Playing around with creating an abridged version myself, here is what I arrived at - trying to balance keeping the best stuff (in my opinion) with preserving the most crucial plot points from the songs and a decent flow. I haven't tried listening to it in this form yet (it has been hard enough to fit in a few listens of the full album) so I'm not sure if there are any stupid song transitions in it:
1. Descent Of The Nomacs
2. Dystopian Overture
3. The Gift Of Music
4. The Answer
5. A Better Life
6. Lord Nafaryus
7. Savior In The Square
8. Three Days
9. A Life Left Behind
10. Ravenskill
11. A Tempting Offer
12. A New Beginning
13. The Road To Revolution
14. Moment Of Betrayal
15. The Path That Divides
16. The Walking Shadow
17. My Last Farewell
18. Hymn Of A Thousand Voices
19. Our New World
Length: 82 minutes
Having actually had the chance to listen to different abridged versions (and while I normally don't complain much about albums being "too long", something presented like this that really wants you to listen to it as a complete story really needs it), I discovered some things that don't work (such as Savior In The Square's not working without When Your Time Has Come) at all, and some things that do:
1. Dystopian Overture
2. The Gift Of Music
3. A Better Life
4. Lord Nafaryus
5. A Savior In The Square
6. When Your Time Has Come
7. Thee Days
8. Ravenskill
9. A New Beginning
10. A Tempting Offer
11. Moment Of Betrayal
12. The Path That Divides
13. The Walking Shadow
14. My Last Farewell
15. Hymn Of A Thousand Voices
16. Astonishing
Runtime: 75 mins
Obviously if you look at that list and see your favourite songs missing then it's not for you, but if you're looking for something that gives you the whole story, keeps most of the good stuff (imo) and is pretty well paced and can be listened to in the same time as a regular album, then this is pretty good.
Some key things I discovered; while I thought I needed A Life Left Behind to cover Faythe and Daryus leaving, but actually Ravenskill feels a bit more dramatic listening to it with "the stranger's" identity not explicitly stated to begin with, and having it come out over the course of the song. Plus, Three Days - Ravenskill - A New Beginning is absolutely packed quality and plot-wise, and while it may seem as though it could be rushed actually it just feels like it has cut out the fluff.
Also I moved A Tempting Offer to after A New Beginning, partly because I found it worked well as part of that run and partly because with some of the other songs cut, it works well as a sort of twist after the positive A New Beginning rather than before it. My only problem I have had with the playlist is that the flow from 2285 Entr'acte into Moment Of Betrayal - MOB doesn't really sound right following any song, and I have tried it with multiple options other than 2285 Entr'acte (Road To Revolution, A New Beginning, and currently A Tempting Offer). I was even considering throwing in The X Aspect before it for the bagpipes, but basically the problem is where the track cuts off, I think the start of MOB will always sound very abrupt as part of a playlist where it doesn't follow 2285 Entr'acte.
Also I used Astonishing instead of Our New World as a closer, though in theory either could work. Personally I am not as impressed with Our New World as some others seem to be, and while I don't think Astonishing is that amazing either, it works better a closer and actually feels like a slightly less cheesy ending story wise than just closing with Our New World.
I realise there's some good stuff missing (and it'd be easy to add individual track like The Answer, Heaven's Cove, The X Aspect here and there without impacting it too much), and I still listen to the full album when I have the time and feel like I can make it through all of the material without getting anxious to listen to the superior early Act I stuff again by the time I get to Losing Faythe... but for anyone else like me who sometimes wants to listen to the story but in a (slightly) more concise format, I thought I'd share my experience.