Humana Festival '93, the Complete Plays

These works, all presented at the Humana Festival, are written by a bolder generation of playwrights, one which has been turning steadily away from realistic drama and toward the poetry of a less bounded theater. This is not to say, however, that they avoid contemporary issues. In a very funny and provocative piece by Lynn Nottage, a woman finds herself addressing a pile of ashes after raising her voice to an abusive husband--the shock of the incident has caused him to spontaneously combust. Regina Taylor takes the reader to the gathering of a black family whose unresolved feelings toward their heritage become apparent. One sister, voted Black Woman of the Year, has bleached her skin and altered her face to such an extent that her own father doesn't recognize her. People examine their own lives in this collection as well. In Jose Rivera's short, stark play, one man is sentenced to an eternity of listening to the tapes of every lie he ever told. These are plays that ask questions--about humanity, about the theater--and while the answers are not always clear, the questions are almost certainly worth asking. Smith edited Contemporary Mov ie Monologues. (Nov.)