X’s and O’s don’t add up in Playwright Local’s ‘Down by Contact’ Bob Abelman Cleveland Jewish News, The News Herald, The Morning Journal Member, American Theatre Critics Association Les Hunter, a member of the Playwrights Gym at Dobama Theatre and board member of the new-play incubator Playwrights Local, is part of an active group of artists creating and staging new works in Greater Cleveland. His latest play, “Down by Contact” – a drama about the disabling effects of the degenerative brain trauma that has now been linked to football-related concussions – is getting its world premiere production. The play is certainly topical. Ever since groundbreaking neurologist Bennet Omalu published his research on the subject in 2006 – whose findings were initially and intensely denied by the NFL – athletes the likes of legendary Pittsburgh Steelers center “Iron Mike” Webster, Kansas City Chiefs Pro Bowl running back Larry Johnson, and San Diego Chargers Hall of Fame linebacker Junior Seau have been diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Sports have long been a powerful metaphor for life, with Sarah DeLappe’s 2017 Pulitzer Prize finalist “The Wolves” – a coming-of-age drama about nine female high schoolers in an indoor soccer league – serving as a most recent example on the stage. But “Down by Contact” is not metaphoric. Not at all. For more of this article, go to www.clevelandjewishnews.com/columnists/bob_abelman/