Recommended by Aly Kantor

  • Aly Kantor: delicacy of a puffin heart

    This is a fascinating play - I am furiously taking notes about how the playwright revealed information so deliberately through the masterful integration of two simultaneous timelines. While the structure and storytelling are phenomenal, I'm absolutely in love with the dialogue! It's natural, snappy, compelling, and feels effortless, despite doing a lot of narrative work. There is such a profound sense of loneliness in these characters, who are each hiding so much of themselves and so willing to see others clearly... if only they had a route in. A truly unique and interesting work!

    This is a fascinating play - I am furiously taking notes about how the playwright revealed information so deliberately through the masterful integration of two simultaneous timelines. While the structure and storytelling are phenomenal, I'm absolutely in love with the dialogue! It's natural, snappy, compelling, and feels effortless, despite doing a lot of narrative work. There is such a profound sense of loneliness in these characters, who are each hiding so much of themselves and so willing to see others clearly... if only they had a route in. A truly unique and interesting work!

  • Aly Kantor: Feeling: An Emotional State or Reaction

    What a strange, sublime, and unexpectedly relatable little play! In a post-apocalyptic bunker, a mole person and an AI entity become unlikely roommates... but their unexpected "humanity" links them together in touching and surprising ways. This piece is perfect for our post-lockdown era. Without spoiling anything, I was particularly touched by an incredibly subtle, seemingly low-stakes stage direction near the end of the piece - it held a lot of power in this weird and wonderful theatrical world. I love a weird play, especially with genre elements, and this one hit the spot!

    What a strange, sublime, and unexpectedly relatable little play! In a post-apocalyptic bunker, a mole person and an AI entity become unlikely roommates... but their unexpected "humanity" links them together in touching and surprising ways. This piece is perfect for our post-lockdown era. Without spoiling anything, I was particularly touched by an incredibly subtle, seemingly low-stakes stage direction near the end of the piece - it held a lot of power in this weird and wonderful theatrical world. I love a weird play, especially with genre elements, and this one hit the spot!

  • Aly Kantor: Unknown Number

    TRULY SPOOKY! Who knew a play that offers no real answers could be so completely satisfying? The tiny, specific details throughout tell us everything we need to know about Samantha, casting just enough doubt to make us question her sanity. The slow, creepy escalations were truly chilling. Best of all, as a woman, I didn't need supernatural explanations - we've all been in a situation in which something felt wrong... but not "wrong enough" to be "worthy" of help. That added another layer of terror to the events of the play. This piece is super simple but still profoundly haunting!

    TRULY SPOOKY! Who knew a play that offers no real answers could be so completely satisfying? The tiny, specific details throughout tell us everything we need to know about Samantha, casting just enough doubt to make us question her sanity. The slow, creepy escalations were truly chilling. Best of all, as a woman, I didn't need supernatural explanations - we've all been in a situation in which something felt wrong... but not "wrong enough" to be "worthy" of help. That added another layer of terror to the events of the play. This piece is super simple but still profoundly haunting!

  • Aly Kantor: happy life

    It is always a gift to stumble across a truly bizarre, genuinely eccentric, sparklingly absurd, and downright memorable play. This is a strange, sexy, scary theatrical world, and I think I could spend a year trying to dig through the gooey, sticky, bloody, gelatinous mess it leaves behind. I love the way all the little stories, though profoundly sad, come together in the little container that is the apartment. I was hopeful at moments, but in the end, I'm feeling devastated and pensive and raw. I'll be thinking about this one for a long time. What an odd trip!

    It is always a gift to stumble across a truly bizarre, genuinely eccentric, sparklingly absurd, and downright memorable play. This is a strange, sexy, scary theatrical world, and I think I could spend a year trying to dig through the gooey, sticky, bloody, gelatinous mess it leaves behind. I love the way all the little stories, though profoundly sad, come together in the little container that is the apartment. I was hopeful at moments, but in the end, I'm feeling devastated and pensive and raw. I'll be thinking about this one for a long time. What an odd trip!

  • Aly Kantor: The Agency

    The conceit behind this play is fascinating, and paired with Lia Romeo's phenomenal execution, this piece resonates. I love the way it explores the types of "lesser grief" that we're all expected to live with - natural estrangement, breakups, and our own imagined futures. It made me think a lot about how every relationship is a sort of performance - what does it mean to be authentic in a dynamic world? The dialogue is spare, snappy, and effective, and the scenes consistently move at a fast and engaging clip. The ending is devastating and perfect. Painful, relatable, moving, and cathartic.

    The conceit behind this play is fascinating, and paired with Lia Romeo's phenomenal execution, this piece resonates. I love the way it explores the types of "lesser grief" that we're all expected to live with - natural estrangement, breakups, and our own imagined futures. It made me think a lot about how every relationship is a sort of performance - what does it mean to be authentic in a dynamic world? The dialogue is spare, snappy, and effective, and the scenes consistently move at a fast and engaging clip. The ending is devastating and perfect. Painful, relatable, moving, and cathartic.

  • Aly Kantor: Apiary

    What could be more harrowing OR more enticing than being completely known? In a society with a universal consciousness, that's merely the norm. In this fascinating short, one individual gets shut out of the "hive" and must contend with living with a unique disability in a society that won't accommodate her. I love how seamlessly it transitions into a romance - and how very romantic it is for someone to take the time to know you in a world in which that takes WORK. This one made me think, and my mind is bursting with the possibilities. A fascinating play!

    What could be more harrowing OR more enticing than being completely known? In a society with a universal consciousness, that's merely the norm. In this fascinating short, one individual gets shut out of the "hive" and must contend with living with a unique disability in a society that won't accommodate her. I love how seamlessly it transitions into a romance - and how very romantic it is for someone to take the time to know you in a world in which that takes WORK. This one made me think, and my mind is bursting with the possibilities. A fascinating play!

  • Aly Kantor: The Space Between Her Legs

    All good science fiction is political, but this is ridiculous! This play is a deranged typhoid mary story that reflects women's relationship with their bodies - and the government's relationship to that relationship. Plus: Rocket scientists who can't identify the cervix! Government agencies regulating the "space" between a woman's legs! It shouldn't work, and it shouldn't be relatable, but that's the magic of this play. The characters are all delightfully quirky and specific, keeping you laughing so hard you won't realize you're thinking. Plus, LOVE it when the climax is a climax! Pleasure...

    All good science fiction is political, but this is ridiculous! This play is a deranged typhoid mary story that reflects women's relationship with their bodies - and the government's relationship to that relationship. Plus: Rocket scientists who can't identify the cervix! Government agencies regulating the "space" between a woman's legs! It shouldn't work, and it shouldn't be relatable, but that's the magic of this play. The characters are all delightfully quirky and specific, keeping you laughing so hard you won't realize you're thinking. Plus, LOVE it when the climax is a climax! Pleasure wins! Fantastic!

  • Aly Kantor: Stage Mom

    I've taught musical theatre production classes for elementary students. I have met these moms. If they were as funny as Debbie and Terri, I might have lost less hair and sleep in the process of dealing with them!

    That said, this play is simultaneously realistic and heightened, with awful characters you'll absolutely love to hate - like everything I love about 'Dance Moms,' but full of perfect one-liners that had me CACKLING. It could have remained a character study, but it surprised me by ending on a very human, emotional note. These dance moms are still moms first! Fantastic!

    I've taught musical theatre production classes for elementary students. I have met these moms. If they were as funny as Debbie and Terri, I might have lost less hair and sleep in the process of dealing with them!

    That said, this play is simultaneously realistic and heightened, with awful characters you'll absolutely love to hate - like everything I love about 'Dance Moms,' but full of perfect one-liners that had me CACKLING. It could have remained a character study, but it surprised me by ending on a very human, emotional note. These dance moms are still moms first! Fantastic!

  • Aly Kantor: Octavia

    Yes! Take that deep, dark repression and turn it into queer horror! From the first image, there is a serious sense of dread and foreboding that only grows as the depraved dialogue (I LOVE Audrey's deliciously specific dialogic voice) brings the truth to light. From there, the delightfully effed-up scenario becomes downright riveting, with the power dynamic shifting and crumbling and rebuilding itself before our eyes. It is not at all romantic - it's just hungry and desperate from beginning to end, with the high stakes dictating every choice. This is creepy, uncomfortable, unsettling...

    Yes! Take that deep, dark repression and turn it into queer horror! From the first image, there is a serious sense of dread and foreboding that only grows as the depraved dialogue (I LOVE Audrey's deliciously specific dialogic voice) brings the truth to light. From there, the delightfully effed-up scenario becomes downright riveting, with the power dynamic shifting and crumbling and rebuilding itself before our eyes. It is not at all romantic - it's just hungry and desperate from beginning to end, with the high stakes dictating every choice. This is creepy, uncomfortable, unsettling, disturbing fun! Plus... poor Octavia!

  • Aly Kantor: Perseids

    What a sweet, super nerdy little love story! The quick and crackling dialogue moves swiftly, and you might even learn something new about astronomy or physics! The relationship between these two felt grounded and familiar, with enough foreshadowing that the subtle romantic twist felt thoroughly earned and rewarding. Best of all, it's easily producible - all you really need are two dynamic actors with... chemistry (pun intended). A really sweet, teeny-tiny romance!

    What a sweet, super nerdy little love story! The quick and crackling dialogue moves swiftly, and you might even learn something new about astronomy or physics! The relationship between these two felt grounded and familiar, with enough foreshadowing that the subtle romantic twist felt thoroughly earned and rewarding. Best of all, it's easily producible - all you really need are two dynamic actors with... chemistry (pun intended). A really sweet, teeny-tiny romance!