Plays have been written about people who shine at their professions, but perhaps never in as literal-minded a manner as in Melanie Marnich's "These Shining Lives." Receiving its world premiere at Centerstage, it's an affecting, reality-based story about women who worked at a radium watch dial factory in Chicago in the 1920s.

Radium poisoning makes them glow, and it's depressing to see how sick they become. Indeed, an eventual lawsuit and the implementation of better safety standards provided small consolation for women whose health was shattered.

Although the playwright does not spare us the sad details, much of "These Shining Lives" has the comic tone of female workers bantering in a factory that paid relatively good wages for that time.

This sociological slice of life is interesting, even though Marnich tends to be both superficial and relentless with enough name-dropping of movie stars and mobsters like Al Capone to remind us we're in the Chicago area during the flapper era. One often senses the playwright making marks on a check list as she accumulates the cultural references.

The writing has other weaknesses as well, including a narrating protagonist who initially piles on the exposition. This intermissionless, 80-minute play would benefit from some revision, but there's no denying that it's entertaining and instructive.

To her credit, Marnich really makes us care about these women; and to its credit, the production directed by David Schweizer maintains a brisk pace through the numerous short scenes played out on a minimally dressed set.

"These Shining Lives" astutely places its focus on one married couple, Catherine Donohue (Emma Joan Roberts), and her husband, Tom (Jonathan C. Kaplan). Like other working men then, he has reservations about seeing his wife enter the work force. His unease specifically concerns how their two juvenile children must be watched by a relative when she goes off to her job.

The play alternates between scenes at the Donohue home and others set at the radium watch dial factory, where Catherine quickly becomes friendly with her co-workers: the naive Pearl (Cheryl Lynn Bowers), well-mannered Frances (Kate Gleason), and blunt-talking Charlotte (Kelly McAndrew). Joining in the banter is their boss, Mr. Reed (Erik Lochtefeld).

Marnich incisively brings out the differences in their personalities, but another shortcoming in the script is that the personal lives of Catherine's co-workers are only mentioned in passing. While it's dramatically valid to keep our attention on Catherine, it would help the play if there were more biographical items adhering to the lively women around her. Their personalities are as bright as their dresses, but it's frustrating that the script skims the surface of their lives.

The actors other than Emma Joan Roberts are called upon to also briefly portray an array of secondary characters ranging from judges to journalists. This strategy generally makes sense, but it does seem odd to have a scene in which two adult actors are meant to represent Catherine's small kids.

Seeing a new play is an exercise in deciding what works and what doesn't; audience members vicariously find themselves playing script doctor. Even though the prognosis for Catherine and her friends is grim, this funny and sad play is in basically good shape. Yes, it even shines.

"These Shining Lives" runs through June 1 at Centerstage, at 700 N. Calvert St., in Baltimore. Tickets are $10 to $60. Call 410-332-0033 or go online to www.centerstage.org.

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