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Jarred Corona

Recommended by Jarred Corona

  • Golden Kiss by John Busser
    23 Jan. 2023
    “ Jesus Christ. And I mean that as a compliment. Breakups suck no matter the reason for the most part. But Golden Kiss? It doesn't suck at all (though, for a horrifying moment, you think it might, in another meaning of the word). It's a gilded, glorious short play. Please read. If you're like me, you'll shake your head, go WTF, and smile all the while. ”
  • A Conversation About Mom by John Busser
    23 Jan. 2023
    “ In life, unlike theatre, we rarely get those arguments where we poke each other's insecurities in just the right ways to facilitate character growth, where we find a narrative arc that might satisfy anyone at all. When we consume art, in some way, we know this. This is artifice. In this lovely play with a twist I genuinely was surprised by, John Busser points that out. Plays are practice of the imagination. We use them, often unaware. He whispers, with a gentle poke, "Practice is grand, but find your courage. The play is ending, and so soon will life." ”
  • TARTARUS by Scott Sickles
    8 Dec. 2022
    “ There would have been a time, months ago, perhaps, though time generally eludes me, that I would recommend this with simple enjoyment for the horror aspect - the dark discomfort similar to a Criminal Minds episode. It's well-written and dark and haunting. But I think, as conservative fear-mongering over us queers removes its half-hearted civility mask, it becomes something more. It becomes pushback. Reality check. Of course, it serves as that outside the lens of Right Now. Yet still. Danger comes for children. It always has and will. And often, it's protected by righteous tears of conservative bigotry. Do read. ”
  • LULLABY PLAY (a liminal medea) by Aly Kantor
    8 Dec. 2022
    “ There is a stage direction at the end of this adaptation that holds all the sad beauty of the final song of Hadestown, that holds every bit of hope... but then it tells us to do more than hope. You likely know the story of Medea. But until you know Kantor's Medea, I think you've yet to know it at all. This is a stunning adaptation from the lullabies to the movement and dialogue to the final, brilliant turn. ”
  • Broken Arrow by Timothy Henderson Jr.
    16 Jul. 2022
    “ Well-crafted, fun, and more clever by half than it first appears, Henderson's BROKEN ARROW is a wonderful read. Even if the allegory is ignored, the story of two older boys using and abusing two others to obtain a pointless, horrifying artifact is enthralling. When we think about politics and hard power, we tend to talk in these overly heady ways, praising great maneuvers and power plays. But Henderson is here to remind us - our wants to control and harm others is the vindictive selfishness of children on a playground. If we don't grow up, we're dead. Highly enjoyable read. ”
  • So You Think You Can Stay? (America's Most Talked About Game Show) by Ariel Cipolla
    5 Jul. 2022
    “ This show is rough to read. And that's a compliment. I know they're much different tonally and content-wise, but the more I read, the more I remembered how I felt when I watched the harrowing film "Come and See." Watching hurts, but you have to. And you need to feel the pain. To feel the hopelessness. To be consumed in the darkness. Because how the fuck else are you going to step out and actually do something about it? It also makes me think of "The Boys" show--Homelander and America must be siblings. She's an excellent acting showcase. Great work. ”
  • Art Duty by Daniel Prillaman
    5 Jul. 2022
    “ The sudden violence in this piece makes me think of the excellent film Children of Men. The comedy reminds me of Urinetown. But this play is uniquely its own. I would never think a tense dystopian piece would suddenly mention vore--that sent me cackling. Prillaman is a master craftsman, deftly weaving tension and release at all the best moments, never letting you guess when the comedy might turn explosive or devastating. Art, even vapid, stupid art, can save us. It's a respite from that desire to die. What lengths do we go to protect it? To admire it? To live? ”
  • juice by Mackenzie Raine Kirkman
    5 Jul. 2022
    “ Goddamn. There are certain times when you read a work and you think, "Goddamn." Then you realize, maybe there is something holy here. Something otherworldly and damning. If Hell is other people, then surely salvation is, too. We are saved and damned in revolving turns.

    This is one hell of a play. I want to see it. I want to direct it. I want to act in it. I want to sit with someone else and simply talk about it. I want to extract hope from its despair. I'll likely read it more in the coming years. Simply wonderful. Bravo. ”
  • The Library Will Reopen on Monday by DC Cathro
    28 May. 2022
    “ The library will reopen on Monday, because the world needs books.
    The schools will reopen next week, because children need to learn.
    The business will reopen in a few days, because the rich need their money.
    The movie theatre will reopen in a month, because that new Marvel film comes out.

    It reopens. We will continue with life because we cannot give into the overwhelming despair and fear. On it goes. On it goes.

    The Congress will reopen in August because they want to rest.

    Oh, how this country needs to change.

    A wonderful short by DC Cathro. Bravo. ”
  • Nine Miles to Maryville by Joe Swenson
    28 May. 2022
    “ I had chills. Swenson does a remarkable thing here, showcasing how politicians are not spinal creatures. They are pushed in the directions they are pushed, and when they resist, even the slightest increase in pressure from those they tend to listen to is enough to nearly make them fold in entirety. Right up until the end, I read this as a play of holy judgement. A man, unknowing, is held in trial but some holy revenger who offers chance at redemption and change before biting with the harsh, true sentence. A wonderful play to showcase that bloody truth. ”

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