By Ann Bennett
Register-Pajaronian Theater Writer

SANTA CRUZ - Last weekend was evidently a weekend for soul searching theater. Friday night I saw the introspective "night, Mother," and that was followed by Saturday night's equally introspective, but far more emotionally complex production of "A Long Time Since Yesterday." The drama, presented by the African American Theater Arts Troupe at UCSC, is a quixotic evening of theater that ranges from cordial superficiality to soul-searching honesty with pleasing and engrossing results.

Playwright Patricia Gibson has written a beautifully crafted play that examines the intertwined lives of five strong, but individually dissimilar African American women. Set in the mid-1980s, the story unfolds as the women gather after the funeral of their mutual friend, Janeen, to grieve together and to share their insights into a life that ended with an unexpected suicide.

Gibson's play is a powerful and evocative, and the AATAT production is both tremulously empathetic and searingly direct. "A Long Time Since Yesterday" doesn't pull any punches in its look at these five women and their struggle to cope with some sort of reality. With the inclusion of comedy and even a bit of music, the show confronts sex, race, politics, and gender without flinching.