Tribes (Barrow Street Theatre, 27 Barrow St., closes Jan. 6). A well-wrought drama by Nina Raines about a self-consciously arty family of compulsive talkers whose youngest member (Russell Harvard) is deaf. David Cromer’s theater-in-the-round staging maximizes the considerable strengths of Tribes (including its biting, often brutal humor). Not only is it the best show in New York, but the off-Broadway run has just been extended into January. What are you waiting for? (TT).