Convicted of killing her husband, Fay’s spent 15 years in Scottish prisons and out of communication with her daughter, Josie. Now, at 25, Josie’s taken it upon herself to reestablish contact. Rona Munro’s smart, interesting, potentially affecting play follows Fay and Josie as they simultaneously discover and bypass each other. That Kurt Johns’s production never manages to liberate “affecting” from “potentially” has a lot to do with its overall softness–but most of all with Apple Tree’s temporary space, which requires in-the-round staging even when that works against the best interests of the material. As it does here. You just can’t identify with characters in an intimate drama who spend two-thirds of their time with their backs to you. –Tony Adler a Through 3/4: Wed 7:30 PM, Fri 8 PM, Sat 5 and 8:30 PM, Sun 3 and 7 PM, Apple Tree Theatre, 1850 Green Bay, ste. 100, Highland Park, 847-432-4335, $35-$45.
