Paralysis Promising big surprises to close out both acts, local doctor and playwright Harold Keairnes takes a long, unblinking look at the tragedy of quadriplegia through the eyes of the family and friends charged with taking care of Rob Peters, a football player who has suffered a devastating on-the-field injury. Not one of those surprises: the fact that Peters never appears onstage. The play is more concerned with the wide-ranging effects of such an injury than with the injury itself. For the first time in too long, Paula Acconcia, of Gorilla Theatre and the occasional all-night Edgar Allan Poe festival, directs. Through May 5 at Just Off Broadway Theatre, 3051 Central, 816-292-2887. (Alan Scherstuhl)
The Syringa Tree It's been a busy winter for the Kansas City Repertory Theatre, which saw a new theater and no fewer than three shows debuting in just weeks. Problem was, some superb lead performances notwithstanding, neither Lear nor Janis nor Sherlock lived up to the rep of their title characters. Now that the dust has settled, here's something promising: a newish show based on Pamela Gien's childhood in apartheid-era South Africa, generously stocked with actors as good as Peggy Freisen and Gary Neal Johnson. Earlier incarnations of this drama have snagged an Obie, a Drama Desk Award, and the Fleur du Cap Award, South Africa's version of the Tony. Through May 27 at the Copaken Theatre in the H&R Block Building, 13th St. and Walnut, 816-235-2700. (Alan Scherstuhl)
