“Electric… a quiet triumph of intimacy, memory and liberation.” – Indulge
“Expertly deft, emotional, and nuanced… [an] intensely empathetic, collective experience… This work, from page to stage, is thorough and thoughtful, and a passionate example of the great power of our stories told in our theaters… The play transitions seamlessly between the surreal and deeply visceral to witty and satirical.” – Broadway World
“Watching the play’s two actors… ride through waves of humor, joy, sadness and regret in concert with one another for 80 minutes straight is like witnessing the world’s most beautiful and riveting chess match. It’s a feat… I would be remiss if I didn’t mention how delightful and funny this show is, with standout moments of physical comedy and some taut and witty repartee.” – Art ATL
“Radiant and striking, Furlough’s Paradise proves the unstoppable power of a.k. payne’s pen… [the play] moves gracefully, both in moments of silence as well as in scenes of the cousins’ biting banter.” – Daily Bruin
“A small play that expands outward to the social and metaphysical worlds… This lyrical drama… floats at times like a movement-theater piece reaching for the heavens. The acting is grounded in realism but the writing refuses to keep the characters under lock and key.” – Los Angeles Times
“A quiet triumph of intimacy, memory and liberation… playwright a.k. payne distills a lifetime of memory, hurt and kinship into 75 electric minutes. Winner of the 2024 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, this two-hander strips away pretense and performance, laying bare the tangle of identity, class and familial reckoning through a sharply wrought reunion between two cousins shaped – and separated – by fate.” – Indulge