What do the following have in common?
• Wild romance erupts at the DMV during a registration renewal.
• Two men discover that time is NOT money, and friendship is more valuable than a sale.
• A bereaved mother and her son's lover clash at his graveside. Can the dead help?
• A word with two meanings almost ends a veteran reporter's career.
• An aging couple face terminal illness with surprising humor.
• A drink between old friends becomes a heady cocktail of desires and secrets.
These are the life-changing upheavals - comic, tragic, or uplifting - that occur in the space of 10 minutes in the 2012 Ten Minute Play Festival at the Actors Theatre Playhouse, running six performances on Fridays and Saturdays, Oct. 12 and 13, 19 and 20, and 26 and 27, at 7:30 pm.
Ten Minute Plays capture pivotal moments, said festival co-producer Michael Fox Kennedy.
“They challenge the playwright, the director, and the actors to make it all happen now the way it often does in real life. There is no time for long background exposition or the slow teasing out of emotional undercurrents. Before we are ready, life hits us with something new. We react from the gut in ways that surprise even ourselves. It's a formula that works equally well for uproarious comedy, a sudden tragedy, or an unexpected breakthrough in short, all the variety of life.”
Arthur Pettee, who has directed for the festival in the past, will be wearing his acting hat this season.
“The variety of the seven pieces is great for the audience,” he said. “They don't know what's coming next. For the actor, too. I get to play two completely different roles. Off with one hat, on with another. It's great fun.”
According to director and festival co-producer Mike Jerald, “It really is a festival, a big fun event involving many talented people.” Another attraction for him, he said, is “the chance to get my feet wet as a director without getting in over my head.”
Actor Robin Wolf echoes that sentiment. “This allows busy people to use their talent and help put on a good show without the huge time commitment of a full length play.”
Ten Minute Plays have become a popular genre across the theatre world. Thousands of them have been written. Festivals abound across the nation and around the world.
The Actors Theatre Playhouse considers all these sources in its selection process. The directors start early in the fall by reading hundreds of 10-minute scripts. Before the winter is over they have made their selections. Casting is completed in the spring, and rehearsals are spaced out over the summer.
The process provides a perfect training ground, as each year new directors and actors are introduced to the Actors Theatre audience, and some have gone on to direct or act in the Playhouse's main stage and staged reading productions.
This year's directors are Michael Fox Kennedy, Michael Jerald, Richard Epstein, Burt Tepfer, Gianni Mack, and Carrie Kidd. The actors are Arthur Pettee, Jim Bombicino, Skylar Heathwaite, Nell Curley, Nan Mann, Randy Bright, Robin Wolf, Oriah Shea Wind, Abby Wicker, Sara Vitale, Christina Doe, Merrilyn Jones Taylor, and Ray Mahoney.
All tickets are $8 and reservations are highly recommended. Contact the box office at 877-666-1855 or visit www.Actors-Theatre.Info for more details.