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My Name Is Rachel Corrie. Rachel Corrie has been a lightning rod for controversy ever since her death in Gaza in 2003, when the 23-year-old was run over by an Israeli soldier as she attempted to prevent the bulldozing of a Palestinian home. But Corrie was more than just a symbol; she was a genuinely unique young spirit. This play was put together by English actor Alan Rickman and journalist Katharine Viner from Corrie's journals and e-mails; it's clear that the world lost a lot when it lost this strong, individual voice. Much of the power of this production stems from the fact that you can't separate what you're seeing on stage from what you know —- that this marvelous young woman, who spoke of death and hope in the same breathless moment, would die a cruel, violent death. "Love you. Really miss you," she wrote in a letter to her mother. "I have bad nightmares about tanks and bulldozers outside our house and you and me inside." With her graceful hands and gentle dignity, Julie Rada perfectly embodies the character of Rachel. Director Brian Freeland gives us just enough light to provide a clear view of Rada's face, and she pitches her voice just loud enough to be heard comfortably, but you still have to lean in a little to catch everything. Along with the simplicity of the set, this restraint adds to the power of the evening. Presented by Countdown to Zero through November 17, Bindery/space, 770 22nd Street, 720-938-0466, www.countdowntozero.org. Reviewed October 4.

My Old Lady. The play begins like a clash-of-cultures comedy of manners as Mathias Gold, a penniless, middle-aged American, enters the stylish Paris apartment he's inherited from his father and learns that the place comes with its previous owner, who is entitled to live on the premises until her death. Madame Mathilde Giffard is 94 and has lived a life of culture and adventure that includes a long-term affair with Mathias's father. In her mind, this was a romantic and magnificent liaison, but Mathias takes the revelation badly, sinking deeper and deeper into drink and self-pity. The tone of the plays changes. Now we're witnessing an examination of the meaning of love, the effects of private choices in the world and the tainted legacy passed from father to son and mother to daughter. As Matthias begins to have feelings for Mathilde's daughter Chloe, he realizes that she, too, is profoundly damaged. My Old Lady doesn't moralize, and you find your sympathies swinging back and forth among the three protagonists. This is one of the best things Miners Alley has done. Presented by Miners Alley Playhouse through October 27, 1224 Washington Avenue, Golden. 303-935-3044, www.minersalley.com. Reviewed October 18.

Thom Paine (based on nothing). Will Eno's play is a strange, hour-and-some-long monologue. It contains some passages about a sad little boy and others about a failed love affair, and some viewers have seen it as the story of the monologuist's (pain-filled) life, told with much twisting and indirection. But it doesn't seem that there's actually anyone in front of us on the almost bare stage. Although actor Erik Tieze is up there saying words, he doesn't feel human. He comes across as a husk, a ghost, a mocking, ever-changing, constantly self-inventing presence. He leads us through dozens of familiar tropes, ideas and images, picking them up, distorting them, tossing them away. He prompts us to feel something — pleasure, empathy, sadness — and then mocks us for feeling it. In one of his stories, the little boy is drawing in a puddle with a stick when he sees his beloved dog accidentally electrocuted. Later, the child is stung by a swarm of bees. Although the pain is excruciating, he doesn't associate it with the insects. He thinks they have arrived to help him, and rubs them against his skin. We feel compassion, even as we register the implausibility of the story. And he has a thought to add about childhood suffering: "Isn't it wonderful how we never recover?" he says. The bottom line? Thom Pain is brilliant. The language is beautiful in the exact clean, precise, musical way that Samuel Beckett is beautiful. And Tieze's performance is mesmerizing, utterly dynamic and wonderfully precise and controlled. Presented by Modern Muse Theatre Company through October 28, Bug Theatre, 3654 Navajo Street, 303-780-7836. Reviewed October 18.