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Claudia Haas

Recommended by Claudia Haas

  • The Wish Stick by Tim Bohn
    17 Feb. 2018
    “ I just love this play. I love that Steve believes in this voodoo stick from New Orleans. I love that he wishes someone who loved him would love him and that he'd be great at his job. And I so love that he thinks these wishes came true because of a stick. The play is a smile; romance runs through it's veins with a tablespoon of silliness. The play is perfect for any short play festival but especially good for a festival celebrating love. ”
  • RAILWAY CHILDREN by Sylvia Ashby
    12 Feb. 2018
    “ It's hard to adapt a turn-of-the-last-century children's book in a way that is accessible to today's youth. Ashby does a splendid job of streamlining the book and focusing on the adventure. The play moves seamlessly and effortlessly from scene to scene helping to engage a young audience. The characters have heart, humor and sparkle. (I particularly loved the "mining" scene.) Young audiences will relate to the siblings plight of sudden poverty and the mysterious disappearance of their father. And they will root for all of them. ”
  • DINO KID: A MONOLOGUE WITH T-REX, STEGOSAURUS, BRONTOSAURUS, TRICERATOPS AND A FEW OTHER DINOSAURS by Asher Wyndham
    10 Feb. 2018
    “ A little boy sets up his dinosaurs on a table, dreams of living with the dinosaurs and then breaks you. This monologue is hugely theatrical and the effects of bullying are done without ramming a message down your throat. Instead, Wyndham shows you the aftermath. It's highly effective and should go to drama teachers everywhere. One of the things theatre-for-youth does is foster empathy. This monologue does exactly that. ”
  • KODACHROME by Adam Szymkowicz
    10 Feb. 2018
    “ There is an undercurrent of longing that permeates this play. It drew me in immediately and I couldn't leave. It has some elements of Under Milkwood - knowing what the characters say and then knowing their thoughts. And when there was silence, it spoke volumes. Love-lost, new-as-spring-love, fractured-love, wishful love, terrified-love, forever-love are so poignantly explored, audiences will relate, care and be moved. It's a beautiful ensemble piece. ”
  • COMPLIMENTARY WIFI by Rachael Carnes
    10 Feb. 2018
    “ If you've ever been terrorized by a minibar in a luxury hotel or wondered about the cleanliness of those pillows, this is your play. The play seems simple: an anniversary night in a luxury hotel. Do you whoop it up for all its worth trying out every so-called freebee (complimentary wifi, plush robe, body pillows)? You know this couple. You know they've been together for many years. Their intimacies, frustrations and declarations as they jumped subjects and emotions were a treat. You have to love the ending with the goldfish. Read it. Produce it. ”
  • Cowgirls Don't Ride Zebras by Chris Leyva
    8 Feb. 2018
    “ You have to love a play where there's a velociraptor in the zoo. And zebras read and hippos skate - slowly. This is one huge smile of a play. From the opening where Penny has a fishbowl on her head so - of course she is an astronaut - to the paper cowgirl hat - so of course she is a cowgirl - through the romp at the zoo. The play celebrates imagination and books without nary a preachy word. The play moves fast and young audiences (and their chaperones) will be delighted. ”
  • SUPER-DEATH! by Emma Goldman-Sherman
    8 Feb. 2018
    “ Edward is looking at his identical twin brother who is dying. Soon. Can the stakes get any higher? And his brother, Luke, is in a Spiderman costume complete with a superpower he wants to give his brother. The play works on every level - heartfelt without being sentimental, honest without being brutal and generous of spirit. Loss, letting go, forgiveness - such huge human conditions are handled with respect and love. I would love to see this in a festival. The audience will be richer for having met Edward and Luke. ”
  • ELLA-BELLA, THE BOOK FAIRY: A CHILDREN'S LIBRARIAN MONOLOGUE by Asher Wyndham
    7 Feb. 2018
    “ I remember my first library card at age five, Wyndham brings alive the likely librarian who gave it to me. Do they have an agenda? Legos meet intellect meet pop culture in this play that may be every librarian’s nightmare and truism. Beautiful monologue for our American times. ”
  • The Team by Michael Kras
    7 Feb. 2018
    “ A play that fully captures the pressures of teens (especially senior high school students) where everything depends on their grades and/or sports accomplishments. Female-centric, focusing on a basketball team, the play beautifully shows us their individual needs versus their collective needs. All of the five characters have something critical at stake. While the play focuses on Bobbie and her grief, we find that all of the characters have huge challenges as well as baggage and basketball could be the brass ring. Brutal realities are exposed. Poetic and raw, it’s a beauty for female actresses. ”
  • Annie Jump and the Library of Heaven by Reina Hardy
    7 Feb. 2018
    “ This is one smartly written play for young audiences. I love the whole lot of science with sprinkles of interstellar magic and sic fi combination. It made me want to perch myself in Strawberry, KS and watch the Perseids meteor shower. The relationship between Annie and her father - the complications, the silliness and then the poignancy - beautiful captured the delicate nature of a challenging relationship. All of the characters are rich and all a wee bit touched with magic and sweet madness. Would love to see this produced (Children's Theatre, Mpls, please?). ”

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