←Recommendations of A Moment of Clarity

PHILIP MIDDLETON WILLIAMS is a gifted playwright. I so love reading his plays, and ‘A Moment of Clarity’ is one of his best. Dementia is cruel. The person with it losses their ability to remember, but the ones who have to deal with this reality are most affected. I was truly moved by this play.

To those of us who have (or had) to deal with the decline of our elderly parents, Middleton’s play is a gift, as it allows us to cherish those moments we have (or had) with them. Both lovely and painful, it’s universality makes it deeply affecting and ultimately healing.

“A Moment of Clarity” beautifully captures a brief, but very real moment between an elderly father sinking into dementia and his 60-something son. Anyone who has watched a beloved parent deteriorate will relate, but the real message of this lovely play may be that, no matter how old, we are always children in need of guidance and protection in our parents’ eyes, and our parents will always be our first heroes, no matter how imperfect or complicated our relationship with them may have been.

This is a concise 10 minute play about a father and son and their history. It is moving and joyful, as the father and son share memories. The love between them is palpable. This piece might be classified as a gay play, but it is so much more. It deals with affection and understanding that we would wish for every family.

William’s 10-minute play deals with the subject of memory loss, and I must add how honest and sweet this play is. It’s short, it’s concise, and it’ll make you feel something, all in a short amount of time. “A Moment of Clarity” would be a perfect addition to any short play festival!

I had the pleasure of watching a reading of this play at the 2019 Valdez Last Frontier Theater Conference. I found it to be a perfect short play-- the story-telling is elegant in its brevity, but the story reaches deep. I found delight in the play's humor and smart attention to detail and moved by the characters, their relationship, and their (and the playwright's) big hearts.

Love and honesty are at play and work side-by-side in a poignant moment between father and son. Williams finds humor in the darkness, love in the sadness and timelessness in the family bond. A beautifully realized look at a moment of clarity that shines through the fog.

It's the stuff of dreams to have that moment of nostalgia, confession, and ultimately love. It's the stuff of dreams to to have that understanding between son and father before the end. It's the stuff of so many things but in the hands of Philip Middleton Williams, it's the stuff of stage poetry and control over the direction of the conversation that you see; this too can be possible. A moment of clarity in a world that's often too confusing and jumbled to make sense of anything, let alone in mental decline. You won't regret reading this play.

From the Kroeger's pharmacy waiting area to a duck blind forty years ago and then all the way out to the speculation about the end, Middleton Williams moves us in many ways. I know, because of this impossible conversation, everything will really be all right, and that's a great comfort; that's what we all want - to know how to do this, to see it done, to be able to be this available to our parent/to our child when it matters most, and it always matters. What a gift!

You might read this with a hand over your heart. One of the most striking plays when it comes to showing tenderness between child and parent. If you have ever helped a parent who's losing their memory, this will bring back memories,not of the tough times but those moments of clarity. A great play for older actors.