←Recommendations of Postpartum

Wow, talk about intense. Jillian Blevins just creeped me the hell out with this short piece that takes a mother's bond with her child and practically stitches them together. In a brilliant move, we are never privy to what baby looks like, but something tells me, it can't be good. Husband just wants to help. Looks like he may have just become a "helping"! (And so much for my Tales From the Crypt final line!) This is deeply disturbing, oh-so compelling and would freak an audience out. Wonderful writing here.

This is a really gripping piece of subtly building dread. A postpartum nightmare come to chilling life. The authentic bond between these parents makes the ultimate horror of their situation all the more devastating.

Dark, creepy, and yet plays on real world fears. This is what horror does best, and Blevins has created a real winner. Using just sounds, two characters, and a bit of atmosphere, you have a great short play for the spooky season. Would love to read more plays like this!

Most of POSTPARTUM by Jillian Blevins is a tense, brilliantly executed two-character scene. THAT IS SO OMINOUS. Something is awfully wrong, but where is the bad coming from? Has MOTHER gone insane, from lack of sleep? Is HUSBAND jealous of baby and up to no good? Psychological threats abound. But what fuels this gorgeously-written, shocking piece is how well MOTHER and HUSBAND communicate and care for one another. By the end I’m pulling for them unlike anything I can remember. Big chills up the spine. The work of Arthur Machen comes to mind. Literary horror at its finest!

As a big fan of the creepy kid horror story, I salute Jillian Blevins for taking on the fears so well known to postpartum parents.. POSTPARTUM is an urban retelling of the monster in the cradle tale, complete with haunting baby monitor, and a touch of John Wyndham's creepy MIDWICH CUCKOOS. I can't imagine a situation better designed to send audiences home trying not to think about the perils of parenthood.

Horror works best when it plays on real-life fears, and boy does Jillian Blevins understand that here, as she takes the anxiety, exhaustion, depression, and loss-of-self common to new motherhood and plays them out to a terrifying and heartbreaking extreme. Harrowing.

Horror is such a hard genre to tackle on stage, but Jillian Blevins never backs down from a challenge! Postpartum is a brilliant 15-minute piece bringing to life every parent’s primal fear—something is wrong with that baby.

A super psychological thriller grounded in a very real reality for many new mothers. A mother knows... And Belvins captures the isolation and helplessness of a new father, as well. And then, things just get weird. Great lighting design and sound design opportunities for this short horror. Brava, playwright!

This bone chilling horror piece is a true nightmare to behold. The very real and tangible dread that can seize a parent mixed with a supernatural dread that resides in the pit of our stomach. A perfect stage horror.