Recommended by Jordan Elizabeth Henry

  • Promised Lands
    10 Jan. 2018
    A great piece of short political theatre. What happens when you choose just one way of identifying yourself to the world? This play asks the audience to consider the damage that can be done when we split into factions -- this takes the current American political climate to its (terrifying) extreme. I agree with Steven's comment below: this works as a ten-minute play, but I would be thrilled to see this piece developed into a longer piece.
  • UNDERFUR (co-written with Hugh Brinkley)
    10 Jan. 2018
    As a lover of any anthropomorphized animal, this play simply delighted me. A sweet little story about life-evaluation, companionship, and paperwork.
  • Blood Cake
    9 Jan. 2018
    This is a challenging, evocative short piece of theatre. Nagle combines Shakespeare, poetic language, sense memories, and movement to transport you to another place. BLOOD CAKE feels like an invitation to something... to participate in a moment of life, to slow down, to make considerations. It would be a beautiful addition to an evening of performances, particularly for theatres interested in experimental, movement- or poetry-based pieces. Beautiful language; beautiful images.
  • Divination
    5 Jan. 2018
    Oh my. This play had me from literally the first five words, and I my expectations were blown out of the water. I love these women. I LOVE these women. Palumbo's characters are deeply real, and their pain made me ache. Divination is funny, timely, loving, and, ultimately, a story about presence and gratitude. This is a beautiful piece of theatre, destined for great things.
  • Trash
    3 Jan. 2018
    This play tackles the nuances and subtleties of male power in relationships. Kate Mulley expertly builds a case against Dan Copper, a character who you want to like and want to make concessions for. TRASH is deceptively simple; it was only upon reaching the end that I realized how carefully Mulley structured this piece of theatre to leave you without question of Copper's guilt: here is a man who knows the difference between right and wrong, and keeps charting an easy path for himself, leaving women damaged in his wake.
  • Never Kill a Caterwauling Crane God (and other life lessons)
    3 Jan. 2018
    A funny, sweet, fast-paced parable-style play that would be great fun to act in or direct. Never Kill A Caterwauling Crane God would be an excellent addition to an evening of short plays.
  • The Veils
    2 Jan. 2018
    Simply, this play is stunning. The Veils gives space to harsh realities and hard relationships, without offering easy answers -- because there are none. Mel, Harmony, and Wendy are full of life and deeply complex; each of these women would be a joy and challenge for an actress to delve into and explore. This is a beautiful, captivating piece of theatre that will be with me for a long time.
  • Persephone
    13 Dec. 2017
    There's a lot to love in this short play. Jennifer O'Grady puts a new spin on a classic trope with great success. In ten pages, I find myself loving each of these characters, principally because Persephone shows them such specific, disciplined love. Dynamic conflict, but such deft gentleness with characters who are experiencing and expressing their grief in different ways. This would be a beautiful piece to include in a short play festival.
  • Kwon
    30 Nov. 2017
    This is a great short play about the bonds between women: the unspoken anxieties of mothering their daughters, and the different ways to respond to their unspoken histories with violence.
  • On Staying Indoors
    29 Nov. 2017
    I don't know how Haley Nelson packed so much emotion into this short piece; it has huge impact with such economy of words. ON STAYING INDOORS is atmospheric, sharp, sweet, heartbreaking... Honestly, I don't know what else to say because this play speaks for itself. Read this play. Produce this play. And when you do produce it, let me know so I can come see it.

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