Sean McConaha and Sean Derry share more than a name; they wade, it seems, in the same vat of tremendous talent. The founders and guiding lights of the two-year-old the Bang & the Clatter Theatre Company, these two consistently mount some of the freshest and most stimulating theatrical fare around. This year, they staged
Fat Pig (yes, it was about a fat girl, and was both funny and poignant) and the bracing
Long Christmas Ride Home. Even their near misses (
Roulette, Red Light Winter) are more interesting than other theaters' mild successes. Bonus: They serve free wine and imported beer before each show, and they're opening a downtown Cleveland theater in 2008. Counting both locations, that's 16 plays per year. Clear your date book.