Singular (female) voices

"Jordan" by Moira Buffini and Anna Reynolds is the true story of Shirley Jones, who kills her baby boy, Jordan, rather than have him taken away by his abusive father.

Reynolds met Jones when they were both in prison. On her release, she co-wrote the play with Moira Buffini, who went on to write "Dinner" (2002), a National Theatre and West End hit starring Harriet Walter. "The Lost Art of Keeping a Secret" by Catherine Johnson is the alternating stories of two women (played by the same actress), both of whom 'lose' their sons, one is apparently murdered, the other is a runaway.

Catherine Johnson wrote the script for "Mamma Mia!", and, before that, three plays for the Bush Theatre, London, between 1989 and 1998.

In "Unsuspecting Susan" by Stewart Permutt, Susan's life revolves around her dogs, am-dram, bell-ringing and village gossip.

But alarm bells ring (though not for unsuspecting Susan) when, amongst the tittle-tattle, we hear about a 33-year-old son who, after years of mental illness, shares a flat with Jamil and has converted to Islam...The premiere productions in London and New York starred Celia Imrie in 'a play that defines as well as any I have seen our post 9/11 times' - "Jewish Chronicle".