Press & Testimonials

"I think of your groundbreaking play often.  ...You guys were at the forefront bringing trans issues to light."

"Jason Lasky's intense play, MEND THE ENVELOPE, is making waves around the world. After a run at another New York theatre festival, his words are being translated into Chinese for a staged reading at the Shanghai Theater Academy; then the Arctic Theater of Murmansk, Russia, will have a reading - in English."

"A sweet surprise."

"Sometimes one can get so lost in dreams that reality is almost another realm. Jason Lasky’s Mend the Envelope tells the harrowing story of a married couple broken by events of a single poor decision. Questions of faith and purpose are told under the careful direction of Cihangir “G.” Duman. Set on an almost bare stage with set pieces strategically placed, Henry and Joanie Davis’ relationship unfolds before the audience. Played by Andy Phillips and Brittany Belinski, the actors honestly share glimmers of a once successful and exciting life abroad and their current mundane and shattered life in upstate New York. Fern Lim’s lighting and sound design flawlessly shifted us to dreamscape and added another layer to the one act. I would love to read the next scene of this one act to find out where the Davises go in their relationship."

"As this festival is considered an international offering, no one gives it a more worldly spin that playwright Jason Lasky.  As Lasky points out, the play was written through NY, Russia, Vietnam, Thailand and China!  A highly anticipated addition to the festival...."

"So well attended and received. … I've been to several readings in NYC and the West coast…[t]he bottom line is that your writing shows depth perception into human life and our world. "

"For our kuai, the best three plays of the evening were Ferry Transfer by Jason Lasky, following a widower who pleads for help from a sentimental hooker, Line by Barbara Anderlič, a logorrheic stream-of-consciousness internal monologue with echoes of Beckett's Not I, and The Terrorist and the Protocol Guide by Fernanda Jaber, a bureaucracy farce reminiscent of Vaclav Havel."

"For me, the standout story was “The Black Cat,” a tale of an animal lover who is haunted by what he does during a drunken rage. Actor Jason Lasky is both engaging and slightly threatening as the main character and storyteller.  ...It’s a disturbing, menacing story that’s well told." 

"Plaudits must go to... Jason Lasky’s riveting portrayal of a man’s sad descent into loathing madness."

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"Lasky shines in this performance. His goofy smile and lop-sided hoodie suggests a good nature, but this is undermined as hints of a wildness emerge as the drama progresses." 

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"Of particular note were Lasky’s characterizations of Jerry’s bibulous landlord and her ill-tempered dog, morphing into these roles with such gusto that the audience tittered with excitement. At the play’s climax, where Jerry grew steadily more menacing and Peter’s stoicism finally began to unravel, the tension between Lasky and Collins crescendoed perfectly until the play’s sudden and tragic ending."

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"Thank you for the classes that were and for being my introduction into the world of acting and drama. It's been a ball to say the very least!

The first class was the best only because it was soooooo freeeeing for me. I felt a loosening inside from tension I didn't even know i had up till that point. I knew that i felt like parts of me were numbing and I needed to do something about it, but I really didn't know the extent of the knots inside till they were loosed. Felt malleable again, fluid...like water.
 

Yesterday I journalled that these classes have made me more self-aware...but the sort of self-awareness that helps me get out of my own way, not the type that makes me feel ashamed and/or embarrassed and want to hide. Still don't have it down yet, but it's a start for me and that's a super huge deal, you have no idea!!! So, THANK YOU!!!!!!!"

An hour and a half of the training flew like a flash, and then the meeting continued with talking and drinking tea with traditional Russian pies. Our actors (they are schoolchildren, university students and working youth and adults) were just enchanted by Jason and his wife Svetlana. ...

Jason’s trainings are based on the core elements of Stanislavski system which we also use in our work. But some details were new for us. We, the directors of this theatre group, found the principle of repeating the actors’ scene studies after discussing and analyzing them the most interesting part (we hadn’t done this before). The actors’ readings were also new to us.

Now we actively use the exercises Jason taught us at the workshops in our own trainings. And what is more, we have held two readings in our theatre so far! So we want to say a great big thank you to Jason for bringing new creative forms to our theatre life! We look forward to his play and hope to take part in it! We hope to meet Jason again!

"I was lucky to attend his workshops in December 2015 – Janyary 2016! ...The workshops were full of energy and quite informative. Meisner’s technique was the most amazing discovery for us... In my opinion, such exercises for developing attention and trust to the partner are one of the most important in the actor’s art! And, of course, exercises in movement! We had a lot of them! Thank you very much for a priceless experience and communication."

I am very grateful to Jason and Svetlana for a fantastic experience in the sphere of theatre as well as for communication...

I have been to almost all of the workshops when we practiced such aspects of the actor’s art as stage movement and attention. I would like to mention Meisner technique in particular (it’s a completely new approach to what we did before) and the movement series, which physically develops the actor and is a perfect warm-up.

All in all, in this short time we managed to get a lot of experience in stage movement.

I also took part in readings of Jason’s plays (both in English and in Russian). It was interesting to get acquainted with Jason’s works, I liked his view on the Russian hospital and its problems (the play At the Bolnitsa).

To sum up, I’d like to say one thing: this whole experience can’t be but fantastic. A visit of a foreigner, so open for communication, working in the sphere of theatre, which is one of my interests, and wanting to write a play about our city - I’m very glad I had a chance to participate in this all. My great hope is that we will have more meetings with Lasky!

"Sessions with Jason reveal the secret of freeing the actor's self psychologically, which I hadn't obtained from other tutors. Jason is no doubt a devoted teacher who shows his enthusiasm and love of acting with a strong awareness of his responsibility as a tutor. As his student, I've been inspired and encouraged to move in a positive direction. I always feel very energized after his session, both mentally and physically. He never judges, and always reminds me not to either. He asks for my observations or an alternative to deliver his critique instead of telling me what to do, so that I can figure out the “me” by my own and keep alert when I fall into a pattern. This is extremely important and precious for an actor at any level, and in a sense, for anyone to have a fruitful life. I'm so grateful to have Jason as my mentor!"

"The beauty of Jason’s worldly travels is the influence his experiences has on the stories that he is writing for the stage. His characters are rounded, interesting, and complex because he can bring so many of his experiences into their personalities, and I do mean their personalities.  A Jason Lasky play has his voice throughout the piece, and his characters are all uniquely individual.  Jason works so that neither his latest characters nor the most recent play as a whole ever sound the same from piece to piece....

All in all, what I am trying to say is that Jason is a gifted playwright with a lot of stories to tell....

​I feel my collaborator’s point-of-view is one that should continue to be shared through this artistic medium, and I will continue to do my best to see this newest voice of the theater come to light."

"A gifted and hard-working director, Jason is very generous with his time, challenging me to think and move in new and novel ways. Together we created a very successful piece of theatre, "The Complete Works of William Shakespeare."

"Jason is a very talented dramatic writer and actor who possesses great willingness to let go and experiment. He is also conscientious and will spend as much time as necessary to do his homework, always bringing something new to the table."