It is 1974. Steven Spielberg is in the process of directing the film based on the novel by Peter Benchley, “Jaws.” It stars Robert Shaw, Richard Dreyfus, and Roy Scheider. “The Shark is Broken” is a comedic look at what happened during the filming when the mechanical shark used for the film broke down and the three actors had to wait for its repair. This is that story, written for the stage in 2019, and is now playing at Montgomery Theater in Souderton.

            Let me begin by saying that I am probably one of the few people who never saw the movie, “Jaws.” If I did see it when it came out 50 years ago, I don’t remember it. But I knew about it. Everyone knew about it. I decided to watch it the day before seeing “The Shark is Broken,” which was co-written by Joseph Nixon and Ian Shaw, the son of Robert Shaw. I truly enjoyed the movie. I loved the play.

            There is a lot of down time when a movie is being made. Actors must stay close to the set for days and even weeks at a time.  They have time to share stories, but they also have time to argue, to drink, to bitch about life. They have time to reflect on their careers. They commiserate about the possible failure of the very film they are making as they sit in the cabin of the boat used for the film.

            Robert Shaw has difficulty learning the lines about how he was almost killed by sharks during World War II when the S.S. Indianapolis went down under Japanese fire. Dreyfuss is an insecure young man with a big ego, hoping to become a famous actor. There is strong drama in these scenes. But there is also much comedy.

            There are a ton of edgy, smart jokes. Referring to the president, who has just resigned- “there will never be an immoral president like Nixon.” Another- “Jews should stay out of the water. Nothing good ever happens… Didn’t Jesus walk on water?… Yeah, and look what happened to him.”

            Mostly, though it is the story of three men, who like the characters they portray in the film, come from very different backgrounds and argue with each other as their egos collide, particularly those of Shaw and Dreyfuss. Scheider does his best to cool the guys down and they do play some gambling games to pass the time.

            There is so much in this finely written piece. Though we can’t assume any of the conversations between the actors were not fictionalized, we do know that there was a lot of hostility between Shaw and Dreyfuss.

            Damon Bonetti (Scheider), Jared Michael Delaney (Shaw), and Adam Howard (Dreyfuss) delivered such powerful performances, it’s hard not to believe that they were just the characters they portrayed. Director Matt Pfeiffer, who has directed tons of theater throughout the Philadelphia region, will find it hard to top this production.

            Rush out to Montgomery Theater to see this brilliant show superbly performed. Anyone who has ever seen “Jaws,” even if it is 50 years ago, will love “The Shark is Broken.”.

“The Shark is Broken” by Ian Shaw and Joseph Nixon at Montgomery Theater, 124 Main Street, Souderton, PA 18964. 215-723-9984   montgomerytheater.org   thru June 28, 2026

How does a trio become a duo? It happens when one of the three leaves the threesome for a variety of reasons. In the case of a family, it often occurs when the couple’s child goes off to college. If the parents only have one kid, they are suddenly confronted with what we call, the empty nest syndrome. That’s what Jen Childs and Scott Greer had to face a few years ago. They created af comedy cabaret piece about once again becoming a twosome which is now on the stage at People’s Light.

            Jen and Scott are Philadelphia’s premier theater couple, the likes of Mike Nichols and Elaine May or Burns and Allen. But they are not a standup comedy team. He has performed to perfection in every major Philadelphia theater She has brought comedy to incredible heights in creating 1812 Productions, an all-comedy theater venue. And when she performs, she knocks your socks off.

            “Two Outta Three” traces a couple’s dealing with their show business future following the departure of their daughter, a part of their act, as they delve into their past routines and work to reinvent themselves.  They try to remember what they had done 17 years ago, before the daughter was born. And they have very different memories, from who played the straight man to the very lines themselves.

            They quarrel at first, but it is very clear that they love each other. And the little quarrels are so funny, they begin us on a road to laughter that will fill the 75 minutes of their show. They sing famous songs with altered lyrics. (Scott is an accomplished player of the ukelele and the guitar.) They dance about. They try out different personalities. They try Bogart and Bacall, Nichols and Elaine May, and Judy Garland and Mickey Rooney. Nothing fits.  Mostly, they tell jokes, all kids of jokes, to each other and to us. They are clever jokes and they are deliberate groaners.

            Their bedtime story to their daughter was from “Romeo and Juliet” where they occasionally inject lines from “West Side Story.” So many things. So much craziness, Yet so real! I often don’t connect to things that others find funny. Jen Childs and Scott Greer have created a mini masterwork of comedy. “Two Outta Three” was my kind of humor. I loved it! I think you will too.

“Two Outta Three” Created by Jennifer Childs and Scott Greer at People’s Light, 39 Conestoga Rd., Malvern, PA 19355, 610-644-3500, peopleslight.org  Thru June 21, 2026

Theatre Exile is concluding its 29^th season with a most unusual play. It’s the story of a Black mother and daughter guarding the grave site on the grounds of a Philadelphia/African Church where Moses Freeman has just been buried. He was the husband and father of Missy and Charity Freeman before he died. They are guarding the grave lest a grave robber, not uncommon in 1832 when the scene takes place, digs up the body. But that is only half the story.

            Fast forward to scene two, two centuries after the opening. On the same grounds of the church, there is now a day camp, and we meet another mother and daughter, Minnie and once again, Charity. They bicker like any mother and daughter, but the real issue is Minnie’s trying to keep her daughter from being expelled from camp because she destroyed a water fountain.

            In six scenes, the play jumps back and forth between these two scenes with Reyne portraying the mother and Samaja Murphy portraying and daughter in both. There is much talk about the racism they face in their daily lives, from education to their upbringing (Missy was sold into slavery when she was nine years old by her own mother because she needed money). The present-day Charity stands up and fights against racism.

            It’s a story about the powerful bonds between mother and daughter. But it is also a story about searching- what to do next in their lives.

            The concept of creating two roughly parallel stories is a good one. But I was more interested in the older story. I saw the grieving but also learned about how newly buried bodies were often dug up to be sold to medical institutions for dissection to learn about the body, especially during the cholera epidemic. And poorer families, particularly Black families, were targeted, though the benefits were for white people.  It was a most heartfelt tale.

            Though the dancing and much of the dialogue seemed to resonate well among many in the audience, I didn’t enjoy the modern story as much. Though the two actors played both roles, the only way I saw different women in the two tales was in the spitfire reciting of their lines, which I often couldn’t follow, in the second story. The attempts at a broader comedy just weren’t my style as it resembled some silly television sitcoms, and I tuned out.  Yet I noticed the audience laughing often.

            As I stated at the start, it’s a most unusual story. Even the subtitle is unique- “How to flip ten cents into a dollar.” See if you can.

“The Great Privation” by Nia Akilah Robinson at Theatre Exile, 1340 S. 13^th St., Philadelphia, PA 19147, 215-218-4022,  boxoffice@theatreexile.org   Thru June 14,, 2026

Five women who meet on a community center soccer team in Scotland are now on the same soccer team and about to compete for the Homeless World Cup. Coming from widely different backgrounds, this a story of friendship- female friendship, amidst troubling times in each one’s life. That is the background behind “Same Team” by Robbie Gordon and Jack Nurse, the play making its American debut, on the stage at Inis Nua Theatre.

            The subtitle of the play is “A Street Soccer Story.” But this play is less about the sport than it is about the five women from these different backgrounds who come together to try to win for Scotland.

            One woman, Jo, is struggling with drug addiction. She is the captain of this ragtag team. Another, The B, is an angry woman, just released from prison. Then there is Sammy, a single mother dealing with a most challenging relationship with her own mother. She is also facing a possible eviction from her home. Noor is the young one. She is caring for her grandfather, who suffers from dementia. Finally, there is Lorraine.  Her husband has left her. She is lost as she tries to find a new identity.

            As they practice on their local field in Dundee, Scotland, then travel on the train to the competition, and finally arrive at the site of the tournament in Milan, Italy, they bond in a most special way that goes far beyond their play on the soccer field.

            We see that they are lonely. They are scared, though they express it in different ways. Some are homeless. They have nothing… except they discover, each other. Sounds like a powerful play? Mayber it is. But I had one major difficulty sitting in the audience of the production of “Same Team” on opening night. I couldn’t easily follow the story lines because I didn’t understand what they were saying much of the time. When I got home, I read about the play to fill in the gaps.

            I am sure that the actors were speaking with an effective Scottish accent since dialect coach, Leonard Kelly has worked with many theaters in the Philadelphia area. But I have to say that I missed close to half of what they were saying. The friend I was with had the same problem. And at the act break, I found that others were having the same problem. I wish that the women just had the lilt of the accent instead of the full one. I often felt as though they were speaking in a forein language.  Hey, even when I watch a British film on tv, I have to turn on the subtitles.

            If you do go, be sure to read a summary of the play before to make it easier to follow the stories of each of the women as the come together on the same team.

“Same Team” by Robbie Gordon & Jack Nurse at Inis Nua Theatre Company at The Proscenium Stage at the Drake, 302 S. Hicks St., Phila., PA 19102, 215-454-9776, inisnuatheatre.org,  thru June 14,, 2026

If I ever saw the film “Annie Get Your Gun,” it was on TV a million years ago. I saw the tv series with Gail Davis in the ‘50’s. Still, I knew so many of the songs because I listened to the LP with Ethel Merman portraying Annie Oakley. So many songs I knew- “Doin’ What Comes Naturally, You Can’t Get a Man with a Gun, Anything You Can Do, They Say it’s Wonderful” to name a few. I couldn’t wait to see this classic Irving Berlin show on the intimate stage at Act II Playhouse. I wasn’t disappointed! Every aspect was an A+. I don’t know where to begin.

            Let me start with Renee McFillin as Annie. She sings. She dances. She acts. She projects both the feminine side of Annie Oakley and the simple boyish side. And she shows us both the proud and the human side of the legendary cowgirl. She IS Annie Oakley. Move over Ethel Merman!

            Then there is Frank Butler (Michael Isaac). It is easy to portray this male sharpshooter in an over-the-top, stereotypical manner. Isaac handled it with grace and power and gave Butler a very real persona.

            I could go through each member of the ensemble and point out how good he or she was. I loved the choreography by Stephen Casey, who also directed this masterpiece. I was overwhelmed by how much he did to bring this play to life. It was a visual treat thanks to him and costume designer Janus Stefanowicz.

            As for the story, it’s a simple one. It’s about the challenge of Frank Butler by Annie Oakley in a sharpshooting contest. They develop feelings for each other but struggle to overcome the barriers of a male-female relationship of the day. The story unfolds seamlessly as we watch the many issues confronting them.

            The small ensemble surrounding Annie and Frank was great. I loved watching the two dancers (Cara Treacy and Gaby Mosely) as they danced about in the gorgeous costumes by Stefanowicz. And Dominick Sannelli was extraordinary as Charlie Davenport, the business manager of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, where Annie and Frank perform.

            This cast gave extraordinary renditions of the songs by the great Irving Berlin. Such smart lyrics. Such beautiful tunes. The performance of those songs is reason enough to see the show. I know that many of the shows are already sold out. This rendition of “Annie Get Your Gun” rivals anything you might see on Broadway for a fraction of the cost. I guarantee that you will be thoroughly entertained for every minute of this remarkable production.

“Annie Get Your Gun,” Original book by Herbert & Dorothy Fields as revised by Peter Stone. Music & Lyrics by Irving Berlin at Act II Playhouse, 56 E. Butler Avenue., Ambler, PA 19002, 215-654-0200,  act2.org   thru June 28, 2026

Real Women Have Curves” by Josefina Lopez premiered in 1990. Twelve years later, Lopez co-authored the film based on her play. Last year, a musical version played on Broadway. Bristol Riverside is bringing back the original, lively, honest story of five Latina seamstresses, struggling financially, in East Los Angeles in 1987. And though it deals with so many relevant subjects that women still face today, this production was disappointing.

            Estela runs a tiny sewing factory where her mother Carmen, her sister Ana, and two friends, Rosali and Pancha worked sewing dresses. Estela (Regina Carregha) is in debt. She not only owes money for the sewing machines, but must also raise money to pay legal expenses to defend her being in this country. Unlike the others, she doesn’t have her green card because she had been arrested for trying to “abduct a lobster.” But if she can create 100 dresses by the end of the week for a client, there is hope for her and the factory.

            She is one of the eight children of Carman (Adela Romero), who couldn’t fend off her husband’s sexual advances and chose to gain weight and get fat to hopefully make him lose interest in her.

            Estela’s younger sister Ana (Luana Psaros) has just graduated from high school and is working for her.  Ana hates this menial work and wants to go to college, but she needs financial aid. A young feminist, also overweight, she journals regularly when she sneaks off to the bathroom.

            Pancha (Ava Sofia Mattox) is a large woman who laments that she is unable to have kids. When Carmen suggests she might be pregnant again, Pancha says she will gladly raise the kid if it is true.

            Finally, there is Rosali, who is always dieting. She is the only one of the five who is not significantly overweight. She, like the others except Ana, feel that the only way to catch a man is to be shapely.

            They all work hard. Ana learns how to iron. Carman goes out on a date. They swoon over a magazine showing naked couples engaging in sex. So why did I have so much trouble enjoying this show? Simple. The actors were talking at each other, not to each other. There was no subtlety.  The meaning of Lopez’s script did not come through amidst the ranting. Few were laughing at the comic lines of the play. I saw many in the audience nodding off. I was bored with this rather heavy-handed interpretation by Director Leyma Lopez.

            At the act break (which seemed eternally long to reach), when I was in the rest room line, I talked with others who told me that it was a struggle to understand what the actors were saying. I had that problem too and only discovered much of the plot by reading about it online later. When I returned to the theater for the second act, I saw many empty seats.

            The second act WAS better, as the women come to grips with their bodies, and as they blast men for their sexist views of women, I enjoyed it more. But the show on the Bristol Riverside stage does not show the feelings inside these women. Read the play. It is very good. “Real Women Have Curves” by Josefina Lopez at Bristol Riverside Theatre, 120 Radcliffe St., Bristol, PA 19007, 215-785-0100, brstage.org,  thru June 14,, 2026

The Wilma Theater has brought to its stage to close its 2025-26 season a most unusual play by Pulitzer Prize winner Suzan-Lori Parks. “The America Play” follows a Black impersonator of Abraham Lincoln, as he runs a very strange tourist attraction and takes us on a most surrealistic view of America.

Nine years later, she would write “Topdog/Underdog,” the play that won her the Pulitzer. It is about two African-American brothers, Lincoln and Booth, as they deal with racism, poverty, and other issues and Lincoln earns a living as a whiteface Abraham Lincoln impersonator.

The primary character in this play is a Black grave digger who resembles Lincoln and goes by the name Foundling Father. He charges customers a penny to be there for the reenactment of Lincoln’s assassination. They pull the trigger with a fake gun, and he goes into a sort of comic routine with his arms before he “dies.” Some return weekly to pull the trigger.  It’s rather weird but so is the whole play. In fact, it appears that he often wishes he were Abraham Lincoln.

            In the first act, Foundling Father (Lindsay Smiling, who also directed the play) tells us that he has dug 723 graves. That’s how he has made a living. But he wants more and leaves his family and heads west with a trunkful of beards and his black coat and stove pipe hat. He calls Lincoln “The Great Man” and refers to himself as “The Lesser Man.”  He portrays the president so well that some say, “he ought to be shot.”

En route, he gives us a sort of history lesson, the thrust of which is that history is created by the recorders of history rather than by the actual people. Who gets to be remembered is determined by the writers who are often very biased. But he says it’s all a preface and will be rewritten many more times. As for Foundling Father himself, he’s learned things by digging those graves where he imagined different stories about so many famous people. But he is still searching. He wants his own fame and sets up The Hall of Wonders, a sort of Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum. He claims to have a bone from Washington’s leg and also, the president’s wooden teeth. After all, what is the truth?

The second act of the play is about his son, Brazil’s (Brandon J. Pierce) quest for answers. He was deserted by his father when he was only five. He searches for the man but also searches for meaning in life which his father cannot provide since he has died.

There is so much that is talked about in this play, and I will confess- I did not follow all of it. It is most existential and often seems rather abstract. I often don’t get the meaning of modern poems, and I don’t relate to many works of abstract art. Be prepared to listen to lots of talk on what it means to be an American today. In the mostly monologue first act and the dialogue between Brazil and his mother Lucy (Kimberly S. Fairbanks) in the second act, there is a lot to absorb in his search for answers.

What does it take to become a great man? Parks gives us a most unique philosophical look at life as we think we know it, while providing a variety of comic moments and a look at history through an alternate lens.

“The America Play” by Suzan-Lori Parks at The Wilma Theater, 265 S. Broad St., Philadelphia, PA 19107, 215-546-7824  wilmatheater.org    Thru May 31, 2026

I was contacted by a guy named Joshua Crone last month because he wanted me to see and review his play, “Waiting for Westy” at Yellow Bicycle Theater. I had never heard of this theater which is located on the second floor of a building at Arch and 15^th Street. I learned that this is their tenth show and its their first Barrymore-eligible show. It deals with a South Philadelphia VFW Post and a rift between the veterans on how and why the war in Vietnam was fought, and whether or not to let General William Westmoreland (the commander of the forces in Vietnam from 1964-68) attend the memorial.

            Anyone who was alive during that period will be fascinated as they relive so many moments in the history of the war. More fascinating is the argument between Skipper (Richard Roddy) and Doc (Thoeger Hansen) at the Post as they argue about the very merits and demerits of that war. Doc was a medic and he defends the decision made by Westmoreland and others for being in Vietnam to stop Communism from infiltrating the country. Skipper, who was severely injured during the war with shrapnel in his legs, scoffs at the ideas behind the U.S. participation in that war. He opposes letting Westmoreland to the Post for a drink during the time in 1987 when they were erecting a memorial for those who died in the war.

            Then, there is Froggie. An alcoholic and a drug user, he is not coping with what he witnessed in the war. Though it is not mentioned, he is clearly struggling with PTSD.

            The fourth character in this story written for the stage by Joshua Crone, who also portrays Froggie, is Aki. Aki (Lenny Ramos) is the son of a veteran of the war who was a friend of Froggy’s. Aki has brought a video that his father left him before he died. It is of testimony from the veterans of the war. He is also an Indian (Native American). It is clear that his father first thought it was a noble cause to fight for his country, but then, realizing what the struggle was about, reversed his stance.

            The four of them argue, they challenge each other, they give us an abbreviated history of the times… and they drink. But the core of the play is not just about their experiences, but what they and the rest of Americans were told about the battles and their supposed successes. While they argue, they play pool and Skipper even throws darts at a dartboard. There was a picture of Jane Fonda in the center.

            When I was 17, I heard that the Viet Cong (the Communist North Vietnamese) had attacked American ships in the Gulf of Tonkin. I was infuriated and had no problem when our government suddenly escalated our offensive there. But in time, it was revealed about the lies we were being told by our military and our government. We learned later that we were NOT attacked! And when we were attacked with their Tet offensive, Americans were shocked because they thought we were winning the war and it was only a matter of time. Westmoreland had lied about so many things.

            There are video projections shown on a curtain from those days as we watch testimony of veterans who report of the atrocities and massacres of the Vietnamese. There are also excerpts from films like “The Green Berets,” that glorify our presences in Vietnam.

            I loved the banter between Skipper and Doc, though it was a bit heavy on the information, which I am not sure anyone not of that generation would follow. And then, when Froggie enters, it gets more confused as Crone spoke softer than the others much of the time and I missed his stuff. And when Aki comes on, he sits and talks with his back to the audience, and I missed much of what he said as well. Later in the play, when he was turned around, I caught every word of the powerful story of what he revealed about his father.

            The other problem I had with the play was the sound during many of the projections as the actors were talking at the same time. .

            Be prepared to move, as the play takes place in three locations on the second floor of the building. Two of the scene-breaks are also act breaks where you can purchase a beverage at the on-stage bar of the VFW.

            This is a long review of a play with a very short run. I saw a preview and it closes next weekend. Anyone who lived through those times will be enthralled, and if the younger folks living through the perils of the War in Iran follow it, they will see the parallels.

Waiting for Westy” by Joshua Crone at Yellow Bicycle Collective, 1435 Arch Street, 2^nd Floor, Philadelphia, PA 19102, (entrance on 15^th Street) 267-709-8015,  yellowbicycle.org, Thru May 31, 2026.

Benjamin Franklin was such a prominent figure in America’s story. He was an inventor. He was a writer and publisher. He was a diplomat. He was one of the signers of The Declaration of Independence. His son William, born out of wedlock, was a colonial governor of New Jersey and a British Loyalist. “Franklinland,” a play by Lloyd Suh about the troubled relationship between father and son, opened off-Broadway in 2024 and is now making its Philadelphia debut at Lantern Theater.

            The play consists of six scenes, spanning over 30 years, beginning in 1752 with Franklin’s kite flying experiment. Father and son are working together, William adoring his father.  Benjamin explains to his son that power is in human hands, not God’s hands as they work on attaching the ribbon and key to the kite. William works to absorb all that his father tells him, hoping to emulate him in every way.

            We see the clever inventions. Benjamin Franklin is developing including the urinary catheter We realize that it was he who coined the term “Gulf Stream.” We watch as he refuses to wear a wig like the others. He jokes about sex. He belittles New Jersey. But one thing is clear in Suh’s interpretation- Benjamin Franklin is a narcissist who ALWAYS thinks he is right because he IS Benjamin Franklin!

            Franklin tells his son that he has acquired land in Nova Scotia. Naming it Franklinland, he hopes to move there with his son some day while he opens the place up for scientists, inventors, and dreamers like himself. It is a most intriguing story. But in time, conflicts develop between father and son.

            It begins when Franklin breaks up the engagement of his son and tries to select a bride for him. In fact, he seeks to control every aspect of his son’s life. William is so disgusted with his father’s treatment and interference that when William is appointed Governor General of New Jersey, he insists that his father call him “your excellency.” But this is just the tip of the iceberg.

            In a later scene, Franklin is not sure where he stands at first regarding a possible revolution and is feeling personally insecure. He seeks his son’s help in repealing the Stamp Act, to regain the faith of his countrymen. It isn’t happening, as William is faithful to the King of England.

`           The play though, is less about politics than it is about the deteriorating relationship between a father and his son. I was fascinated as I watched them quarrel but also learned new things about the history of my country. Director Charles McMahon did an outstanding job of telling this story superbly acted by Frank X and Dave Johnson as father and son. It flowed seamlessly from scene to scene. I couldn’t wait to get home to read more about the Franklins. Was I in for a shock!

            Playwright Lloyd Suh tells us in the very informative program that this is not a history lesson. “I gave myself permission pretty early on to deviate in certain ways from the historical record, but I wanted everything to be rooted in the truth.” Often, I suggest that the theater goer read the program before the show begins. If you are seeking a story that is a finely crafted historical tale, this is not for you. On the other hand, this presentation is so entertaining in its often-realistic approach and comic approach, that I recommend that you just see and enjoy “Franklinland” and read the program later.

“Franklinland” by Lloyd Suh at Lantern Theater Company at St. Stephen’s Theater, 923 Ludlow St., Philadelphia, PA 19107. 215-829-0399   lanterntheater.org   thru June 7, 2026

“The Woman Question”- that’s the title of the play. With such a title, it can be about so many things, I thought. In fact, this is a world premier of a play that takes place at the end of the 19^th century as the Class 1894 arrives at the Women’s College of Pennsylvania, the first medical school exclusively for women. It is a diverse group with students coming from Japan, Syria, and Russia as well as a Native-American from Nebraska and an African American from Georgia. It promised to be most interesting to me as my daughter, born prematurely, was a patient there.  Sadly, the play didn’t work for me for many reasons.

            From the very beginning, there is a ton of exposition about the school. Many of the actors talked so fast that I didn’t get half the information they were trying to relate. I did enjoy the way they appeared on stage at first, climbing out of cabinets and coming through closet doors. And I loved that they called each other “Doctor.” I liked that they told each other, “you belong,” indirectly referring to the way men were dismissive of women as doctors.

But then, they started speaking rapidly again and I didn’t know what was going on most of the time. “Show me, don’t tell me,” I wanted to scream out. The best scene in the play was the class on dissection, where we watched them pull organs from a body that was portrayed by one of the students.

I asked my friend who sat beside me, and she understood less than I did. And at the act break, I asked a young man in the audience, and he told me that he zoned out often because he couldn’t hear and follow the tedious narration.

            That is not to say I missed it all. I understood the backgrounds of most of those women who told how they arrived at the school. The one of the Indian woman (Avanthika Srinivasan), is most powerful. I followed the long discussion of their views on the female bodies they worked on, particularly regarding the illegality of abortion. And I loved when Melanye Finister and Suli Holum, the two mentors at the medical school, stepped out of character and told us what they went through during their pregnancies and deliveries… But every time the group of students got together to talk, they rambled on so fast that I didn’t follow most of their talk. And I rarely understood more than a few words of Sasha, the Russian woman. In addition, I thought the play wandered at times and tried to do too much. I can pick apart so much of the play but just let me say that the 2+ hours in the theater felt twice as long.

I always look forward to People’s Light productions, but this new show was not written well and was presented poorly. The playwright, Suki Holum, is a talented artist and this is an important subject. I hope she rewrites what they are calling this, a “docu-fantasy.”

“The Woman Question” by Suki Holum at People’s Light, 39 Conestoga Rd., Malvern, PA 19355, 610-644-3500, peopleslight.org  Thru May 24, 2026