Recommended by Donald E. Baker

  • Donald E. Baker: . . . and Women Rule Over Them by Ken Love
    “

    In Ken Love's alternate 2024, all the presidential candidates are women--a Democrat Vice President thrust into the race at the last minute, a conservative Black Republican senator, and an extreme Christian Nationalist congresswoman. They are all experienced politicians, tough and driven, but in the heat of campaigning their public records may well be overshadowed by their past secrets and messy personal lives. A scary and fascinating examination of politics in the "interesting times" we live in.

    In Ken Love's alternate 2024, all the presidential candidates are women--a Democrat Vice President thrust into the race at the last minute, a conservative Black Republican senator, and an extreme Christian Nationalist congresswoman. They are all experienced politicians, tough and driven, but in the heat of campaigning their public records may well be overshadowed by their past secrets and messy personal lives. A scary and fascinating examination of politics in the "interesting times" we live in.

    ”

  • In the gloomy world of Craig Houk's lighthouse, currently occupied by Evelyn, a popular novelist, we don't know who is malevolent and who is just quirky. We don't know whether the mysterious and frightening goings-on are the result of the past and present interacting or whether things are happening in real life, or in Evelyn's head as she writes her latest book, or as a result of actual paranormal activity. Audiences will be debating those questions long after the final blackout. Nicely done!

    In the gloomy world of Craig Houk's lighthouse, currently occupied by Evelyn, a popular novelist, we don't know who is malevolent and who is just quirky. We don't know whether the mysterious and frightening goings-on are the result of the past and present interacting or whether things are happening in real life, or in Evelyn's head as she writes her latest book, or as a result of actual paranormal activity. Audiences will be debating those questions long after the final blackout. Nicely done!

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    If characters from the classic British sitcom "Are You Being Served" somehow found themselves enmeshed in the absurdities of a "Monty Python" sketch, the result would be a piece as hilarious as Donald Loftus's "Perhaps a Sidebar on Christmas." It would be something completely different for a festival of holiday short plays and the audience would love it. I certainly did.

    If characters from the classic British sitcom "Are You Being Served" somehow found themselves enmeshed in the absurdities of a "Monty Python" sketch, the result would be a piece as hilarious as Donald Loftus's "Perhaps a Sidebar on Christmas." It would be something completely different for a festival of holiday short plays and the audience would love it. I certainly did.

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    For many gay people, going into a nursing home full of possibly hostile strangers means having to go back into the closet. Old Cowboy Chuck did the opposite, living a closeted life--veteran, husband, father--and only coming out, pride flag waving, about the time he moved into the facility. There he is forced to endure the prejudices he'd avoided out in the world. He will get no sympathy from an uncaring administrator, but he will from anyone reading Wyndham's perfectly voiced monologue.

    For many gay people, going into a nursing home full of possibly hostile strangers means having to go back into the closet. Old Cowboy Chuck did the opposite, living a closeted life--veteran, husband, father--and only coming out, pride flag waving, about the time he moved into the facility. There he is forced to endure the prejudices he'd avoided out in the world. He will get no sympathy from an uncaring administrator, but he will from anyone reading Wyndham's perfectly voiced monologue.

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    As Margaret gives her speech extolling the encouragement her mother gave her in her education and career, a series of flashbacks reveal a mother who was anything but supportive. But which portrait is accurate? Neither? Both? Julie Brandon tells her characters' story with deep empathy as she skillfully manipulates the audience's expectations. Brightly Burning is a worthy addition to the canon of works exploring the often fraught relationships between mothers and daughters.

    As Margaret gives her speech extolling the encouragement her mother gave her in her education and career, a series of flashbacks reveal a mother who was anything but supportive. But which portrait is accurate? Neither? Both? Julie Brandon tells her characters' story with deep empathy as she skillfully manipulates the audience's expectations. Brightly Burning is a worthy addition to the canon of works exploring the often fraught relationships between mothers and daughters.

  • Donald E. Baker: Snowbirds by Philip Middleton Williams
    “

    So many Thanksgiving plays are fraught with family drama but Philip Middleton Williams provides comic relief in his new 10-minute farce. His deft handling of characters and situation make it totally delightful and deserving of a place in any holiday play festival.

    So many Thanksgiving plays are fraught with family drama but Philip Middleton Williams provides comic relief in his new 10-minute farce. His deft handling of characters and situation make it totally delightful and deserving of a place in any holiday play festival.

    ”
  • Donald E. Baker: Last Wrongs by John Busser
    “

    John Busser, whom some may know only as a skilled practitioner of light comedy and clever wordplay, demonstrates his versatility in this gripping drama of right and wrong, fear and racism, weakness and amorality. It's a story that audiences will be discussing and perhaps disputing long after the final blackout.

    John Busser, whom some may know only as a skilled practitioner of light comedy and clever wordplay, demonstrates his versatility in this gripping drama of right and wrong, fear and racism, weakness and amorality. It's a story that audiences will be discussing and perhaps disputing long after the final blackout.

    ”
  • Donald E. Baker: The Country Squire by Philip Middleton Williams
    “

    Philip Middleton Williams has a talent for turning his characters' ordinary lives into extraordinary plays. Here, a family makes a very difficult decision and manages to come out the other side more or less intact. As in his "Cooler Near the Lake" and "Swimming Off the Big Dock," the community, a cluster of cottages of well-to-do summer people near Travers City, Michigan, looms large in the background and the atmosphere. A worthy and memorable addition to the Williams catalog.

    Philip Middleton Williams has a talent for turning his characters' ordinary lives into extraordinary plays. Here, a family makes a very difficult decision and manages to come out the other side more or less intact. As in his "Cooler Near the Lake" and "Swimming Off the Big Dock," the community, a cluster of cottages of well-to-do summer people near Travers City, Michigan, looms large in the background and the atmosphere. A worthy and memorable addition to the Williams catalog.

    ”
  • Donald E. Baker: an open letter to parents who send their boys to summer camp by Wren Aubrey Latham
    “

    The devastating beauty of this monologue will pierce your heart and take up permanent residence in your soul.

    The devastating beauty of this monologue will pierce your heart and take up permanent residence in your soul.

    ”
  • Donald E. Baker: Last Wrongs by John Busser
    “

    A young man is killed and a white priest is disabled in an incident for which an African-American man is sentenced to death. Who are the victims and who is responsible seem obvious--until the warden and the priest reveal what really happened. The man on death row may have been innocent, but the warden's prejudice and the priest's fear seem to guarantee he will die anyhow. A memorable story showing Busser's ability to feed an audience essential details strategically while heightening tension.

    A young man is killed and a white priest is disabled in an incident for which an African-American man is sentenced to death. Who are the victims and who is responsible seem obvious--until the warden and the priest reveal what really happened. The man on death row may have been innocent, but the warden's prejudice and the priest's fear seem to guarantee he will die anyhow. A memorable story showing Busser's ability to feed an audience essential details strategically while heightening tension.

    ”