Sanctuary City

See it if Boy/Girl find cost of disappointment/uncertainty of tomorrow when immigration is daily concern. "I was going to join the world I live in."

Don't see it if Once actors give up trying to keep up the calisthenics of matching the changing flash cues on a pitch stage and sink into story, it's over.

Also "Don't ask for her to come up or for her to come down/Some people shouldn't marry for love/I'm the only option he has to start his life/I'm a citizen now, how can I help?/It's a twist-off, I didn't want any barriers or obstacles"... Read more Read less

See it if You like avant-garde theater. This show is certainly not traditional in anyway

Don't see it if You’re going to be bothered by a very weird and nontraditional beginning that turns into more of a traditional play as a piece moves along

Also This is another one of these plays that I didn’t love but not because it wasn’t well done but mainly because it’s not my type of theater. This is very nontraditional. The lighting and staging was interesting but I prefer more of a set.
I think some of the writing was over done.
60% of the way through it turned into more of a traditional piece of theater and at that point I started to enjoy it a lot more... Read more Read less

See it if Empathizing with undocumented youth with the urgency and struggle and life choices too hard for them. Great acting. 2 hours, no intermission

Don't see it if Despite the title making it sound current, it's set years ago where some immigration policies no longer apply. Disjointed at times.

Also Diversity: all people of color cast! About undocumented people.
Ticket from website for $31.75.... Read more Read less

See it if Beautifully performed intermissionless play in three parts, the first is staccato: two interwoven stories abbreviated by flashes of light

Don't see it if very long, with a repetitive almost poetic monologue between two characters standing on a pallet, in the last part a third actor joins

Also the first part takes place over a short period of time, the latter part jumps through years--where there is really dynamic action between characters.
A very heartfelt, poignant story about undocumented teenagers growing up through great difficulty and hardship, facing moral dilemmas about friendship and what it's worth. Good questions, but at times painfully tedious.
The lighting is a major character.... Read more Read less

See it if you want to experience a powerful, well-acted story of an undocumented young man and his friend since childhood who gets citizenship status.

Don't see it if you don't want to sit through a disjointed first part with repeated dialogue and non-linear storytelling. The second half is much better.

See it if you like stories with complex social situations in which plots are not always simple to follow.

Don't see it if small casts dealing with complex issues with dialogue which is not always straightforward.

Also This is a powerful play which is very relevant today and does try to describe the awful dilemmas which are faced by immigrants in America today. Sometimes the dialogue becomes repetitive and can be confusing as to where it is going but it is worth persevering to the end.... Read more Read less

See it if you connect with having a friend you would do anything for, and are interested in what stretching those bounds looks like.

Don't see it if you're looking for new; if you've been paying attention you know the horrors faced by immigrants. This doesn't go deeper.

Also the dialogue is very naturalistic. It hits a point where people's arguments are very circular and the audience was gaining no new information or understanding, but that felt very real to me; that's how people talk.
I am not an immigrant, but I heard people leaving the theater saying "That was my life"... Read more Read less

See it if First impression is an ode to Payne's "Constellations" but evolves. Decent story, no new insights, common youth & immigration problems.

Don't see it if Don't enjoy non-linear format or repetition by design. Play holds interest, but if aware of world it's just different way of writing it.

Also Realize author has a Pulitzer and real critics with scripts in hand may see genius in play. To me the aspects of the story were standard, including the things we're willing or not willing to do for love. If anything was new, it was the way the author put it together. For me that wasn't enough. The author succeeded in making her points, but they've been made many times.... Read more Read less

See it if You are interested in how young people's lives were affected by our immigration laws

Don't see it if You are put off by a non linear first act that requires you to figure out was is going on

See it if you are a fan of Martyna Majok's plays and want to see something that requires a bit of patience which eventually will be rewarding

Don't see it if you don't like minimal stagings and get confused by non-linear dialogue

Also Ande Dubus II would have loved this play. It was not an easy show to watch - the first part seemed fragmented and it wasn't until the finale before I understand why the playwright and director made choices they made - but the penultimate scene is a tour de force, sparkling with Majok's trademark flowing, intense dialogue and intense emotion delivered with small gestures and tiny remarks. The whole cast is really good - although it takes patience to get why the first part feels so awkward and fragmented when one first watches it. I'd gladly see it again to dive deeper into the strange dynamics between the two leads. Sanctuary City might be the least accessible play by this talented lady of the ones I have seen - but it is still very effective in presenting the heartbreaking drama in everyday people's lives, marked by big machinery that lets them slip through the cracks of a broken system and pushes them into unthinkable choices. A must-see if you know a Dreamer. Doubly so if you don't.... Read more Read less

See it if you like Majok's amazing plays, she is quite brilliant, like compelling stories and multiple layers in a story.

Don't see it if you want light fare, need an intermission -- it would have been very disruptive -- and don't care about immigration issues.

Also This is a very cleverly crafted and well-thought out play. It is not linear which only highlights how excellent the playwright is. The story, set a while ago, when immigration policies were different is compelling and tense. It is very good theater,, well acted and fortunately, staged very starkly which only lends to it.... Read more Read less

See it if You enjoy plays like Pass Over or Betrayal that employ non-linear time frame and frenetic broken up repetitive dialogue.

Don't see it if You have epilepsy and get seizures from lights. First half has frenetic and constant light changes. There is no intermission for 2hrs.

See it if You are interested in the life of DACA children growing up and surviving Interested in a contemporary drama in an innovative style

Don't see it if You are a bigoted, homophobic conservative You love Pence and Trump and Kushner You want a more traditional drama

See it if You want to see a struggle that is very real that is not often depicted onstage, you like innovative approaches to storytelling

Don't see it if You prefer all your stories be linear, you don't like plays about social issues that affect many people

See it if A small well crafted show. Episodic plot immigrant and identity themed. Love, forgiveness, family + friendships tested by politics +ambition

Don't see it if Men passionately kissing bothers you. Moral and political questions are not of interest. You don’t enjoy complexity and need a happy ending

See it if you want to see a powerful, relevant story about the hard choices one may have to make in life based on their given circumstances

Don't see it if dislike chewy, thought-provoking dramas where the dial is turned up gradually as the play builds. Loved the lighting design as well.

See it if You like boundary pushing theatre, experiments in nonlinear storytelling, intimate drama, hypernatural dialogue, contemporary design/staging

Don't see it if You find jumbled timeline plays difficult to follow, don't like 110 minute shows without intermission, are looking for something flashy