Remembered

SHORT PLAY

SHORT PLAY
Drama

Walls are diaries and rooms have desires. In the buying and selling of a house, two people discover what's truly at stake and the power of finding love through loss.

CHARACTER INFORMATION

Doris - Female, 61, any race / ethnicity

Peter- Male, 24, any race / ethnicity

THEMES

intergenerational relationship, forgiveness, family, home, attraction

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

BEST OF FESTIVAL
(Know Theatre, NY - 2019)

FINALIST
(Little Fish Theatre, CA - 2020)

FINALIST
(Subtext At The Earl Of Derby, United Kingdom - 2020)

FINALIST
(Itinerant Theatre, LA - 2020)

BEST 10-MINUTE PLAYS
(Smith & Kraus Publishers, NH - 2021)

REVIEWS & RECOMMENDATIONS

“What a gentle, thoughtful play with gentle, thoughtful characters. The connection between the older woman, who is selling her home and the younger man looking to buy, is a sturdy dream - a solid connection that happens between actions. Luckily, Mabey has captured it for us in this beautiful play.”
(D. Lee Miller)

“This beautiful two-hander captured my attention immediately. John Mabey has captured the sense of the ephemeral here, which is not an easy thing to do in writing. The feelings this play evokes are both bittersweet and familiar. Yearning and longing. We are witnesses to a moment between these two characters that is gone in an instant. As this year's editor for Smith & Kraus' Best 10-Minute Plays 2021 Anthology, I knew this short piece needed to be included.”
(Debbie Lamedman)

“This is such a quiet piece of theatre; dreamy and sweet. Two unlikely people meet in a house that's for sale. Awkward in almost every other situation, the two find common ground and speak deeply to each other. Beautifully layered with longing and sadness. Everyone should have moments like these.”
(Marj O'Neill-Butler)

“So much richness in so short a work! There's a wonderful sense of melancholy in this play balanced by some delightful, gentle humor. And these two well-defined characters speak many truths, each of which made me pause for a minute to consider. I'd happily have a cup of lavender tea and listen to them chat all afternoon.”
(Nathan Christopher)

“What a lovely depiction of an unlikely spark of connection. Two people of different generations, different life experience, and different roles (she's a seller, he's a potential buyer) bond over surviving losses and the meaning of the memories that permeate an old house. This is a work of great subtlety and gentle surprises that would be a delight to see in performance.”
(Paul Donnelly)

“I saw a Zoom reading of this play and was impressed, first that it's an inter-generational play in which the relationship is not the usual quasi-parent-child one, but simply that of two adults of different ages and life experiences. That's rare by itself, but the skillfulness and delicacy of the dialogue makes it even more so. It's the sort of play that you want to read after you see it, and are well rewarded for doing so. The image of the murmur of the wind in the loose windows being the sound of the house dreaming will stay with me.”
(James McLindon)

“A tender play about two lonely people finding each other. This is a play about two people falling in love -- but not romantic love. Just two human beings recognizing something in the other. I liked how the young man is revealed to be neurodiverse without calling attention to it. The ending is proper -- tantalizing, yet that's how it should end. A gentle, sweet, touching play. ”
(Mark Harvey Levine)

“Charming and effortless, a short play about a relationship emerging before her eyes that doesn't feel forced or rushed at all. Mabey's assured touch with the human in human connection as well as the writer's dry wit are both fully evident here. Some moments feel so oblique that you question what you are seeing. The ambiguity works well, particularly as the play is so grounded in genuine human emotion.”
(Maximillian Gill)

“I produced an audio version of this play on the radio theater podcast GATHER BY THE GHOST LIGHT. As someone who loves to journey through nostalgia in my own life, this play hits me in all the right spots. And the genuine human connection between Doris and Peter is a beautiful interaction. These two characters are written so honestly and Mabey brings them to life in a remarkable way. Highly recommended to anyone wanting to produce a moving piece that will hit you right in the feels.”
(Jonathan Cook)

“John Mabey’s beautiful short play is deeply touching. The two characters, an older woman who is selling her home and the young man interested in buying it, constantly surprise us with what they reveal to each other and us. We also learn fascinating things about the house itself. Just when you think you know where the play is going, Mabey takes us down a different road filled with yet another surprise. This play is a gift!”
(Glenn Alterman)

“ "Walls are diaries and rooms have desires". Playwright John Mabey had me at the synopsis. Getting to read any Mabey play is a treat, and "Remembered" rightfully deserves all the accolades and publishing it's received. Doris and Peter, and this house of memories will stay with you a long time after reading. An expertly crafted piece of the moments between us that make us human - and humane. A poetic, dreamy, image-laden play that has as many layers as the mud room.”
(Arianna Rose)

PRODUCTIONS

Sweet Pea Chamber Theater, NYC - 2023

4th Street Theater, IN - 2021

Gather By The Ghost Light Podcast, GA - 2021

Geneva Theatre Guild, NY - 2020

KNOW Theatre, NY - 2019

PODCAST

IMAGES

KNOW Theatre

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