Review by Joanne Engelhardt for Stage & Cinema 4/19/2025
It makes sense that Jeffrey Lo—a Filipino artist who writes, directs, and knows the Peninsula theater scene inside and out—could write a play like Writing Fragments Home. It’s personal without being sentimental, funny without trying too hard, and it lands exactly where it needs to. I was at the near-sold-out opening night at Hillbarn Theatre, and you could feel how much this story mattered—not just to the characters onstage, but to the people in the seats.
Writing Fragments Home isn’t flashy, but it’s full of quiet power. It speaks to anyone who’s ever disappointed their parents, felt stuck, or tried to make art in a world that values stability over storytelling. See it if you can before it closes on Sunday, May 4. It’s honest, moving, and just might make you call your mom.
