←Recommendations of The Killing Fields

A phenomenal riff on the Greeks that will stay with me for a long time. A play where the setting is as alive and vibrant as any character. Can't wait to see what a lighting and sound designer can do to create the chilling tone of this play. The characters here are written perfectly with their Greek counterparts while also giving them their own personality and agency. A harrowing look at the drug epidemic of the late 1980s and just how many lives that can be impacted by it.

I saw this well-spun play as a staged reading at the Valdez Theatre Conference in 2019, and it moved me to unstoppable tears. The Killing Fields has stuck with me for years in the back of my mind, and I cannot recommend it enough. If you are compelled by Greek Tragedy but wish to expect it through the stakes of today, then please give this a read (and a production!!).

This is a brilliantly crafted modern adaptation of the Agamemnon tragedy. Pearson skillfully weaves the ancient and contemporary, exploring the generational impacts of addiction, political injustice, and family loyalty. The story of Cly is compelling and heart-wrenching. Pearson’s adaptation does more than just re-imagine a classic—it forces us to confront the broader social consequences of drug addiction as a systemic issue, rather than a personal failing.

This is a great modern adaptation of the tragedy of Agamemnon. Set in East Oakland after the Reagan Administration's brutal policies have decimated Black communities, the play forces us to confront drug addiction not as an individual failing, but as a social problem that has community-wide and intergenerational consequences.

An adaptation with real purpose and voice. As explicitly called for in the rich stage directions, this work can be both grounded and surreal as it melds ancient and contemporary worlds. The themes are classical and urgent. I can think of few analogies more suitable for an inescapable family curse than addiction and political injustice. Ambitious, and each divergence from the original text proves enlightening.

This is one of my favorite Greek tragedies. The original Iphigenia feels like a play about women trying to feel like they have agency in a world where they clearly have none. I love how this adaptation plays with the same ideas of free will and where our destiny ultimately comes from. It's a story about a family, but you get constant reminders of the policy decisions that lead this family here. I highly recommend giving this script a read!

A haunting recreation of Greek tragedy, THE KILLING FIELDS brilliantly recasts the Reagans and their war on drugs as the "Gods" directing the fates of this play's characters, who can never be sure how much control they have over their own destinies. From an enigmatic and somewhat sinister Cassandra to an exhausted and misjudged Clytemnestra, the cast is rich and their relationships are layered intricately onto the existing family dramas of Greek myth. Needs to be staged.

An elegiac and worthwhile mediation on the nature of fate, transplanted into a community and time period where the people had little freedom to escape the cycle of violence and addiction. Pearson weaves classical and modern language together into a play where being understood is nearly as difficult as saying the right thing.

The community of national & local readers for the 44th annual Bay Area Playwrights Festival enthusiastically recommends THE KILLING FIELDS as a Semi-Finalist this season at Playwrights Foundation out of 755 plays. We were deeply moved by the artistic merits of the structure and character development. We're compelled by the play's promise, as it draws parallels between intentional oppression in Greek mythology and our current world. We hope this play is widely read, finds dedicated collaborators, and moves swiftly towards production. #BAPF2021

A heartbreaking re-envisioning of the Iphigenia cycle, juxtaposing the Reagan-era "War on Drugs" with deeply-felt family drama. Pearson combines comedy, tragedy, story, song, dance - using the Greek form to great effect - twisting it tightly with our current incongruities. Language breaks away into lyrical poetry and swings into easy vernacular with breathtaking facility. Deft pacing and a driving plot leave us few outlets, driving us to an inevitable outcome. A beautiful, challenging new work, creating a dynamic ensemble for the ages.