Lili /Darwin Review: A Bold Exploration of Identity and Transformation

By Justin D Williams

Off-Broadway audiences are being treated this August to a deeply personal work written and performed by Darwin Del Fabro. The play is taking place at The Tank in New York City, currently running from August 2nd to 23rd, 2025. This is a 60-minute no-intermission that intertwines Del Fabro's story with the life of Lili Elbe, one of the first known recipients of gender affriming surgery. This creates a dialogue that jumps through time in an intimate standout experience.

Two Story, Two Lives Interwined

At its core, Lili/Darwin is the convergence of two separate stories, united by a single theme of acceptance, transformation, and self-discovery. Lili Elbe's early 20th-century fight for finding selfhood and Darwin's Del Fabro's journey of becoming and identity. The play is told through a diary-like narration filled with voiceovers, projections, and a music score that really helps capture the performance tone that Darwin Del Fabro is trying to tell. What makes this play work is how truly the stories are parallel in scope but the same in terms of the Trans experience. The play doesn't shine away on the commentary on what it's like for Transgender Women. Topics touched in the play are struggles of family acceptance, sexualization, and the realization after the surgery is done. Darwin doesn't shy away that she was privileged enough not to have certain experiences that women in her community had to go through, such as sex work, still having a support system there. It's a very raw, in-your-face play that doesn't shy away from the perception of what people view a Transgender Woman. This makes Lili/Darwin a moving play that is raw in authenticity. The performance is honest, confessional at times, as the audience is taken through history with heart and transparency.

Darwin Del Fabro in Lili/Darwin

The production of the play is minimalist when it comes to the staging. The set has a Lili side and a Darwin side, which helps the audience know which story is being told. This creates some great transitions when Darwin is on the left side of the stage, she is telling her story, and when she is on the right, she is Lili. The performance is different for each woman, Darwin shifts mannerisms, speech dialect, and delivers. The visuals add another layer of meaning. The play has a collaboration with Dior; the costumes are not just simple aesthetic choices, but integral parts of the narrative. Each outfit becomes part of the transformation, identity, and acceptance of both Darwin and Lili.

The only true complaint I have is the one-hour runtime. I think at least another half hour would've let some scenes breathe a bit. There are some really hard-hitting scenes in the play that, with a few minutes to let the audience feel, would've been beneficial for the narrative. Some moments don't get to breathe because we switch from perspectives often, but to its credit, those moments are still intertwined with the theme of the moment. It's a little nitpicking for a solid show.

Final Thoughts: Lili/Darwin is more than a solo play; it is an invitation and reclamation for audiences to reflect, and to see themselves within its story. Darwin Del Fabro paints a picture of identity, self-discovery, and, more importantly, acceptance of oneself. It's a story that needs to be seen, heard, and digested. This is a play I hope she takes on the road because it's not just a story for one particular group; everyone can relate to the themes in this play. Lili/Darwin is getting a Standing Ovation!