←Recommendations of Just An Old-Fashioned Love Song

A charming tale well told, and some surprising connections to our own nostalgia. An ending that stings a bit, but then again, don't they often? PMW brings us a delightful scene here that audiences of all ages can enjoy.

I had the good fortune to hear JUST AN OLD-FASHIONED LOVE SONG read in our writers group. Like walking through an antiques shop, this play is filled with delightful treasures. A banjo clock! A loveseat! A piano! Playwright Philip Middleton Williams masterfully uses dramatic irony in the story to connect these objects to a much-loved children's story. Brilliant. Some laugh-out-loud and poignant moments make this play a must-read. Would absolutely love to see it performed!

A discarded clock, loveseat, and a piano come to life, bickering as they await their individual fates at an estate sale. These anthropomorphized objects are deftly portrayed by playwright Williams with equal measures of wit and pathos. He imbues them with tender meaning that transcends pat nostalgia, and also makes us laugh. This is a short, sentimental play that has great staging possibilities. A clever and singular premise brought to life.

Like a bite sized Toy Story for the geriatric set, “Just An Old-Fashioned Love Song” imagines a conversation between once beloved furniture from a certain beloved household. Williams does delightful character work, bringing the inanimate to life along with their egos, their anxieties, their hopes and fears. This is a play with love in every stitch.

Philip Middleton Williams has given us a gift with these three charming pieces of vintage furniture. The property of a beloved family, their fate to be determined by an estate sale. The characterizations are unique and a pure joy. The Banjo Clock and Grand Piano always at odds, and the aptly named Love Seat always the peace maker. Williams, responding to a prompt, expertly combined nostalgia and whimsy. He found the fun and snap! The job’s a game!

Time marches on, even for banjo clocks and furniture. And the pieces in this play have definitely seen an epic story unfold that many of us have loved. Connecting the talking furniture with a familiar story allows us to really feel the nostalgia with them. And though time marches on for them (and us) they do have new futures waiting for them. Imagine the new stories they will witness!

This is not your typical talking furniture play. A clock, a piano and a love seat may be three unlikely characters, but they come together in "Just an Old-Fashioned Love Song" to show us the passage of time. Mr. Williams has written a short, nostalgic piece to remind us that while the good old days may be gone there is still hope that good times may eventually return.

I love a good scenario where actors get to play inanimate objects, and Philip Middleton Williams' JUST AN OLD FASHIONED LOVE SONG is a fun ten-minute piece evoking sort of a snarky "Toy Story"-like existential crisis for this banjo clock, old loveseat, and grand piano. Philip has captured pretty much exactly how I would picture these types of objects talking, too. Fun and well-drawn!

“Just An Old Fashioned Love Song” by Philip Middleton Williams is a sweetly nostalgic piece (with a little sassy spice) that reminds us that nothing stays the same. As the characters struggle considering their fates, we also think about our own. Actors will enjoy portraying these characters and costume designers will have a blast.