A girl made of glass. Gods and murders. A pack of ghosts. And a secret in a bottle. A kaleidoscope of stories, each short play is a testament to how playwright Caryl Churchill has “remade the landscape of contemporary drama—and earned herself a place among the greats” (The Guardian). James Macdonald directs these wildly inventive new works.
These four servings of Churchill are staged extremely well by Macdonald in the varying styles they require. The ten-member company headed by O’Connell and Conlee very naturally enact tricky material. Excellent support is provided by the designers. Miriam Buether packs surprising angles in the scenery. Enver Chakartash fashions clothes that look true to character. Isabella Byrd creates lighting in many moods. Sound designer Bray Poor contributes subtle effects, bright music and clear reinforcement. With this inventive and cogent production of Churchill’s most recent plays, the Public Theater honors a remarkable writer whose mind-bending works have electrified its seasons on and off for nearly half a century.
For sheer fertility of imagination, there may be no dramatist writing today to match Caryl Churchill. Across a distinguished career spanning more than five decades, the British playwright has written about a vast array of subjects, from the evils of colonialism to the global financial system to the morality of human cloning. And with each work she seems, astonishingly, to find a fresh form, a newly minted theatrical vessel for her ideas. The four short plays currently on view at the Public Theater reveal the writer at her most economical—her works have become more concentrated in recent years—and often at her most provocatively enigmatic. These are plays that startle with their strangeness, but also leave you with much to ponder.
| 2025 | Off-Broadway |
Public Theater American Premiere Production Off-Broadway |
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Featured Performance in a Play | Deirdre O'Connell |
| 2025 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Lighting Design of a Pl | Isabella Byrd |
| 2025 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Scenic Design of a Play | Miriam Buether |
| 2025 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Sound Design of a Play | Bray Poor |
Videos