Playwright Meghan Kennedy returns to Roundabout Theatre Company for a limited Off-Broadway engagement at the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center’s Laura Pels Theatre with her latest commission The Counter, an increasingly intimate and revealing conversation between a waitress and a regular at the local “way upstate NY” small-town diner where she works and refills his coffee every morning. Under the steady direction of David Cromer, we see their friendship develop and get to know them, hear the secrets and traumas they share, the shocking request he makes of her, and the encouragement and support they give one another, which impact their distraught psyches and the course of their lives. Susannah Flood and Anthony Edwards. Photo by Joan Marcus. The daily conversations take place on an unchanging set (by Walt Spangler) on both sides of the eponymous counter, with shifts in lighting (by Stacey Derosier) that mark the passage of days and their evolving thoughts and moods, and sound (by Christopher Darbassie) that indicates the weather conditions, traffic, and barking dogs outside, while they are alone talking and thinking inside the empty diner, in casual everyday clothes and a heavy winter jacket when venturing out of their mutual safe haven into the cold (costumes by Sarah Laux). Anthony Edwards as Paul and Susannah Flood as Katie deliver moving, sympathetic performances filled with fully believable emotions and touches of humor that masterfully capture the growing friendship and openness between the two lost souls and bring home the overarching message of the need for human connection to make life worth living. They are joined in one significant scene by the equally excellent Amy Warren as Peg, a local doctor who is known to both and provides a touchpoint in their developing story, their gradually exposed backgrounds, and the gentle release of their suppressed feelings. Amy Warren and Anthony Edwards. Photo by Joan Marcus. Though there are times in which Kennedy’s overly poetic language, big revelations, and responses (too easily dismissing the obvious question of the legality of the alarming favor Paul asks of Katie) require a suspension of disbelief as their conversations move from mundane to momentous (it should be noted that the show has sensitive content, which might be triggering for some), the outstanding cast embodies it all with affecting humanity. The Counter offers an engrossing dive into the minds of people who have been deeply shaken by their past, a reminder of the importance of human bonding, warm physical contact, and understanding of another’s devastating personal struggles, and a masterclass in acting by the outstanding cast. Running Time: Approximately 70 minutes, without intermission. The Counter plays through Sunday, November 17, 2024, at Roundabout Theatre Company, performing at the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre, Laura Pels Theatre, 111 West 46th Street, NYC. For tickets (priced at $77-164, including fees), go online.