Recommended by Sean Swenson

  •

    pulls no punches. incredibly funny. some of the most interesting & complex roles for women i've seen in a while. even trevor, who in a worse version of this play would stay a one-dimensional buffoon, is rendered with such care and empathy (the kroger ham/roast beef monologues should be in the greater college audition canon imo.)

    pulls no punches. incredibly funny. some of the most interesting & complex roles for women i've seen in a while. even trevor, who in a worse version of this play would stay a one-dimensional buffoon, is rendered with such care and empathy (the kroger ham/roast beef monologues should be in the greater college audition canon imo.)

  •

    if you were a Beatle-obsessed child at any point in your life, you need to read this. if you care about fan culture & transformative work...READ THIS. the density of jokes per minute in this play is incredible, especially in a comedy with this much heart.

    if you were a Beatle-obsessed child at any point in your life, you need to read this. if you care about fan culture & transformative work...READ THIS. the density of jokes per minute in this play is incredible, especially in a comedy with this much heart.

  •

    upsetting, funny, true of heart. one of my all time favorite depictions of the psychic hell that is being a child.

    upsetting, funny, true of heart. one of my all time favorite depictions of the psychic hell that is being a child.

  •

    so smart and harrowing, incredibly well-researched without hitting you over the head with it, and goes places a lot of plays wouldn't go. treats its subjects with nuance and humanity without ever letting them off the hook. kind of like heroes of the fourth turning but with 0 sentimentality and 100% more perv shit (positive.)

    so smart and harrowing, incredibly well-researched without hitting you over the head with it, and goes places a lot of plays wouldn't go. treats its subjects with nuance and humanity without ever letting them off the hook. kind of like heroes of the fourth turning but with 0 sentimentality and 100% more perv shit (positive.)

  •

    Launched me right back to being a tween in an oversized hoodie, terrified to be sincere about anything, ESPECIALLY terrified to tell my friends that I loved them. The characters are so well observed and real. Sweet as Welch's fruit snacks but the ending absolutely gutted me.

    Launched me right back to being a tween in an oversized hoodie, terrified to be sincere about anything, ESPECIALLY terrified to tell my friends that I loved them. The characters are so well observed and real. Sweet as Welch's fruit snacks but the ending absolutely gutted me.

  • Sean Swenson: Six Inches Above the Knee by Sally Seitz
    “

    The best play about high school girls that I've ever read. Bar none.

    The best play about high school girls that I've ever read. Bar none.

    ”
  • Sean Swenson: Paul's Case by Zachary Cohn
    “

    Paul's Case is a masterclass in adapting for solo performance and one of my favorite plays by Zach that I've read. Dying to see this performed in Pittsburgh. Ideally in the real Carnegie Hall that the real Paul still haunts.

    Paul's Case is a masterclass in adapting for solo performance and one of my favorite plays by Zach that I've read. Dying to see this performed in Pittsburgh. Ideally in the real Carnegie Hall that the real Paul still haunts.

    ”
  • Sean Swenson: river phoenix fugue by Sarah Jae Leiber
    “

    Sarah's plays all take place in a reality that is a lot like ours, but slightly more demented and infinitely more tender. A play that also functions as a piece of film crit about idol worship, the transference that happens when we watch movies, and the female gaze (or at least Jake Gyllenhaal's mom's gaze.)

    Sarah's plays all take place in a reality that is a lot like ours, but slightly more demented and infinitely more tender. A play that also functions as a piece of film crit about idol worship, the transference that happens when we watch movies, and the female gaze (or at least Jake Gyllenhaal's mom's gaze.)

    ”
  • Sean Swenson: everyone in new york is beautiful by Beckett Flynn
    “

    this play is funny as fuck, full of bile, and made me want to throw my phone into the ocean

    this play is funny as fuck, full of bile, and made me want to throw my phone into the ocean

    ”
  • Sean Swenson: i can fix him by Sarah Jae Leiber
    “

    combining the baroque, blustery irony of THE SOPRANOS with the unhinged teen-girl fury of DANCE NATION, "i can fix him" is one of the few plays i've found that captures the tyranny and agony of a Tumblr-girl friend group. when your waking life seems to happen at school between the hours of 7:30 to 3:30 pm, how can you not project yourself into the high fantasy romcom narratives you have unfettered access to online? and how does that jibe with the messy reality of connecting with your fellow humans? killer play, killer ensemble--would be perfect for college students

    combining the baroque, blustery irony of THE SOPRANOS with the unhinged teen-girl fury of DANCE NATION, "i can fix him" is one of the few plays i've found that captures the tyranny and agony of a Tumblr-girl friend group. when your waking life seems to happen at school between the hours of 7:30 to 3:30 pm, how can you not project yourself into the high fantasy romcom narratives you have unfettered access to online? and how does that jibe with the messy reality of connecting with your fellow humans? killer play, killer ensemble--would be perfect for college students

    ”