Independent Arts News Reporting “Morphology” by Jillian Blevins Takes the Stage at Phillips’ Mill – A New Family Drama Exploring Communication and Connection
Reported on Thursday, July 17, 2025.
Pictured Above: Playwright Jillian Blevins. Photo Credit: Contributed
NEWSROOM POST: NEW HOPE, PENNSYLVANIA
Performances run July 24–27, with a special Relaxed Performance on July 25 to accommodate audience members with sensory sensitivities.
New Hope, PA — Morphology, a powerful new family drama by award-winning playwright Jillian Blevins, will take the stage at Phillips’ Mill as this year’s Premiere Showcase workshop production. Performances run July 24–27, with a special Relaxed Performance on July 25 designed to accommodate audience members with sensory sensitivities.
Directed by Griffin Horn, Morphology centers on Claudia, a mother grappling with choices about the future of her nonverbal autistic teenage son, Nico. Although Nico doesn’t speak in traditional ways, Claudia and her son share a deep, intuitive bond—one that’s challenged by outside pressures, including Claudia’s own mother, Arlene, who believes institutional care is the best option. “When I desperately need to know more about something, I write a play about it,” says Blevins. “Curiosity is my most valued tool as a playwright… My work explores how the stories we think we know resonate in our present.”
Through poetic and emotionally nuanced storytelling, Morphology invites audiences into a world of alternative communication and deep maternal connection. It poses the question: Can a system truly understand Nico the way his mother does?
In 2024, Blevins’s play Mere Waters received the Golden Prize at the Clauder Competition, Best Script at the SheNYC Festival, an Honorable Mention for the American Playwriting Foundation’s Relentless Award, and was named a Semi-Finalist for the O’Neill Playwrights’ Conference.
Currently in rehearsal, Morphology will feature artists making their debut at the Mill, as well as returning veterans. Newcomers Emily Hill and Miriam Wharton will play Claudia and Nico, respectively, while Sallyanne Donovan returns to the Mill as Arlene after acting in Voices by Joy Nash in 2023. This workshop production is directed by Griffin Horn, who previously directed Premiere Showcase productions of Voices by Joy Nash, The Half of It by Domenick Scuedera, and Promises to Keep: A Yuletide Ceremony, all at the Mill.
Performance Schedule:
-Wednesday, July 24 at 7:00 PM
-Thursday, July 25 at 7:00 PM
-Friday, July 26 at 7:00 PM
-Saturday, July 27 at 3:00 PM
The Phillips’ Mill Community Association’s Drama Committee has been producing a new play each summer since 2018, though halted for COVID. These plays also included Writer’s Block: An Absurd Comedy with Lofty Ambitions by Christopher Canann and Bleeding in Black & White by Richard Goodwin. Morphology furthers the Mill’s commitment to new work, in all art forms.
Performances: July 24, 25*, and 26 at 7 pm, with a matinee on Sunday, July 27 at 3 pm. *Please note that the Friday evening performance (July 25) will be a Relaxed Performance, with modified production elements that will provide better access for audience members with sensory differences.
Tickets: $30 or $25.00 for PMCA members. Visit the website to purchase tickets. www.phillipsmill.org. For more information visit the website or email drama@phillipsmill.org.
Cast and Creative Team:
Claudia – Emily Hill
Nico – Miriam Wharton
Arlene – Sallyanne Donovan
Director – Griffin Horn
Learn more about playwright Jillian Blevins at: https://www.jillianblevinsplaywright.com/about-2
