←Recommendations of ERSTWHILE

Lovely. This beautifully rendered presentation of a gift to self is crafted with much care and respect for its audience. I really enjoy and appreciate the subtle delivery that somehow packs a more emotional wallop than a more overt expositional approach would. Very well done.

Cole is smart enough to leave room for the audience to supply their own wonder or insight. It's a play that lets the emotion breathe, and doesn't let its concept allow for low-hanging fruit. A touching work.

Oh my gosh, this short is beautiful. I love how Deb Cole doesn't spell things out for the audience, but gives you just enough to understand the gist of the situation. Fran and Steven's dilemma is so relatable. We all wish we could contact our younger selves to give them a heads up or advice, but figuring things out on the fly as life comes at us is the way life is meant to be lived. I love this.

This lovely short play shows a scenario that many of us have thought about - connecting with our younger selves. In this case, Deb Cole manages to intersect foreboding with soothing comfort to create a heartwarming scene. The subtle approach enhances both the drama and the heartache.

Yes, you'll shed tears at this beautifully written, understated play. I love how Debra A. Cole trusts her audiences to infer character emotions, backstory, and more. And I also love how Fran and Steven show sure care and grace toward Frannie and Stevie.

02.05.26 - We all would love to have the gift of hindsight. Deb Cole shows one magical way it could happen. But as with all things magical, there are trade-offs to keep in mind. Knowing the future means learning ALL aspects of it. If Frannie and Stevie knew what was in store, would they stay the course? This play is heart-warming yet doesn't soft coat everything. A special piece, this.

The eternal question: if you knew what the future held, what would you do? Debra A. Cole leaves the answer up to you, but in this short but powerful play we see a couple facing both their past and the future. Sometimes just asking the question tells you all you need to know.

A lovely and understated emotional powder keg. This play packs a wallop in its short running time and scant few pages. Very well done.

Hope and regret butt up against each other is this powerful revery on memory and expectations. It seems that the hard-won knowledge of the future can't be transferred to those living in the now. The young couple's joy is especially poignant given that we are privy to what their older selves have experienced. There is solace to be had in the fact that the older couple's bond remains sure and so reveals that the young couple endure the disappointment and trauma life holds in store.

Devastating. A different kind of time travel here, perhaps, but the same is always true... you can't change the past. As much as you would want to. Still, the gift to give your younger selves some form of grace? Incredibly valuable. A moving piece here from Cole that will stay with you a while after the reading/viewing.