She Kills Monsters: Virtual Realms

by Qui Nguyen

Genres: Plays

74 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2020

Reviews

[Aaron Piccirillo · Rating 4 out of 5]

“But... this story remains. And isn’t that essentially all that life is- a collection of stories?”

actual rating 4.5/5

i was excited to read this show because i’ve heard a lot about it and i was interested to see how they were going to work in the virtual online direction to the show. overall, i really enjoyed the story and the journey of the characters throughout the show and the message it has about life. i will say that i did feel like the pacing was kind of rushed in that everything happened so quickly and at points the character discoveries seemed to happen just because the playwright needed them to happen to move the story along instead of it feeling organic. i don’t know if that’s because it’s an online adaptation of the show or if that’s how the physical show is paced. besides that the show is really great.

[Rebekah · Rating 1 out of 5]

The concept is interesting and I’m sure it would look cool on stage/virtually, BUT there is some ableism in the play that I could not look past. My sister is working on this at school (staged college version, not virtual but this is the one I found online for free); she is disabled and she felt this play was very hurtful. At the end of the show, it is revealed that one of the characters uses crutches and has CP, but for the majority of the play her fantasy counterpart does not. It is said that this is “wish fulfillment.” While in the fantasy world, pretty much every other character gets to be themselves entirely. It is not seen as an unfair thing that she would want to change herself, while the others want to stay the same—just be able to be open about their identities, such as being lgbtq. I am tired of this trope that the disabled character wants nothing more in their lives than to be not disabled anymore. It is true to some peoples’ experience, but mostly because of societal attitudes and how the world is largely inaccessible and unfair to them. Disabled people have deep inner lives and complex desires. We need to see more of that on stage and screen. My sister should not have to work on plays while at school that perpetuate negative attitudes about her community.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Play. 8F, 3M, 1Either.
Setting: Virtual.
Props: Minimal.
Sound: Background sounds (especially upbeat "fight music")
Lights: N/A.
Costumes: Fantasy costumes and modern.

This is based off the play She Kills Monsters, rewritten for a virtual setting. It follows Agnes, who has lost her sister Tilly. Agnes discovers a D&D campaign Tilly wrote and plays it to learn more about her sister.

I am a BIG FAN of She Kills Monsters (I saw it on stage in 2018), so I was thrilled to see it adapted for virtual, especially in the time of COVID. It's modern, the characters are fleshed-out, the writing is clever and entertaining.

I have few qualms with this show. I like the live version better, but I like live theatre better in general.

Warnings:
Sex: None.
Violence: Fantasy violence.
Drugs: No.
Language: Mild.
ALSO: LGBTQ issues, including female-female kissing.

[Ally Varitek]

Great way to accommodate a shift to the online by taking an existing story. I feel like it might even translate better online than onstage... Scenes are short but I imagine it will help a Zoom or video format prevail.

[Grace Wagner · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is theatre of now.

[Sasha Holton · Rating 1 out of 5]

hated doing this show

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Better than the original.

But the women are still written from a man's perspective. And sex/sexuality, too. Frustrating and unnecessary. Yes, include the subject matter, but the language doesn't suit the characters. Weird disconnect.