About the Show

Avant‑garde company devises a play inside a Brooklyn church under Nazareth Hassan’s bold vision.

Asa Leon gathers a company of actors to live together in an abandoned Brooklyn church and collaboratively create a play about themselves. Practice evolves into a shapeshifting psycho‑comedy that explores themes of power, submission, and the sacrifices individuals make to belong to a group.

Written by Nazareth Hassan, whose work includes dramaturgy at the Royal Court Theatre in London and residency at Vineyard Theatre, Practice is directed by Keenan Tyler Oliphant, a South African-born theatre-maker known for directing Terce: A Practical Breviary and other innovative devised works.

Presented by Playwrights Horizons in its fall 2025 season, Practice runs in the Judith O. Rubin Theater from October 30 through December 7, 2025. The production continues the venue’s commitment to new American plays and devised contemporary performance.

Critic Reviews (9)

Critic’s Pick: "This profound and affecting play ends with a vision of an empty stage... What we have seen, Hassan impresses upon us, is what it really takes to make theater, and what it can cost those making it."
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"If Practice offers no solution, it at least lays out, in visceral detail, the harrowing experience of offering yourself up for art and the electrifying feeling of sacrificing your body to a collective."
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"This is among the most compelling and provocative works of the year. It left my jaw on the floor and my mind circling its implications long after the lights came up."
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"I’m not sure I agree that all brutality has such neatly diagnosable roots, but whatever our theories of power, Hassan is right: In practice, it needs an exorcism."
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"Keenan Tyler Oliphant directs a tight and exceptionally well-acted production, the two hours of the first act charged with ever-mounting tension."
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"It's an astonishing turn of events that raises knotty questions about aesthetics, ethics, consent, and personal boundaries."
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"This is a love-it-or-hate-it play for sure, and after three hours even the enthusiasts–there were plenty, and I wouldn't be surprised to learn that many of them are actors–may be getting restless."
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"People who particularly enjoy backstage drama may find sufficient novelty in Practice to stay interested in the process that Hassan observes in fulsome detail."
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