A new comedy by local playwright A. Jay Dubberly

Friday, October 16 & Saturday, October 17, 2026 at 7:30 p.m.
Community Room, Ilsley Public Library, Middlebury
Admission: $5 at the door

The Middlebury Community Players are delighted to present two staged readings of Left & Leaving, a bittersweet comedy by Bristol playwright A. Jay Dubberly.

A young couple is determined to host the perfect holiday gathering in their new Vermont home. Their plans start to unravel when an eccentric older man appears at the door, explains that he used to live there, and then simply refuses to leave.

What follows is an increasingly ridiculous evening of unwanted houseguests, relationship trouble, broken plumbing, expensive champagne, terrible timing, and a truly inadvisable amount of sour cream. Beneath the comedy, Left & Leaving explores the strange attachments we form to places, the difficulty of letting go, and what it means for a house to become a home.

These readings offer a rare opportunity to hear a brand-new work by a local playwright, brought to life by local actors. They also mark one of the first MCP events in the beautiful new Community Room, part of the recent expansion of the Ilsley Public Library in downtown Middlebury.

Event Details

• What: Left & Leaving, a staged reading

• When: Friday, October 16 and Saturday, October 17, 7:30 p.m.

• Where: Community Room, Ilsley Public Library, 75 Main Street, Middlebury, VT

• Admission: $5 at the door

• Reservations: Call 802-377-3540

About the Playwright
A. Jay Dubberly is a writer and educator living in Bristol, Vermont. He is the founder and editor-in-chief of Zig Zag Lit Mag, a hyper-local print publication. Jay teaches film and writing courses at several colleges and lives in a small apartment with his wife, surrounded by a trove of books, films, and happiness.