Short Eyes is set in a Detention facility in New York City. The play explores an entire day at the facility and the different interactions that take place to shape the narrative of the lives of these inmates and guards. The play starts with usual prison procedures such as roll calls and duty assignments. Through their daily activities, the reader gets the opportunity to experience the enclosed world that functions a lot like the real world. They have their own unique way of communicating and interacting with one another which gives an insight into how incarceration changes people and makes them easily adaptable to harsh conditions.
Clark, a middle-aged white man is arrested and brought to the facility for allegedly raping a minor. In these facilities, child molesters are despised by other inmates. Clark is honest about his pedophilia to Juan who is disgusted and rebukes him for his disgusting behavior. Due to a diverse range of racial backgrounds in the facilities, inmates tend to stick with their own race for safety. The white group however casts Clark out when they discover his crimes.
As Clark is about to be released due to lack of evidence, he is brutally murdered by his fellow inmates who prevent him from molesting other girls. The play has an honest and raw outlook on low-income and minority groups. The author was once a convict and had a drug problem. He uses his real experiences with pain to write a play that is vulnerable and appealing. The play is brutal, dark, overtly violent, and obscene as it tries to embody the real experience of prison.
