Under Thirty: Plays for a New Generation
Adult/High School–Comprised of 5 full-length plays, excerpts of 4 more, and 11 one-acts and short pieces, this collection offers thespians plenty of characters to portray in situations that crackle with teen appeal. Jenny Lyn Bader'sNone of the Abovepresents two students battling not only the demands of SAT preparation, but also what each of them believes that the other values about earning top marks. In Allison Moore'sCowtown, two sisters move from the city to a suburb where they meet farm kids and a new kind of social pressure. Many of these plays feature ribald remarks, suggestive possibilities, and sexual identities of many hues. All are well constructed and each has been performed professionally. While libraries serving sophisticated theater audiences will definitely want this collection, note that the individual plays are covered by varying caveats when it comes to performance rights. The permissions at the end of the volume need to be read before these works can be used in public performance.–Francisca Goldsmith, Berkeley Public Library, CACopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.