Hope Hommersand

The 21st Century finds Louisa May Alcott’s beloved characters, Jo, Meg, Amy and Beth in entirely different circumstances. They are foster kids living with their foster mom, Marmee. While caroling the young women meet Ted Lawrence, a “computer geek,” who happens to be their next door neighbor. They soon find that this Christmas is fraught with crises: Jo discovers that her novel has been deleted from her computer and suspects that Amy did it. Meg announces that she will not go to college much to Marmee’s dismay. Beth, a juvenile diabetic, becomes seriously ill. Ms March, a social worker at the foster care agency, finds out that Marmee may be evicted from her home and decides that these foster sisters will have to be moved to other homes. Ted’s father saves the day by ensuring that Marmee and her little women can stay together as a family. Ms March declares it a miracle and the play ends happily with everyone looking forward to a loving and peaceful Christmas Day.

A numerologist is convinced that he'll win the lottery but unexpectedly wins something entirely different. The play takes place in a convenience store. Stan enters and announces that he will win the lottery based on a dream where a series of numbers were revealed to him. He explains that he knows these are the winning numbers to the jackpot because he is a scholar and practitioner of numerology. Carroll, part owner of the store, says that her husband, Marke, consulted a numerologist who suggested Mark add an "e" to the end of his name if he wanted to get rich. During a discussion of Pythagoras, the founder of numerology, and the role the universe plays in everyone's life, Carroll suggests a new number for Stan to use in his bid to win the lottery. Marke returns from an errand and an immediate dislike and rivalry arises between the two men. it becomes increasingly clear that Stan may not win the lottery. However, he wins something far more valuable.

After learning about the death of a rich widow, an engaged couple and an estate lawyer go after a large sum of money the widow left behind. However, access to the hidden cash involves an intricate plan. The sudden death of one of the conspirators narrows the playing field down to two. A game of one-upmanship ensues to see who is in charge. The presence of an offstage Border Collie determines the outcome.

The play opens with a rehearsal of Oscar Wilde’s An Ideal Husband in a room that has recently been painted yellow. During the rehearsal the lead actor collapses and it is discovered that she has been poisoned with ricin. A few days later another actor with the company is discovered dead in the Marigold Room at the Flower Garden Inn. Cause of death is a stab wound to the heart. However, the door and windows of her room were locked. Security cameras were in the hall and no one was seen entering or exiting her room. No weapon was found in the room or on the property. Next, the character actor’s ex-husband meets his death by falling off the balcony of his apartment, painted mustard yellow. What does the color “yellow” have to do with these murders most foul? Does An Ideal Husband figure somehow in the plot? Is art imitating life or life imitating art? All is revealed at the end.

A witch becomes a celebrity chef and a minister discovers she has been leading an inauthentic life. The action takes place in a vacation cottage owned by Mavis, a witch and master chef. Guests include Vivian, a minister, who is having an emotional meltdown because she has lost her faith. Viv’s two friends are also there to celebrate their wedding anniversary. What should have been a joyful evening turns into a manic episode of accusations, confessions and mistaken identities, all due to the machinations of Mavis and the interference of a local ghost

Penumbra explores the symbiotic relationship between cutthroat financial competition and
personal moral decay. It takes place in 2008 during the financial meltdown. The plot moves from the netherworld of the homeless to the stratosphere of high finance. The main characters are Josh, aka Slick, a homeless musician and Bart, the CFO of New World Financial. An unsolved murder is the catalyst that propels these men towards a confrontation. Cassie, a homeless woman, observes it all and serves as a quasi-Greek chorus.

A rehearsal-in-progress of Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard serves as the launching pad for a problem facing a theatre company: lack of money. The producer thinks he can solve it by borrowing from a couple of aging loan sharks who go by the names of Uncle and Nephew. Conflict ensues when Uncle and Nephew devise their own Machiavellian plan for the theater where The Cherry Orchard is scheduled to open. Added to this is the growing animosity between the director and leading lady. A love triangle involving the producer, director and the waitress at Josie’s Deli explodes when the producer’s wife finds out.
This emotional roller coaster comes to a reasonably sane landing, but not until the characters travel the landscape of egos, superegos, alter egos and ids.