THE FACULTY LOUNGE

Lisa Flanagan performs this group story of a faculty at one public high school as if she were herself an entire acting company. At the beginning of the story's school year a superannuated substitute teacher dies ingloriously on a couch in the eponymous lounge. That episode and each one following introduces more linked characters, events, complications, and unintended consequences, sometimes funny, sometimes sweet, occasionally shocking, but all absorbing and believable. It's a deeply satisfying performance, even more impressive for the fact that Flanagan refuses to show off her own high kicks and dazzle, opting instead to focus the listener's attention on the novel's characters whose ages and personalities are simply utterly distinct and real to us. Her skill and control are a quiet marvel. B.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine [Published: AUGUST 2024]