2025 Every Brilliant Thing

EVERY BRILLIANT THING is a poignant and humorous play by Duncan Macmillan that explores themes of depression, hope, and the small joys of life through the eyes of a child coping with a parent's mental illness. The play is narrated by a character known as "The Storyteller," who recounts their experiences growing up with a mother who suffers from depression and has attempted suicide. At the age of seven, the narrator begins to create a list of "every brilliant thing" in the world worth living for, starting with simple joys like ice cream and wearing a cape. This list serves as both a coping mechanism for the narrator and a way to encourage their mother to find reasons to live.