Excellent review, really enjoyed reading it and I'll definitely try to see the play if I get a chance. Will say though - "less discussed is how our fascination with true crime provides the opportunity for sociopathic sensationalism" - hand wringing over true crime is really common, maybe the dominant mode of criticism of any format of the genre. And true crime should be criticized, and cheap, tawdry, and harmful depictions need to be questioned- but it's not like it's not happening (check any broadsheet review, social chatter, or comments section on a true crime property) now or previously (Bill James's Popular Crime digs into this).
Excellent review, really enjoyed reading it and I'll definitely try to see the play if I get a chance. Will say though - "less discussed is how our fascination with true crime provides the opportunity for sociopathic sensationalism" - hand wringing over true crime is really common, maybe the dominant mode of criticism of any format of the genre. And true crime should be criticized, and cheap, tawdry, and harmful depictions need to be questioned- but it's not like it's not happening (check any broadsheet review, social chatter, or comments section on a true crime property) now or previously (Bill James's Popular Crime digs into this).