Recommended by Ken Love

Well, now it's my turn to recommend "Park Benches". As a playwright who has on more than a few occasions attempted this type of "end of life" theme, I know the difficulty of the execution - if you will - as well as the difficulty in watching such a work. Regardless, the piece needs to be seen!

Okay! I read the play. And laughed all the way through it. But I want more, i.e. I've gotta see it live! It's the only way to give an unabashed knee-slapper such as this it's due!

I did not just READ this play. I actually heard it, absorbed every word, and was moved by the characters anger, pain, delusion and - yes - sense of helplessness. As an African American man who was born in the North and has lived in the South (and in California), every line of dialogue in this play carried the unbearable sting of recognition. At times, I felt like an interloper, privy to the private conversations and asides of those struggling with ugly, tortured beliefs and misconceptions. Mr. Friedman definitely knows his world. Kudos!

When a short 2 hander is done well, it's like a brief respite. Or a good, long swallow of a sweet drink with a tart aftertaste. I could definitely see "Poetica" staged with 2 actors, engaging in the staccato dialogue over wine. Enjoyable from start to finish!

As an actor myself who had been off the boards for over ten years (though not for substance abuse), this beautifully rendered, funny yet heartbreaking piece struck a small yet graceful note of pain in my heart. To my mind, this was the first ten minute play I've read with a tragic figure that ends . . . tragically. This work needs to be seen!

When I finally reached the end of this piece . . . after reading the last line, I let out a big laugh! If you ever get a hold of this play and start to read - stay with it! Allow yourself to be taken through every one of its labyrinthian passages . . . all the way to the end. And you'll see that the kick in this well written tale is how it ends! Kudos!

I read through "Accidental Roommates" in one whirlwind sitting and was captivated throughout. The humor is gentle without being soft. The drama and characterization solid without no hint of heavy-handedness, if you will. And it's such a treat to encounter a play with engaging "older" characters who are so utterly . . . human! I'd love to see this on its feet!

The best sci fi/fantasy works equally well as parable. Or metaphor . . . but I would prefer to see this compelling, humorous yet ultimately tragic piece as a parable. That speaks to our current troubled time. And, perhaps - unfortunately - to our future.

As a diehard fan of noir, crime fiction and good, flat-out drama, "Lenny and Jenny" was - for lack of a better term - a treat. The dialogue is crisp and incisive, the characterization engaging, vivid. I love chance encounters that not only work, but beg to lodge in the memory. Nice work, Mr. Byham!

What really nailed it for me with this play was the ending. I went along for the ride, enjoying it as I read - all the while expecting an agreeable conclusion - yet received, instead, a jolt of lightning in a shot glass. And let me say that I love it when a writer can take a well-worn subject and breathe fresh, exuberant life into it. Kudos!