←Recommendations of THE CAKE

It is a tender play about grief, loss, and the value of childhood memories. With great sensitivity, Jack Levine takes an everyday event and magnifies it. Thus, the memory is reborn. Through words and recollection, the two brothers revive moments of happiness with their mother, and remake the same cake. Thought-provoking work!

What a tender and beautiful moment between two brothers after the death of their mother. So lovely the memories one photo can illicit. This short piece would be a wonderful piece for two actors to sink their teeth into.

In a diner two grown sons celebrate and remember their late mother's sense of humor in THE CAKE. When Alex was 10 and Charles 5, Mom tests the limits of the adage: You are what you eat. I admire how Jack Levine stays true to the heartwarming memory. There are family tensions and danger on the periphery - the brothers are after all from a family - but THE CAKE doesn't taste bitter. It is about the familial love we so often take for granted and encourages us all to hold onto what is dear to us about our mothers.

After the death of their mother, two brothers have reached the point at which they can recall her with laughter as well as with tears. This is a sweet play about a childhood episode that will become one of those stories shared at every family gathering through the years. I hope when this is produced, the pivotal photograph of mayhem during the baking of a cake is projected for the audience to appreciate. Great job.

As in life, so many plays and stories tell of fractured or strained relationships, so to read this beautiful two hander by Levine was a welcome breath of fresh air. This is heart warming, emotional, funny and sad in equal measure. I loved reading it and have a warm glow in my heart as a result. Just lovely!

The last line of this play hit me so hard, it forced me to tilt my head and say "awww." I love these brothers and the memories they share. So sweet. This play is a lovely snapshot of the past and the present all in one...with perhaps a glimpse to the future? I can see these two buying the diner they are currently in and turning it into "Mom's Bakery!"

Memories are wonderful things. We can relive them, capture a feeling with them, renew a fondness for a lost one with them, but most importantly, we can share them. In this terrific piece by Jack Levine, two brothers bring their mother back to life in their hearts, if only for a few minutes, but they are a powerful time well spent by Alex and Charles. And a side effect of just reading this play made me momentarily look back with a smile on my own late parents. Moving and relatable.

In a mere five minutes or so, Levine captures so much: the indelible relationship between siblings, how memories are shared and shaped, the blended joy and sadness that can entwine those memories, and even the mystery our parents remain. Poignant.

Adult siblings reminisce about a childhood memory, unpacking it as they go. Sweet, wistful, honest, beautiful. Moving in its simplicity and tenderness, this short play demonstrates that specificity breeds universality.

What makes a memorable moment? A birthday, a wedding, even a funeral; those are the ones we think of. But more often, especially with those we're close to, either by affection or just by blood, it's a small thing; the littlest recollection, something others wouldn't think of. But in this short and poignant play, Jack Levine brings the moment shared by brothers to us and lets us see the moment through their eyes and the echoes of their childhood. It's to be cherished.