ALIBI

This is one instance when the narrator’s performance far surpasses the story itself. Three dope dealers are killed in a move to rob a stash house. The killer escapes but needs an alibi for his whereabouts during the shootings. Enter Daisy, a 22-year-old stripper, who provides the killer with said alibi—for two thousand dollars. Allegedly, they were in a bar together all night. But Daisy runs when she realizes what she’s covering up and is pursued by the killer, the law, and another interested party. Most of the characters in this depiction of 1986 Philadelphia are African-American, and Paula Parker-Martin's supreme efforts run the gamut—from the hard-nosed dope dealer to the streetwise but weary Daisy to a grandmother figure who rings true to life. A.L.H. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine [Published: NOVEMBER 2009]