Recommended by Scott Sickles

Hunger. Desire. Want. The way they regulate and dysregulate one another, how they control and express us as much as we try to control and repress them, the way they manifest within us and tug our marionette strings to lure and repel others... it's all in here! Kantor introduces unprecedentedly down-to-earth deities (and a ferocious avatar of voracity) who confront behavioral and bodily ideals as a dinner date determines a dynasty. You'll devour this and you'll like it! [1/1/25]

Every word, every moment, every spark in the clash between science and the faith that comes with being of a place – it resounds throughout this extraordinary and elegant piece. As an observer, I hold little hope for the characters's survival, but as the audience, my heart defies logic and steeps itself in hope. Lighting, sound and costume designers will revel in evoking this world as much as the actors blessed to create these women. And Iridessa is one of the most beautiful names ever. [1/1/25]

HUZZA, INDEED!

Not at all what I expected yet I would want it to be nothing else that the Christmas confection it is! Warm and cozy as a fire in the holiday hearth, this REVENGE is full of hope, love, and glorious anachronisms. Plummer has created a delightful new twist on Dickens' classic that deserves to endure just as long!

[12/16/24]

I was crying on page 2.

I didn't stop.

I mean, I did eventually. But it took a minute.

Maybe two.

Elegantly grounded in power from the start, the play hits the heart hard with simple theatricality which includes a celebration of simple theatricality. Not to mention familial love, adolescent friendship, hope both sparked and dashed. It's an elegy of union, separation, encouragement, and life.

All you need is four actors, an umbrella and a good stage manager.

EVERY, EVERY is everything.

[12/15/24]

OUCH!

Don't worry. I'll let you discover on your own why this one hurts.

One page and less than a minute, this is a masterpiece of atmosphere, insight, and potency. As described, it's a simple explanation of a circumstance, a process, a decision of a now that is both and neither safe and obvious.

I would even call it important. If you know someone who does this, or even just heard about this behavior, this play will MAKE you understand it in a way that will brand itself on you.

[12/15/24]

I love hotel horror. I also enjoy folk horror.
Rarely if ever do the twain meet.

Ta-da!

Floyd-Priskorn gives us a bona fide resort, closed for the off season, complete with local lore coming to life. I won't say much more because one of the best things about the play is the way it keeps both you guessing. Twists and revelations abound made all the more offkilter by a friend obsessed with improv! The laughs are pitch dark and the atmosphere is musty chic.

Book your visit now!

[10.28.24]

The only thing worse than an incel is an intel with power. The false entitlement fueling and fueled by imaginary betrayals in a vicious spiral until revenge is taken on people who have every right and reason to deny them... it's terrifying enough in real life. Here, Heyman brings that revenge fantasy to gripping life.

Meant to be performed primarily by phones and flashlights with a super creepy soundscape, the play is a gift to actors and designers. Perfect for Halloween or V-Day!

[10.27.24]

Ginny is the rarest of gems, a protagonist who drives the action without a word and wins the battle with not a single damn given about her detractors and antagonists! Good for her! In fact, her biggest enemy Mariah's biggest enemy isn't Ginny, it's jealousy... self consciousness... a need for amorphous approval from imaginary judges. Fortunately, boyfriend Isaac is there to watch while everyone is dancing and pluck the wallflowers. It's a great 60 seconds!

I am allergic to fun.

My vision of hell is loud and crowded. A 24-hour coffee spot or late-night art installation is my idea of a great time.

But every now and then... There's a party or a gathering or even, god forbid, a club! I might even be there by myself with my social anxiety and my body... and fuck if I didn't have a great time.

So thank you, Wren Aubrey Latham, for capturing River's (and my) trepidation and joy!

And for making her "any size." That did my heart extra good.

Glorious!

I was fortunate enough to be at my father's deathbed. I wasn't there when he passed, but when I arrived he recognized me right away. No one knew if he would. No one knew if he was lucid. He was. I got to sit and talk with him. I told him I'd be back the next day. I left him resting peacefully. An hour later...

Busser captures the importance of being there. Of recognition. Of making the effort.
A moving, resonant drama that still includes the requisite Busserian cleverness.
Beautiful.
[10/22/24]