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A fast-paced collection of 10-minute plays featuring many local playwrights and directors is set to take the stage in Livermore beginning Saturday.
Hosted by community theater group the Encore Players, the 10 plays in “Encore 10×10” range in subject from baking and public service to murder and the post-apocalyptic world.
The upcoming shows also mark a debut playwriting or directorial experience for some participants.
“The 10-minute play format is a great way for writers to try their hand at playwriting,” co-producer Martie Muldoon said in a statement seeking original plays for the festival. “They can be serious or humorous, based in reality or in fantasy or just about anything you can think up.”
Muldoon was inspired to produce a festival of 10-minute plays with Bill Leach following her participation in a similar production by Ghostlight Theatre Ensemble in Brentwood called “Festival 10”.
In a format Muldoon described as “fun and challenging”, short plays commonly feature a single-scene and a small cast of characters.
“It is like a theatrical buffet where the audience can sample a variety of tastes and experiences all over the course of a single production”, said Ron Correll-Feichtner, director of a featured play called “Fescue to Fork”.
Written by Livermore resident and first-time playwright Jeff Kaskey, the comedy features an online dater with a personal angel and devil advising her as she swipes right and left on dating profiles.
With a background in nonfiction and technical writing, Kaskey said, “I don’t really consider myself a writer of plays or a writer of fiction, but occasionally it’s fun to break loose.”
The festival is also set to include a comedy-mystery revolving around the game of Clue called “Your Move”, written and directed by Livermore resident Donna Blevins. Originally a short film, Blevins adapted the piece for “Encore 10×10”.
Blevins said she’s always liked one-act plays and “this is taking it down a notch from that!”
“I do think the audience will enjoy so many different stories,” Blevins added.
“Encore 10×10” features a cast of 20 performers ranging in age from 15 to over 70 years old, many of whom are acting in multiple plays, according to the Livermore Valley Arts website.
Featured writers include Livermore-based Jackson Mayo, Donna Blevins, Kaskey and John Ruzicka; Castro Valley resident Alice Farmer; former Pleasanton resident Claire McNerney; Dublin resident Martha McDowell; published playwright and film writer M. Pepper Langlinais and Los Angeles-based playwright Bruce Kane. Directors include Donna Blevins, JD Blevins, Alice Farmer, Amanda Farmer, Correll-Feichtner, Leach, Jim Lobao, Rachel McElroy, Muldoon and Ruzicka.
Performances are scheduled at 7:30 p.m. on May 24, May 30 and May 31 as well as 2 p.m. on May 25 and June 1 at the Bothwell Arts Center. For more information, visit the LVA website at livermorearts.org.
