If there is any regret whilst viewing the excellent "The Happiest Song Plays Last", it lies in not experiencing the first two plays of the trilogy, "Elliot, A Soldiers Fugue" and "Water by the Spoonful", alongside it.  Wrapping up the saga of two cousins Elliot and Yaz, living worlds apart, this play about legacy and love written by Pulitzer Prize Winner Quiara Alegría Hudes and directed by Tony Award Winner Ruben Santiago-Hudson is a rare find, rich with actual and imagined experience.

Elliot (Arando Riesco), a former soldier, relives his military trauma on the set of a docudrama being filmed in Jordan; there, he meets film actress Shar (Annapurna Sriram), and with the Egyptian revolution erupting just miles away, off-screen love transpires between the two.  Meanwhile, in North Philly, Yaz (Lauren Vélez) caters to the community with her rice-and-beans soup kitchen and crushes on an old guidance counselor, Augustín (Tony Plana), who becomes more than just a friendly neighbor.

Hudes’ choice to examine the lives of these two cousins provides for a remarkable piece of theater that explores questions about forgiveness and identity.  Elliot learns that he can't escape the ghost of his past transgressions and finally comes to peace by burying the passport of a civilian he was ordered to take down in war many years ago.  Yaz restores her faith and commitment to aiding those in need after losing the man she hoped would be the father of her child.  It’s a great example of storytelling via bare essentials, with its primal yet sophisticated form.  Santiago-Hudson keeps the action of the play downstage and close to the audience, trusting his wonderfully skilled actors to share this story truthfully without the shield of unnecessary spectacle.

The ensemble of actors really puts the icing on the cake.  Sriram is a pure delight from the moment the lights appear, and Riesco, who played Elliot in the other two plays of the trilogy as well, is extraordinary. There might never be an Elliot as true. Vélez, who many will recognize from her role on "Dexter", is captivating as Yaz; the relationship her character shares with Augustín is endearing and beautiful, with its unexpected arc.  Anthony Chisholm plays Lefty; one of the many who benefit from Yaz's soup kitchen, he infuses his voice with all the turmoil of his life. And Dariush Kashani rounds off the cast perfectly as Ali, the assistant to the director in Jordan who serves as the "cultural expert" for the film.

"The Happiest Song Plays Last" is lyrically unique to our generation; incorporating Skype conversations and instant messaging, it illuminates the ways we now communicate as a society.