Kimberly Akimbo at Olney Theatre Center

With power ballads, sharp lyrics, and a book that’s full of laughs, this 2023 Tony Award Winner for Best Musical, Best Book, and Best Score (by Fun Home’s Jeanine Tesori) sheds light on our universal desire for a meaningful life. It’s Saturday night at a skating rink in Bergen County, NJ, and 16-year-old Kimberly Levaco is meeting up with her odd assortment of misfit high school friends, consumed by their typical insecurities and unrequited crushes. But Kimberly — played by 63-year-old Victoria Clark on Broadway in a Tony-winning turn — is further from the norm, since she has a rare disease that makes her age at 4-times the normal rate. Still, she wants all the things a 16-year-old wants: a family that supports her, a first love, and a great adventure – and time is of the essence. The arrival of her felonious Aunt Debra provides an unexpected opportunity to achieve all that, and more, but at a cost.

“The season’s most moving [and] profoundly funny new musical” - The New York Times