CGI sucks.

So, in order to make a super-duper fast "web application" big on the catchwords run fast enough that people don't moan about it, I find myself at a crossroad wondering which way to go. Any option if convincing enough will be fine (I'm a cowboy coder), so I want to see if anyone is awake enough to tell me what I should use.

mod_perl
Good News: Production grade, proven, lots of documentation, get the webserver control freak options.
Bad News: Morbidly obese worker processes even with "sharing" modules, need to separate dynamic from static greatly, restricted to Apache

Fast CGI
Good News: More than just Apache, Fast CGI servers need not be on the same machine
Bad News: Aparently Fast CGI is a pain in the ass for designing request flow.

SpeedyCGI
Good News: Similarities to CGI make relearning easy,
Bad News: No simple way of separating speedy into a separate package - it's declared via shebang.

PSGI/Plack
Good News: Apparently fast, very easy handling of control flow, can do things like XHR Long poll if webserver supports with ease.
Bad News: Very, very new. Has a wide range of support, but nothing is production stable.

What do you suggest?