It's morning in the city. Shorty rolls cigarettes on a bench while Jim looks for change in phone boxes. Big Tom is already drunk. As these men on the fringes of society draw us into their world, they trade stories about doughnuts and smokes, sisters and girlfriends, shelters and welfare. Acts of kindness follow acts of selfishness, and humour keeps pace with despair. We're made privy to the men's dreams and exposed to their flaws; we're moved by their common dilemma. But it's early yet. It's election day, and an aboriginal is running for office. Anything can happen... Filled with abundant humour and sharp insight, life of the street is given a human face as three lonely men fumble to make a connection. Jim and Shorty was a Summerworks Festival smash hit and a Dora Mavor Moore Award nominee.

Alex Poch-Goldin is an acclaimed playwright and actor whose work has been produced internationally. His plays include This Hotel, Yahrzeit (both published by Scirocco Drama), Jim and Shorty, The Life of Jude, Anybody and Nobody and This Way for the Gas, Ladies and Gentlemen, adapted from the work of Tadeusz Borowski. Cringeworthy and This Hotel were both nominated for the prestigious Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Play, and the French version of This Hotel (L`Hotel) won the 2005 CBC/Le Droit prize for best production in Ottawa. His play Yahrzeit won the Toronto Jewish Playwriting Award and will receive its world premiere in Germany prior to touring Europe. Alex was commissioned by CBC Radio to write The Death of Simon Pinchuk, which was recorded and broadcast nationally. He has also developed an orginal television series, Rosedale, in addition to adapting his play Jim and Shorty for broadcast on Bravo Television. Alex has recently completed his first feature film script, Jacob's Dream. He lives in Toronto.

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