Altered Minds

See it if You really enjoy short one act plays knowing that you’re probably not going to like all of them

Don't see it if You don’t want to sit through nine one act plays that last approximately 2 hours and 40 minutes

Also During the curtain speech they said they had hundreds of submissions and these were the nine best? The acting was pretty solid across-the-board but most of the writing was not very good. My biggest issue was the length of the play. I thought the crew did a really nice job with all the set changes. If the set changes took approximately 60 seconds every time they waited an additional 60 seconds for absolutely no reason before they started the next play. Here is my score of each individual play:
Into the arms 55
Cross roads of the world 30
My 3 o’clock 9
Hang-ups. 15
It gets better 12
Hero. 19
Phone friend. 75
Lunatic 45
Dragged. 32... Read more Read less

See it if You want to see a collection of short plays dealing with mental health issues. You are comfortable seeing plays about mental health issues.

Don't see it if You don't like short plays. You are not comfortable seeing performances about mental health issues.

See it if you appreciate a collection of short vignettes regarding mostly dark themes (suicide, drug/alcohol addiction, depression, PTSD), some humor

Don't see it if you cannot sit for 2.5 hours in uncomfortable seats in small black box theatre for many short plays of varying quality, some slow-no climax

Also Given the large number of play submissions to the call for short works about mental illness, I was surprised that not all were stand outs, but several were excellent.... Read more Read less

See it if you want to see a number of short pieces dealing with diverse aspects of mental illness

Don't see it if you want to see pieces fully developed and of universally good quality.

Also this type of production requires a producer and dramaturg that are completely hands on and willing to be ruthless with the selected authors. You can't have the kind of unevenness in writing that is displayed here and expect to hold an audience.

The best pieces are "Crossroads of the World" and "Lunatic" which both have interesting takes on which character is actually suffering from mental illness.

"Phone Friends" explores an unlikely relationship between a widower and a comic. An exploration of mutual loneliness and guilt - charming, but not very realistic. It is on the second tier of these pieces.

"Into the Arms" and "Hero" should be the most poignant pieces, so when they fall flat the fall is greater. The "Into the Arms" protagonist is completely self-absorbed and despite probably naturally caused depression is unsympathetic. The protagonist in "Hero" shows tremendous scars from his time in Iraq, but his sense of entitlement is ugly.

The balance of pieces are forgettable.... Read more Read less

See it if You like some interesting short plays about people’s emotional problems with some good actors.

Don't see it if You don’t like serious plays.

See it if you want to see mental illness issues dealt with in a sometimes poignant, sometimes humorous, sometimes uncomfortable way.

Don't see it if mental illness is a trigger or you don't like seeing several short plays at one sitting

See it if You like short plays about mental health.

Don't see it if You are afraid of triggers although these plays were mostly non-confrontational.

See it if U enjoy well acted thought provoking vignettes about various mental health issues and how we relate to them.

Don't see it if U prefer a cohesive story line or musicals. It was a bit long but I don’t know what I would have cut out.

See it if You are interested in issues of mental health and an exploration through different perspectives. Much needed topic.

Don't see it if You are triggered by talk of suicide, anxiety, PTSD and addiction. If you dont enjoy small theater shows.

See it if you are interested in 9 short plays about mental health. I definitely liked some more than others. Some where in my opinion outstanding!

Don't see it if you are triggered by serious mental health issues or brief nudity. Or if you prefer 1 play as opposed to 9 short plays. Also, it's 2.5 hours

See it if you are interested in a well-acted series of short plays on various aspects of mental illnesses including how people react to them.

Don't see it if you're offended by nudity or if the various mental illnesses will trigger something in your own psyche during this lengthy 2+ hour show.

Also Although my background is corporate management/consulting, I do have a clinical social work masters degree and the subject of mental illnesses has always been of interest to me. Personally, I loved this show which is composed of nine (9) short plays about mental illness which include but are not limited to suicide, bereavement, PTSD related to the Iraq war, homelessness, therapy, and so on. In general, the characters are well developed despite the brevity of each play. I found myself absorbed in the various plays and, despite the play being over 2 hours long, I felt that the time moved quickly. Some of the plays were obviously more compelling than others.

The actors were excellent.The scenarios were realistic. There were elements of humor interspersed with the sadness that unfortunately accompanies mental illness.

This play is not for everyone as it can be depressing for those with related triggers. I would go to see this play again with friends if it wasn't closing this weekend.... Read more Read less

See it if you have a short attention span. This is a collection of short 1-act plays centered around a similar theme and very well written and acted.

Don't see it if you prefer a single story told over 1-2 hours or if you prefer Broadway caliber production values. This is a small production well acted.

See it if You want to see different short plays that touch on mental health issues

Don't see it if you don't want to deal with depressing topics

Also Plays were about 10-20 minutes long

See it if You are interested in exploring various mental health issues, like short plays (around ten minutes long)

Don't see it if You dislike dark subjects like suicide and death

Also Some of the short plays were mildly humorous, however a few were very depressing. The entire production was about two and one-half hours long with a necessary intermission.... Read more Read less

See it if you’re interested in mental health issues explored in a few short plays, credibly, powerfully, and without redundancy.

Don't see it if serious subjects aren’t you.

Also The theatre director selected these nine brief dramas from 900 submissions — a Tony level feat. Kudos!... Read more Read less

See it if If you like thought provoking plays

Don't see it if You like characters to stay in character

See it if you had experienced depression or know someone who had depression so you can relate more on each stories.

Don't see it if you are expecting a well budgeted production, if you are looking for a great sound engineer and lighting.

See it if You're interested in plays about mental health.

Don't see it if You dislike short plays and/or are easily triggered by the topics of PTSD, depression, suicide, addiction and other mental health problems.

Also This is a long grouping of plays delving into one or more aspects of mental health. The tone is pretty dark for most of the stories, which could be hard for some audience members. The acting was very good for most of the shorts, with some actors playing roles in multiple plays. The biggest problem I had with this production was actually the theater it was shown in. I went to the first show, which was almost a full house and every move/exhalation people made, you could easily hear and feel if they were sitting in the same row or immediately in front or behind you. The distraction of the audience sometimes detracted from the seriousness of what was going on onstage.... Read more Read less

See it if If you are interested in issues around mental health, this is a collection of well written short pieces with a great cast

Don't see it if If you don't have the attention span required to sit through a lot of short pieces - it's a bit long.

See it if If you are interested in issues around mental health, good acting, and important topic to discuss

Don't see it if Depression & suicide aren"t topics that you want to see reenacted on stage. You want a light fluffy feelgood musical.

Also The show was composed of 9 plays- some were better than others. It is a very long show... Read more Read less

See it if You are interested in mental health issues

Don't see it if You’re looking for happy thoughtless shows

See it if You enjoy seeing original plays, you care about mental health issues, you love great acting in a minimalist venue

Don't see it if You're not willing to see some mediocre plays among the excellent ones, you care about spectacle

Also There were some truly brilliant performances and some excellent stories. However, it was an uneven evening of theatre, as some of the scripts were weak.... My favorite was "Phone Friend" about a bereaved man who dials a wrong number and finds a sympathetic ear on the other end. Both the script and the performers were so excellent, that I started to feel like a voyeur into these two people's lives, and I almost forgot I was watching a play! If the entire evening lived up to that play, I would have scored it in the 90s....... Read more Read less