Dreamguts
A glimpse into the lives of a unique couple living by the sea.
The play begins with a song and a request that you write your dreams on a small piece of paper; these papers are collected and later redistributed to a “new home.”
This play is ethereal and dream-like, as the name suggests. The effect is enhanced through use of string lights, bells, an eerie sea shanty, and shadows. Most of the play is performed behind a sheet in front of a lamp, so that the audience only sees the players’ shadows.
Heaven for Scholars
What goes on in a student’s mind when writing a paper?
Most of us can relate to this clever play, set in theoretical Heaven, with special appearances from two long-dead philosophers.
This fun play takes the audience on the journey through writing a comparative essay, from an internal perspective. It reflects the chaos one might feel in their heads while attempting to do an assignment. Will imagination and caffeine be enough for her to see it through and remember why she’s doing this in the first place?
On stage right sits a student’s desk, and stage left is occupied by two chairs and our guest stars, one smoking a pipe and fiddling with a Rubik’s Cube and the other questioning where they are. The two engage in banter regarding their circumstances. They come to realize that they are in a theoretical heaven, within the mind of a student, who has hoped to get their help with her writing. With the help from her guardian Angel, it may be possible to suppress the chaos.
The Scooter
It’s all about having the shiny new scooter to get around town.
After saving up for weeks, she is finally able to get herself a brand-new scooter; she even sold her wedding ring to get it. Unfortunately, some bad luck is in store.
There were some unexpected technical difficulties, but these in fact enhanced the humour of the play. The way the actors played to it, you’d think it was intentional.
Will our heroine be able to escalate to a solution? Or did she sell her wedding ring for nothing?
Interview with the Vampire House
Many of us have been there before – unsure of where we fit in at the new school.
This creative play demonstrates a number of the usual eccentric types of characters you may find in a house of vampires, but where does the weird new kid belong?
Follow along on a tour of the Vampire House as they try to find his place.
This group utilized the space through multiple scene changes, from the top of the house to the bottom. A strong point of this play is the depiction of many different character and personality types; akin to what you would discover in a new and unfamiliar school with new people.
Blackbird, Oh Blackbird
Quoth the Blackbird, “Nevermore.”
What sells? Sex. Kinky sex.
It’s time that Edgar Allen Poe spices up his dark and gloomy writing to suit the modern audience. If it were up to Lord Byron, he would have Poe writing steamy sex scenes between vampires; after all, “no one thinks when they read.” The modern audience doesn’t want to analyze sophisticated storytelling; the author must write for the “lowest common denominator.” Will Poe heed Lord Byron’s advice to “make mad bank?”
A play full of witty dialogue and banter between two long-dead writers over a discussion of what the 21st century reader will consume. The actors bring the characters to life with expressive movement and faces, and the minimal set does not distract from the storytelling and performance.
You can catch some of these plays again tonight for the Best of the Fest!
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