February NPX Reading List - Week 1

This month, I’m reading a play every day! You can follow along on my Instagram to see the plays I read every day and a little info about the playwright.

This week, I sincerely loved every play I read! So many of them inspired and challenged me. I would love for others to read them this month so I have people to talk to about them!

FEBRUARY 1: Listen for the Light by Kara Lee Corthron

I cannot recommend this brilliant play enough. Moments of theatrical beauty abound in this play about our relationship with the Divine and with each other. It would be stunning to see in production.

FEBRUARY 2: Rhymes-N-Reasons by Elisa Cornish

A beautiful musical about the pain of loss and the comfort of community.

FEBRUARY 3: from by Nikki Brake-Silla

Trauma haunts the family whose lives we follow over decades in Brake-Silla's brief but powerful play, "from." It asks timeless questions -- what is the root of violence? nature or nurture? -- and offers us no simple answers. It is hauntingly beautiful; I would love to see this in production.

FEBRUARY 4: one week in spring by Kristiana Rae Colon

This play blew my mind. I had to remind myself to slow down and enjoy the gorgeous poetry of it -- but I was so desperate to know what would happen next. And it is gorgeous: the entire play is a poem of aching beauty and haunting imagery. These characters are so complex, and their relationships morph in such surprising ways. I can't wait to see a production of this someday.

FEBRUARY 5: For the Love of Lina by Magaly Colimon

FOR THE LOVE OF LINA is a super enjoyable read -- the characters are deep and interesting and their relationships are complex. It asks a dark question about the motives a powerful man may have that would lead him to commit atrocities. The ending is magical, fantastical, and redemptive.

FEBRUARY 6: But What Am I? by Vinecia Coleman

A spectacular play about grieving and coming clean. BUT WHAT AM I? asks the question: do your mistakes make you any less good?, and it offers no easy answers. Lovely dialogue and lovely stage directions set in the context of heartbreaking revelations. This would be a joy for three actors to perform.

FEBRUARY 7: Antony and Cleopatra: Couples Therapy by Andrea Coleman

I knew from the moment I laid eyes on this play that I was going to love it, and it did not disappoint at all. I loved every moment of this short piece. It's punchy and funny, a real treat to read. I think actors would have an awesome time with this script.