Character development counts in bringing plays to life onstage

Tracie Lockwood, left, Ned Mochel and Anne Gee Byrd in "A Permanent Image" at Rogue Machine Theatre. (John Perrin Flynn / Rogue Machine Theatre)Shortly after savoring Rogue Machine Theatre's scrupulously acted production of Samuel D. Hunter's "A Permanent Image" and just before attending the much-praised Antaeus Company revival of William Inge's "Picnic," I felt awash in gratitude for plays that won't ever become classics but provide actors with rich opportunities to wield their interpretive art.

"A Permanent Image" is that species of playwriting frowned upon by the snootier factions of the avant-garde — the domestic drama. Two adult siblings with matching psychological baggage have returned…