“The Weir” takes place in Paddy Byrne’s Pub in a rural Irish town, where the locals are exchanging weird, spooky, and humorous stories.  It can be they are trying to impress Valerie, a newcomer in town, brought to the bar by their friend, Finbar, but I am sure they come regularly here to meet, drink, and tell stories.  

            In this award-winning play by Conor McPherson, first staged in 1997, the owner of the pub, Brendan (Aiden McDonald), listens as three regulars, Jack, Jim, and Finbar tell stories to Valerie. They are ghost stories. They are horror stories. It is not a play with much action, but rather some long, fascinating monologues about people, about cemeteries, and about life as they down their drinks. Ironically, when asked what she would like to drink, she says “white wine.” They have no wine, but Brendan manages to locate an old bottle in his house that is attached to the pub.

            The first to arrive at the pub is Jack (Brian Rock) and he engages Brendan with background story that I am sad to say, I missed. He was talking so fast with the Irish brogue that I didn’t understand half of what he was saying. I know that they were trying to recreate an intimate scene in a friendly space, but the Plays and Players Theater’s ceiling is about 30 feet high and much gets lost if an actor doesn’t project louder than just a natural speaking voice. I have seen many plays at this venue with no difficulty, but Jack’s talking might as well have been in another language. Probably the rehearsals took place in a smaller space where the director was closer to the actors, and they could speak in softer tones. When I struggle to understand what is going on in a play with just story-telling and no action, if I don’t succeed, I zone out. And many of the other characters also spoke quickly. The acting was more about the accent than about the substance. I had the same problem with Jim (Oliver Donahue).

            When Finbar (Robert Hargraves) arrives with Valerie (Kirsten Quinn), things become a bit clearer. They speak more slowly and with less of an accent. And when he launches into his lengthy ghost story about an eerie woman appearing on the stairs of a house who stares at the occupants and a neighbor seeing a dead person in the garden, I followed most, but not all, of his strange narrative. Valerie listens attentively, then shares her own story. It is not filled with supernatural or magical events like the men’s stories. Rather, it is a most sad telling of her own recent life. The mood changes.

            The story is a powerful one and I suggest that if you go, grab a seat close to the stage so you catch all the words. I found that in my seat in the sixth row, that those seated closer to the stage laughed at jokes that those behind me didn’t respond to. And I do wish that Director Peggy Mecham managed to pull more from the actors emotionally.

“The Weir” by Conor McPherson at The Irish Heritage Theatre being performed at Plays and Players Theatre, 1714 Delancey St., Philadelphia, PA 19103, 215-680-3876                     

www. irishheritagetheatre.org   Thru March 29, 2026

Theatre Ariel is a professional theater in Philadelphia that has produced plays about Jewish history and culture for over thirty years. Their current show, on stage at the Louis Bluver Theatre at the Drake, is a world premier written by Dan Kitrosser, an award winning playwright, screenwriter, and story teller. In this play, the title alone drew me in.

            “Marsha Blovotnick and the Marvelous Magical Chicken Soup” is a funny play but I wouldn’t call it a comedy. It deals with Masha (Janis Dardaris), an angry woman who is angry about everything, from her sister, to her ex-lovers, to the situation in the world she lives in.  As a socialist, lesbian Jewish theater owner in the home she has lived in since childhood, she has failed financially to support that theater, which was housed in her very home. She is dealing with the fact that her sister Janice (Susan Riley Stevens), who she has been estranged from for many years, is coming to the house to share a Shabbat dinner with her. Marsha wants no part of her. But before she arrives, Marsha realizes that she has forgotten to make the chicken soup, a staple in their Shabbat diners since childhood.

            What makes this play so powerful is how it deals with universal themes so naturally. Though Janice and Marsha were raised in the same home by their father, Janice has rejected that life of political and social action and married and moved away to the suburbs with her husband. There, they had a son, who is gay and married another man and we learn of his life when he also drops in at Marsha’s that evening. Marsha even argues with Jonathan (Mason Rosenthal), but he is so insecure, he doesn’t fight back

            Another surprise visitor is Lilith (Jennifer Summerfield), Marsha’s third ex-wife, who has come by to collect her things. Marsha and she disagree on so many things, but then again, Marsha disagrees with everyone about almost everything. She is frustrated. She is unhappy. She is angry. And we realize that we share much of her anger. And that is what makes this play so engaging.

            The sisters have real problems, from the cancers that both had, to the fate of the family home. We wonder if anything can be resolved as Janice tries to forgive her sister.

            And then, to top it off, there is Chorus, a Jesus or Moses-like character who serves as an on-stage narrator and also as Marsha’s conscience at times. Chorus (Adam Pelta-Pauls) explains things, he anticipates actions. And he reminds us of the possible cure-all for not only the problems faced by the characters in the play, but of the problems of the world- chicken soup. Yes, chicken soup, the Jewish penicillin.

            This wonderful 90-minute play by Dan Kitrosser is a play that relates to us all. The friend who accompanied me was laughing and loving it as much as everyone in the sold-out theater. And she’s not Jewish. I enjoyed listening to each character and identified with them all. Dardaris was great! Stevens was great! Pelta-Pauls was great! They were all great!! Director Jesse Bernstein has developed this dynamic little play into a small epic that is sure to be grabbed by other theaters around the country for production.

“Marsha Blovotnick and the Marvelous Magical Chicken Soup” by Dan Kitrosser at Theatre Ariel being performed at The Louis Bluver Theatre, 302 S. Hicks St., Philadelphia 19102, 610-667-9230, Info@TheatreAriel.org    Extended thru March 29, 2026

People’s Light proclaims in its release that they are presenting a William Shakespeare play that “Explores Love, Power, and Identity.” I was ready for it because after seeing several of the bard’s tragedies in the past year, I was looking forward to the comedy that “Twelfth Night” is.

I often have trouble seeing plays by Shakespeare, and my most recent experiences were not favorable- actors just recited their lines. But “Twelfth Night,” on the stage at People’s Light, while not a comedy that keeps you laughing, IS smart and engaging. This topsy turvy play holds your interest once you get past the old language. And this rendition, a recent adaptation by Andrew Watring, who also directs it, is outstanding!

It begins with Viola being brought ashore after surviving a shipwreck off the coast of Illyria. In order to survive, she disguises herself as a man to work for the Duke of Orsino. The duke is in love with Olivia and uses Viola, who now goes under the name of Cesario, to tell Olivia of the Duke’s love.  But Olivia falls in love with Cesario, not realizing that he is a she. Meanwhile, Viola falls in love with the duke, who in this modern version, is not a duke, but a hotel owner at the luxury Duke’s Palace Hotel in Croatia.

Then, there is a secondary story.  Malvolio, who in the original, worked for Olivia, is on Orsino’s staff. In both versions, Malvolio is misled to believe that Olivia has a crush on him, as two other guests, Toby and Andrew, seek to humiliate him. It is rather broad slapstick with many sexual references. There is the fool, Feste, who in typical Shakespearean literature, is probably the wisest man on stage as he observes the goings on through his songs.

I was a bit confused for a time as to what was going on in what seemed like a set of wild stories, but was told by another person in the audience, that I was supposed to be confused.

Everything is out of joint. But through it all, I found it visually stunning, and the acting of the ensemble was first rate as this modern production captures the essence of the play by the Bard of Avon. I would offer two suggestions The first act is presented in an hour and a half and the second is less than an hour. I would have liked that for that first act to have been divided into two shorter acts, giving me more time to digest what was going on. But I did love the little adjustments made by Watring, which I dare not reveal. See for yourself how this game of musical chairs turns out.

One more suggestion before you go to see this unique, outstanding production. Read a summary of the play and get there early so you can read the most informative of programs.

“Twelfth Night” by William Shakespeare adapted by Andrew Watring at People’s Light, 39 Conestoga Rd., Malvern, PA 19355, 610-644-3500, peopleslight.org   Thru March 29, 2026

Moliere’s “Tartuffe,” written in 1664, is one of the most famous comedies of the stage and has seen many adaptations over the last 350 years. It was initially banned because it dealt with religious hypocrisy. There was a recent one in an Off-Broadway production with Matthew Broderick. A new version of the farce, adapted by Bob Sloan, presented by Kammerspiel, premiers at the Performance Garage in Fairmount for a very brief run.

            It’s the story of a man and his family after Tartuffe arrives in town. The father, Orgon (Nathaniel Crosby Fishburn) and his mother, Pernelle (Dave Allison-played the role in drag), are mesmerized by Tartuffe (Connor Hogan). Orgon would do and does do anything and everything for him. But his daughters, Damis and Mariane, his sister Cleante, and his wife, Elmire, all see through the thin veneer of the lying, self-serving Tartuffe.

            We don’t even meet Tartuffe until 20 minutes into the play. All we know about him is from the banter, back and forth, amongst the other characters. And what banter it is. The original play consisted of clever rhyming couplets, sometimes within a character’s lines, other times, the rhyme is from single lines between two characters. It is smart. It is clever. This version of the play is new. It takes place today. Looking up the play on-line, I see its themes were faithful to the original even though Organ’s brother and son in the original were recreated as his sister and daughter. But wait! The original was in French. The translators of the play would have to find similar words that rhymed. Sloan has done a masterful job in updating it in rhyme and in telling the story.

            That story consists of Orgon’s family trying to expose the selfish, ruthless, Tartuffe. The other side of the story is Orgon defending everything about Tartuffe, in spite of the latter’s chicanery. Orgon even wants his daughter to break off her planned wedding with Valere and marry Tartuffe. When his other daughter, Damis objects strongly to her father’s idolization, he writes her out of his will.

            Orgon’s wife sees all the hypocrisy that Orgon doesn’t see. She tries to set a trap for Tartuffe and puts her husband under a table to watch.

            “Tartuffe” is being revised often these days because of the similarity between the play, and what is going on in this county- blind devotion to a person despite overwhelming evidence of his treachery.

            The story unfolds on a bare stage except for a table and two benches. They don’t need more. What the actors needed to make this a more compelling play, was direction on how to recite the couplets. It lacked drama. It didn’t help define the characters. Orgon is portrayed as a fool- no depth at all. Tartuffe was often just rapidly reciting lines. I didn’t feel the ominous threat. But then again, neither do many Americans feel that threat today. Listening to him became tiring, and I just tuned out for short stretches.

            One of my favorites in the play was the maid Dorin (Jennifer Summerfield), as she tries  to help Orgon’s daughters and expose Tartuffe. Another favorite was Orgon’s wife, Elmire (Deborah Crocker), an interesting and real person. But often, I felt like the characters were acting in completely different plays. It’s supposed to be a farce. I didn’t find myself laughing often.

            The Kammerspiel is a new theater in Philadelphia, and I was hesitant to criticize the production because I do want the company to succeed. But that’s what a critic does. As I said, this new version of the play is a good one.

“Tartuffe” by Moliere in a new version by Bob Sloan, at Kammerspiel  at Performance Garage, 1515 Brandywine St., Philadelphia PA, 215-569-4060, Tickets at performancegarage.org/performances  Thru March 8, 2026

            Pearl Cleage is an African-American writer. She is a novelist, an essayist, and a poet. She is a political activist writing and speaking out about racism and sexism. She is also a brilliant playwright who penned three remarkable plays in the 1990’s. Lantern Theater is presenting one of those, “Blues for an Alabama Sky,” on its intimate stage. It is a fascinating play about four people in Harlem in 1930 who are wrestling with financial hardships, sexuality, love, and dreams. It is most captivating.

We meet Angel (Ebony Pullum), a jazz singer, whose gangster boyfriend has left her and she was fired from her singing job. She moves in with her gay friend Guy (Cookie Diorio), a costume designer who seeks to move to Paris and design for Josephine Baker. Across the hall in the same apartment building is Delia (Taylor J. Mitchell), a social worker who wants to set up a family planning center in Harlem and believes it’s a woman’s right to choose whether or not to have a baby. And then there is Doctor Sam (Kash Goins), a friend to all. Into their lives comes Leland (Tariq Kanu), who’s recently arrived from Alabama.  A most attractive man, he had just lost his wife and baby during childbirth and is smitten with Angel, who looks like his wife.

Cleage creates drama behind each of her characters. The most flamboyant is Guy, who is constantly commenting on the clothes of others in a most humorous way. The neighbor, Delia is struggling with a community that fights her in her goal to achieve birth control for women. Doc is without a partner and would love to make it with Delia. He has had lovers, but he wants love. At the beginning of the play, he has just arrived after delivering twins. He is exhausted after working such long hours but is a very good listener and a compassionate man.

Angel is the centerpiece of this tale. She is so frustrated. She seeks employment most anywhere for a while, but it is the depression, and work is hard to find. She just wants to sing again. But she also need money just to eat and pay part of the rent. When Leland arrives, he is smooth talking, he has money, and he wants her. What should she do?

It’s not an easy answer. At first, she overlooks his ultra-conservatism regarding women, but then, this rather religious man has issues with Guy’s sexuality. Guy is her best friend. More issues arise and decisions must be made that will affect them all.

This masterpiece, a work of historical fiction, where the characters are coming into contact (not on stage) with the likes of Josephine Baker, Langston Hughes, Adam Clayton Powell, Sr., and Margaret Sanger, is so believable, you’d swear it was an actual true story. Director Brett Ashley Robinson has done an outstanding job in putting together this complex play by Pearl Cleage!

“Blues for an Alabama Sky” by Pearl Cleage at Lantern Theater Company at St. Stephen’s Theater, 923 Ludlow St., Philadelphia, PA 19107. 215-829-0399   lanterntheater.org   thru March 15, 2026

Two New York City sanitation workers are assigned to work together on a route. Danny, a blue collar divorced father, has been driving garbage trucks for years. Marlowe is an African-American woman, with a Master’s from Columbia University who we are not certain as to why she has taken such a job. He jabbers on and on while she remains quiet, clearly avoiding expressing anything about her life- polar opposites. Will they find common ground as they ride in the cab of the truck and pile trash into the back of it?  That is the story behind “The Garbologist,” by Lindsay Joelle, now running at Montgomery Theater in Souderton.

            Initially, we listen to Danny rant about everything as they ride in the truck.  In the second scene, we see them collecting the garbage. He keeps telling her the way to pick up the bags and how to toss them. Though it is humorous to us, Marlowe is not amused. She doesn’t want his help in any way. She wants to do the job alone and let him just drive. It does become interesting as he tells her about what he has learned from people’s garbage. We learn the word “mongo” from Danny. It is the art of discovering treasures in people’s trash. And Marlowe creates the word “garbologist,” a person who studies or is an expert in garbage.

            He tells her about how his ex-wife pulled their son away from him, as if it is the worst thing in the world until she blurts out that her 4-year-old son is dead.

            As expected, they do start to relate to each other. And Marlowe is thrilled when Danny gives her a book that he found in the trash and that she recognizes as an artifact of great value that she can sell. She is heavily in debt. She even agrees to have a drink with him. But when he discovers the value of the book, he wants a piece of the selling price.

            It’s a good story and Matt Pfeiffer and Noelle Diane Johnson give outstanding performances in the play. But while “The Garbologist” is interesting, somehow it is also rather formulaic and lacks the emotional subtext thats needed to make me care more deeply about the characters. If this were the play’s premiere, I would hope that playwright, Joelle, would work on it further to give it more depth. But alas, it has been around for three years. Her play is good. I wanted it to be better.

“The Garbologists” by Lindsay Joelle at Montgomery Theater, 124 Main Street, Souderton, PA 18964. 215-723-9984   montgomerytheater.org   thru March 8, 2026

William Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar” was written over 500 years ago. It consisted of five acts and 18 scenes, and a full production lasted about 2 ½ hours. The tragedy had over 50 characters. When I read it for class in junior high school, I was fortunate to have a great teacher as well as the Cliff’s Notes summaries. I loved it!  This Tyler Dobrowsky adaptation has reduced the play to 95 minutes with an ensemble of four actors in trimming the classic to its core, while using most of Shakespeare’s original language. It also takes place in modern times.  I looked forward to seeing this classic play in its new form. Unfortunately, it didn’t succeed for me on several levels.

            Julius Caesar had defeated his rival Pompey in 49 BCE and declared himself the dictator for life of the Roman Republic. But Cassius, one of the senators of the day, along with Casca, another senator, is convinced that Caesar’s ego is so huge, that he will destroy the republic, and that he wants to be its emperor, despite his turning it down three times. H

They convince Brutus, a close friend of Caesar’s, to join them in killing Caesar

 Dobrowsky’s condensed version has the men dressed in fine blue business suits, talking at the bottom of a huge set of stairs.  There is no action. They just talk and talk and talk, except when one makes or receives a call on his cell phone. It is actually a relief as we see the caller and texts sent by the men, in large projections above the minimal set. It is a relief from the boring presentation.

            Shakespearian English is a challenge for modern audiences but with beautiful sets and costumes and action on the stage, it can be fun. As a teenager growing up in New York, I often went to see Shakespeare’s plays in Central Park. PTC’s production was neither fun nor interesting. I found the characterizations rather weak. There was little powerful emotion by the four men playing six roles. Whether it was the acting, the staging, or the directing by Morgan Green, it was often like listening to the actors at a first reading of the play. I never felt the power or charisma of Caesar. I never felt the love of Brutus for Caesar, and even the passion of Cassius seemed muted. It’s about loyalty and betrayal but it just wasn’t strongly presented.

The best parts were when I recognized some of the iconic lines from the bard’s great play, particularly the tribute by Marc Antony which begins “Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ears. I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.” There is still much of the story that follows Caesar’s death. It was very difficult to stay focused until the lines I remembered were spoken.

            While I appreciated the effort of Philadelphia Theatre Company and its co-artistic director Dobrowsky to abridge the piece and make it relevant to today’s time (there are images of the storming of the capitol on January 6 and of anti-ICE picketers in Minneapolis), it wasn’t an interesting piece of theater to sit through. Rather than an abbreviated rendition of Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar,” it felt longer than 2 ½ hours.

“Caesar” adapted by Tyler Dobrowsky from the play “Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare at Philadelphia Theatre Co. at Suzanne Roberts Theatre, 480 S. Broad St., Philadelphia, PA 19146, 215-985-0429  boxoffice@philatheatreco.org   thru February 22, 2026

It is a backyard of neighboring South Philly row houses. In one lives Fran Geminiani and his son, Francis, a student at Harvard.  Bunny Weinberger and her son, Herschel, who seems to be on the spectrum of autism, live in the attached home and share the backyard. Both Fran and Bunny are single parents, each having been left by his or her spouse. But the core of the story revolves around their kids and the two classmates of Francis who pay a surprise visit on the eve of Francis’ 21^st birthday. The relationships amongst all are quite complicated in this play that opened off-Broadway in New York in 1976 before moving to Broadway where it ran for over three years. EgoPo is bringing the play home to Philly where Playwright Albert Innaurato grew up.

            Early on,, we meet Fran (Johnny Fernandez) who is treating his son Francis (Tommy Sullivan-Lovett), home for the summer from college, as a child. He is loud, he is pushy, he is obnoxious- but Francis seems to take it. He has other things on his mind. Then, two friends, Randy (Kohl Hastings) and Judith (Eliza Waterman), a brother and sister who he has known since childhood and who attend Harvard and Radcliffe, arrive unexpectedly, planning to tent in the backyard. They meet the neighbor, and Bunny, greets them, placing a kiss on the lips of Randy.  She is constantly flaunting her sexuality in a most raucous manner. She acts as though she would sleep with anyone.

            Fran has his lady friend Lucille (Annette Kaplafka), a widow who lives nearby and puts up with him because she thinks she can do no better at this stage of her life. When I read reviews of the Broadway production, I saw that this was so successful because of its groundbreaking discussion of homosexuality. Francis isn’t sure what he is. He hasn’t come out to anyone. He even had a bit of an intimate connection with Judith. She clearly loves him. But does he love her or would he prefer her brother, Randy? And what is the difference between loving someone and liking them?

It’s both a simple and a complex script and I can see why it was such a hit on Broadway. In EgoPo’s production, I thought the younger actors did an outstanding job in relating the confusing emotions they were juggling. I did find the over-the-top portrayals of Fran and Bunny a bit too much and I zoned out a few times as I did with Penelope’s fast talking that made it often challenging to understand what she was saying. But it’s still a play I would recommend for its sensitive perspectives on relationships and the confusion of what it meant to be gay during the 70’s.

“Gemini” by Albert Innauratoat EgoPo Theater, being performed at Theatre Exile, 1340 S. 13^th Street,, Philadelphia, PA , 267-273-1414, www.egopo.org   Thru February 15,, 2026

Sojourner Truth was born in Upstate New York around 1798, one of a dozen children of James and Elizabeth Bomefree. Her parents were slaves, and she was too. When she was an infant, two of her siblings were sold to different estates in what was once Dutch New York. Sojourner’s first language was Dutch. In this one-woman show written by Richard Lamont Pierce, Zuhairah McGill brings to the stage at Curio Theatre, a role she originated over twenty years ago. In it, she is older and is telling the stories of her journey, out of slavery and her views of what was going on in America before and after the Civil War. It is an extraordinary learning experience as it is performed powerfully by McGill in this 90-minute piece.

            Sojourner is about to go through a stage door to talk to the public. She is one of the most sought-after speakers in the country in the mid 19^th century. She even met with Presidents Lincoln and Grant. But before, she is addressing us, the audience- the press- and she tells us about her life.

Normally, I don’t enjoy plays where there is lots of telling rather than showing.  However, McGill shares Sojourner’s stories with such feeling, in her voice and through her facial expressions, that we feel as though she is sitting with each of us privately. And what stories they are!!

            Before she was 30, she was “owned” by 4 different families, being sold several times. She was constantly abused, both physically and mentally and was ridiculed every day for being a stupid Black thing. A displeased wife of one of her owners once poured boiling water on her hands. She had no more value than a horse, – except to herself, as she realized what lay in store for her and her people.

            We feel we are with her as she watches impoverished and famished Africans arrive by ship, heading for the auction block. She sees the gunning down of those who try to escape. Later, when she is free, we are with her as she fights in court to get back her son who was sold to a Georgia plantation. And we watch as over the years, a powerful friendship develops with Frederick Douglass after a rocky beginning.

            Sojourner spoke at many women’s conferences and anti-slavery meetings. She was an inspiration to so many. And after the Civil War, she had hope during the period of Reconstruction until it abruptly stopped with the election in 1876, of Rutherford B. Hayes.

She is almost 80 when the Ku Klux Klan arrives. What a history lesson in an hour and a half. I wish that I could have learned this way instead of in the boring textbooks that I read. And in those books, there was so much that wasn’t there.

            Zuhairah McGill is not just portraying an amazing woman of the 19^th century, she is her- Sojourner Truth!!!

“Sojourner” by Richard Lamont Pierce at Curio Theatre Company, 4740 Baltimore Ave., Philadelphia, PA 19143 , 215-921-8243,  curiotheatre.org   thru February 14,, 2026

“Proof” is the story of Catherine, a gifted young mathematician, as she and her sister Claire, are dealing with the death of their recently deceased father, a brilliant mathematician himself, though a bit unstable. Catherine had given up her college and her plans for the future to return home five years earlier to care for Robert. Hal, a former student of Robert’s, and now a Math Professor himself, is also on the scene. He is seeking any enlightening research in the attic where Robert kept meticulous records of these last five years. Claire simply wants to get Catherine out of the house, for she fears her younger sister is a bit deranged and cannot care for herself. She also wants to sell the house.

 What is discovered is a journal of profound importance of a mathematical proof in a desk upstairs. How could he have written such a piece given his condition? Did he write it, or was it the work of his daughter, Catherine? It is one of the major factors that drives this Pulitzer Prize and Tony award winning drama by David Auburn from 2001, which is on the stage at Act II Playhouse this month. Their cast of four give a powerful presentation of Auburn’s play!

            It opens with Catherine talking and laughing with her father. We then realize that this is a dream of Catherine’s. There are eight more scenes in this two-act play where we see the struggling relationships between the sisters and, between Catherine and Hal, who develop an attraction for each other. And then, there is the dealing with a parent who was once one of the leading minds in the field of mathematics, but in his last years, was, often confused.

            There is also the main substory about the authorship of the newly discovered work. They want to dismiss the idea that a young girl with a half semester of college could have written such a paper.

            While the core of the story takes place during the weekend of the funeral for Robert, we learn so much as we actually see Robert in two flashback scenes. I loved Scott Langdon’s portrayal of Robert. It was not one of a crazy, looney man but of a genuine person, a kind person, who is still smart, as he loses his sharp analytical powers.

            I loved all the portrayals by the actors. Megan McDermott brings a practical, no-nonsense quality to Claire as she seeks a logical way out of the dilemmas she is confronted with. Adam Howard portrays Hal in a most genuine manner, even though he has geekish qualities. We love the brief romance between him and Catherine even though we have trouble with his disbelief in the fact that she, a woman, is the author of the new proof.

            And I can’t say enough about Jenna Kuerzi’s Catherine. She is portraying a woman who has had no life for five years outside of caring for her father. She has no friends. She has gone nowhere. She’s a bit of a geek herself. And she constantly worries that she is so much like her father that she will eventually inherit his mental illness. But she is so real that we soon identify with her and feel her struggles.

            Director Kate Brennan has given us a play that won many awards but can easily be presented superficially. There is nothing superficial about this staging. She has found the perfect cast, and we can see why it won so many awards in her masterful direction of this powerful drama.

            An afterthought: “Proof” is reopening on Broadway this Spring for 16 weeks where the tickets begin at $144. At Act II, they start at $35, and I can’t imagine a production better than theirs.

“Proof” by David Auburn at Act II Playhouse, 56 E. Butler Avenue., Ambler, PA 19002, 215-654-0200,  act2.org   thru March 1,, 2026