compelling, and often very funny play.

    Three recently deceased college students, each flawed, but striving, find themselves in a purgatorial dorm room. Their demon host sets a high stake quest before them. How they each react to the quest and to an exploration of their histories is the meat of this suspenseful, compelling, and often very funny play.

  • Paul Donnelly: When the Dodgers Left Brooklyn

    A lovely meditation on the afterlife as a point of ending and a point of departure. The family connection between one recently deceased soul and one soul waiting to be born is movingly revealed. There's also plenty of humor and, of course, memories of the Brooklyn Dodgers.

    A lovely meditation on the afterlife as a point of ending and a point of departure. The family connection between one recently deceased soul and one soul waiting to be born is movingly revealed. There's also plenty of humor and, of course, memories of the Brooklyn Dodgers.

  • Paul Donnelly: DESDEMONA ... REVISITED (MONOLOGUE)

    Poor Desdemona followed her passion and paid the ultimate price. She returns to offer advice to save others from her ill-fated path. But will anyone consumed by love/lust ever really listen to their father?

    Poor Desdemona followed her passion and paid the ultimate price. She returns to offer advice to save others from her ill-fated path. But will anyone consumed by love/lust ever really listen to their father?

  • Paul Donnelly: Physical Education

    Like all great farces, Physical Education builds reveal upon reveal and complication upon complication. The simple premise of a young couple in love seeking parental permission to marry explodes into a jumble of complex relationships among the various characters. Efforts to maintain secrets are especially comical, but the entire piece builds wittily to a rip-snorting climax.

    Like all great farces, Physical Education builds reveal upon reveal and complication upon complication. The simple premise of a young couple in love seeking parental permission to marry explodes into a jumble of complex relationships among the various characters. Efforts to maintain secrets are especially comical, but the entire piece builds wittily to a rip-snorting climax.

  • Paul Donnelly: Case Study: Ruth Ellis

    These four students face the daunting task of reviewing a well-known historical case and evaluating it in terms of contemporary protocols and procedures. Their clearly delineated personalities and the subtext of their relationships add texture and interest to their work together. The Ruth Ellis case is riveting and the application of modern standards raises many questions about the case. The unresolved curtain will certainly lead to animated debate among readers and audience members.

    These four students face the daunting task of reviewing a well-known historical case and evaluating it in terms of contemporary protocols and procedures. Their clearly delineated personalities and the subtext of their relationships add texture and interest to their work together. The Ruth Ellis case is riveting and the application of modern standards raises many questions about the case. The unresolved curtain will certainly lead to animated debate among readers and audience members.