"A fascinating collection of plays centering and exploring real women in the history of science through a fictional flair of theatre."
— Lauren Gunderson, playwright
“These plays are often love stories … between women and their transformative work. They are meditations on how we see the world and our place in it. And they are always full of genuine humor, beautiful and satisfying in a way that catches us off guard. Which is just as it should be. Because at the heart of each play is an unexpected window into what it means to be a woman … in science and in life.”
— Jennie Webb, playwright
“Claudia Barnett’s daring, poetic and dryly funny play imagines the life of Aglaonike, the ancient Greek female astronomer. Championing science when her contemporaries swear by mysticism and magic, Aglaonike confronts hucksters, visits the underworld, and befriends a tiger.” — Celia Wren, The Washington Post
“A play we will remember and one that will make us think about issues that affect the lives of women” — Susan Brall, DC Theatre Arts
“The beauty of Aglaonike’s Tiger is the sense of a young girl’s discovery in real time—whether she’s figuring out the planetary movements, negotiating with the high priestess, coming to grips with her grandmother’s death, or still learning from her in the afterlife. — Debbie Minter Jackson, DC Theatre Sene
“Inspired by history and legend, Barnett's stunning script conjures the stories of real women and girls gone missing from all over the world, witnessed by the "three witches" from Macbeth. … The voices of lost women and girls everywhere have migrated into the light through Barnett's beautiful words.” — Patti Restivo, Baltimore Sun
“Barnett’s work is striking and raw, flooded with imagery both beautiful and haunting, grotesque and serene. This juxtaposition of beauty and garish destruction creates a shockwave of that echoes again and again.” — Amanda N. Gunther, Theatre Bloom
“Witches Vanish is not a biography of a few missing women. It is not a sentimental call to action against the global phenomenon of missing and displaced persons. Rather, it is a meditation on the idea of disappearance itself. What does it mean for a woman to “vanish” in body or soul?” — Michael Poandl, DC Metro Theater Arts
“‘I like the look of agony, because I know it’s true,’ says the murderous heroine of the new play No. 731 Degraw-street, Brooklyn. If you recognize that line as Emily Dickinson, then this Victorian-set, true-crime drama is for you.” — Nelson Pressley, The Washington Post
“You are compelled to think that this is what Ophelia would have been like, had she survived her dunking and had a better sense of humor.” — Tim Treanor, DC Theatre Scene
“With all the chilling atmosphere of thrillers like Angel Street, the rich substance of a Victorian romantic drama, and the twisting madness of Dickinson’s poems, this fully-charged intense piece of theatre is a gutsy move … executed so well that I was thankful to be along for the ride.” — Amanda N. Gunther, DC Metro Theater Arts
"Provocative, witty and filled with poetry, Claudia Barnett's plays sparkle on the page as well as on the stage. Her clever language and natural rhythms make these short plays wonderfully complex and thoroughly engaging. From her smart and hilarious contemporary take on Adam and Eve to her inventive dialogue that evokes the careful dance of romance, these six plays speak to Claudia's boundless imagination and ability to see into the heart of human relationships." — Emily A. Rollie, Artistic Director, Independent Actors Theatre
"At turns sly and heartfelt, down-to-earth and mysterious, sweet, bitter, and always bittersweet, these six plays and the men and women within them test and re-test our senses, challenging us to wonder how well we know our partners—and ourselves." — Carson Kreitzer, playwright