←Recommendations of The Innkeepers

I love it when a play takes advantage of being a play. The set evokes both a warm and comfortable inn and then shifts when it becomes an enclosed space. Characters embody others and old versions of themselves. And even the ending further engages the audience's imagination while also concluding the story. So many parts of this play exemplify theatricality.

This is special script, weaving together your favorite elements from mysteries, thrillers, memory plays, and tragedies. It's crafted specifically for the stage, giving directors and actors plenty to play with and decide for themselves. The non-stop pacing never lets up in the best way. The ending rattled me. Images from this one will be with me for a while.

There's something about a script that just puts you on the rollercoaster, locks you in, and takes you on a ride. This is one of those plays. A revenge narrative with lots of twists, it provides the same catharsis as a narrative like "Promising Young Woman" while asking deep questions about justice and who it is for. This play is punchy, angry, and claustrophobic in the best way.

Nothing could have prepared me for the places this play went. Parsi masterfully unravels this story as the lies each of these characters hold onto fall apart one by one. A play about a grieving mother who only wants answers. A play about the lengths parents will go to for their children. A play about things never seeming as they really are. A stunning ensemble piece with great roles for actors of color. Nothing happens coincidentally. Nothing feels sloppy or like it is happening only to serve the plot. Everything is believable for these characters.

Parsi's script begins with an incredible premise, plays out the drama with measured restraint, and leads gravely to an unforgettable ending. The interweave between how the truth can be wielded – as a weapon against consequences but also as a shield to safeguard memory – is handled deftly, in ways that will keep audiences debating long after the curtain. Shockingly tense just to read, and likely even more so to watch.

I have to admit, sometimes when I see a play is pushing 100 pages, I think to myself, "couldn't this be cut down to a tight 80?" But when the play is as expertly crafted, deeply compelling, and wonderfully tense as this one, the page count flies by. A brilliant meditation on constructed truths and the realities we create for ourselves to get by, written by an author in full command of their craft. It's a beautiful thing to behold.

The community of national & local readers for the 44th annual Bay Area Playwrights Festival enthusiastically recommends THE INNKEEPERS as a Semi-Finalist this season at Playwrights Foundation out of 755 plays. We were deeply moved by the artistic merits of writer's skill with unfolding the mystery. We're compelled by the play's promise, as it explores the the lengths love can drive someone to find justice. We hope this play is widely read, finds dedicated collaborators, and moves swiftly towards production. #BAPF2021

Playwrights Foundation enthusiastically recommends this play, THE INNKEEPERS, as a Semi-Finalist for the Bay Area Playwrights Festival 2020. We were moved by the quality of the writing and the relevant and compelling themes that spoke to the mission of our festival. It excelled in a competitive process of 735 plays submitted this year and rose to the top after a six month long process discussing its merits with both national and local Bay Area readers, and we hope it moves swiftly towards production.