Recommended by R. Eric Thomas

  • R. Eric Thomas: the pits by Abraham Johnson
    “

    Wow! This play is funny and brutal and tense and beautiful all at once. It is such a specific take on boyhood and friendship and adolescence and public education and the lives of kids today. The Pits is also so formally exciting, never resting on a trope of storytelling or theatricality but rather continuing to find new ways of showing us more about these three characters and this sometimes awful, sometimes exhilarating moment in their lives. This play is spectacular.

    Wow! This play is funny and brutal and tense and beautiful all at once. It is such a specific take on boyhood and friendship and adolescence and public education and the lives of kids today. The Pits is also so formally exciting, never resting on a trope of storytelling or theatricality but rather continuing to find new ways of showing us more about these three characters and this sometimes awful, sometimes exhilarating moment in their lives. This play is spectacular.

    ”
  • R. Eric Thomas: Down in the Holler by Val Dunn
    “

    A viscerally physical ghost story. It's incredibly sexy, incredibly funny, and incredibly human. Val has created an exceptional conduit for looking at one relationship and the universal feelings of love, growth, and loss. If you are producing exciting new plays and have dynamite female-identified performers who want some of the best material out there, this is the play for you.

    A viscerally physical ghost story. It's incredibly sexy, incredibly funny, and incredibly human. Val has created an exceptional conduit for looking at one relationship and the universal feelings of love, growth, and loss. If you are producing exciting new plays and have dynamite female-identified performers who want some of the best material out there, this is the play for you.

    ”
  • R. Eric Thomas: King of the Yees by Lauren Yee
    “

    A play that is bursting with life, comedy, heart, and high theatricality. Yee is totally in control at every moment despite some wild twists, turns, and leaps. This play is so satisfying and provides such a thoughtful and affirming consideration of the future and past of San Franscisco's Chinatown. It should go without saying that Yee makes the story of one people and one neighborhood highly specific and also deeply relatable. An incredibly satisfying and exciting play.

    A play that is bursting with life, comedy, heart, and high theatricality. Yee is totally in control at every moment despite some wild twists, turns, and leaps. This play is so satisfying and provides such a thoughtful and affirming consideration of the future and past of San Franscisco's Chinatown. It should go without saying that Yee makes the story of one people and one neighborhood highly specific and also deeply relatable. An incredibly satisfying and exciting play.

    ”
  • R. Eric Thomas: Primary User by Nate Eppler
    “

    A really well-executed rumination on grief and the way we claim ownership over memories. The dialogue is incredibly evocative and so economical. This is a play with a huge beating heart that asks difficult questions. Really gorgeous.

    A really well-executed rumination on grief and the way we claim ownership over memories. The dialogue is incredibly evocative and so economical. This is a play with a huge beating heart that asks difficult questions. Really gorgeous.

    ”
  • R. Eric Thomas: Babel by Jacqueline Goldfinger
    “

    Poetic and thoughtful and scarily prescient, this play tackles some of today's thorniest scientific and moral questions. Think of it like a particularly great episode of Black Mirror set on stage. What's so brilliant about this piece is that it takes a complex concept and makes it highly theatrical and easily staged. The conversations that Babel will provoke need to be had everywhere and Goldfinger removes any barriers in the way of getting it onstage and into the world. A really satisfying and well-constructed dark comedy.

    Poetic and thoughtful and scarily prescient, this play tackles some of today's thorniest scientific and moral questions. Think of it like a particularly great episode of Black Mirror set on stage. What's so brilliant about this piece is that it takes a complex concept and makes it highly theatrical and easily staged. The conversations that Babel will provoke need to be had everywhere and Goldfinger removes any barriers in the way of getting it onstage and into the world. A really satisfying and well-constructed dark comedy.

    ”