Often, mass tragedies are best understood not through bare statistics, but through personal stories of those affected. My Brother's Gift, a play by Claudia Haas based on the real experiences of survivor Eva Geiringer Schloss, tells one of these stories. I saw it on Saturday at the Black Box Theatre, and director, designer, and Black Box co-founder Lora Adams and her cast and crew have put together a spare, straightforward production that serves both as a remembrance and a call to action.

Disaster!, created by Seth Rudethsky, written by Rudethsky and Jack Plotnick, and now at the Circa '21 Dinner Playhouse, combines classic catastrophic-cinema elements with '70s pop tunes, and director/choreographer Amy McCleary, music director Ron May, and all involved came together to create this silly, music-filled diversion.

I enjoy seeing a beloved musical that's so well-known I could easily sing along (though I never would). It's also fun seeing familiar faces and saying, "Hey, I know her!" "I acted with him!" Countryside Community Theatre's Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is that kind of show. It's both a classic and a family affair, as many summer productions with this company are.

After a rough few weeks, I wanted a diversion. So even though I hadn't read the Natalie Babbitt novel on which it's based, I was happy to attend Thursday's final dress and tech rehearsal for Tuck Everlasting at the Spotlight Theatre. I left feeling both impressed and refreshed.