No, not that little half-sheet of paper that used to sit in your mailbox every week. The Oberlin Shorts is a soon-to-be annual festival of one-act plays directed by theater professor Matthew Wright.
While ideal for ADD audience members (or one used to 20 minute sitcoms), the problem with a program of one-acts is that the audience gets saturated with climaxes. The audience sees the characters at their best, worst and nothing in between. The challenge for the actors lies less in character development and more in their ability to switch gears every 15 minutes or so by jumping into a new character. The six-member cast, comprised of the usual theater department suspects, did a uniformly admirable job taking on this challenge.
The plays themselves range immensely in terms of genre, subject matter and quality of writing. The program opens with “Playwriting 101: The Rooftop Lesson,” by alumni Rich Orloff, OC ’73. It is a cute opener and ran like a laundry list of theater clichés. It feels like a piece written to cure writer’s block and get laughs from the theater people in the audience, which it certainly did. The actors aren’t given much of a challenge, but all deliver their one-liners well.
The second piece, “Tough Cookie,” by sophomore Lisa Strid, chronicles a couple’s breakup on their third anniversary. Although the subject matter is less than shockingly original, the couple’s relationship was believable and emotionally rich. Placed after the previous crash course in playwriting, the writing techniques are entertainingly evident. Ben Sinclair, as the husband, has a natural acting style ideal for this venue. Junior Hallie Gnatovich, as his wife, displays her powerful stage presence here and throughout the program.
“The Quarter” by junior Meghan Grammer, is entertaining and witty. It might be even stronger ending a few moments sooner than it did on the charming, if predictable, punch line I won’t give away. “Dottie and Richie,” by Jaqueline Reingold, OC ‘80, is also highly entertaining. Junior Amy Flanagan, who played Dottie, is a brilliant character actress trapped in the body of an ingénue and the role is well suited for her.
The last piece in Act I, by sophomore Mike Leibowitz, opens with junior Aaron Helgeson in a reincarnation of sorts of his role in “The Quarter.” It develops into a well-cast absurdist tribute to Ionesco, including most of the company at once for the first time. The actors seem to be having a blast and there is no better way to ensure that the audience is too.
Act II opens with “Stoplight,” an interesting twist on the familiar last-man-and-woman-on-earth theme.
“Tough Cookie,” by Orloff of “Playwrighting 101,” gives its cast members a chance to show an extreme and hysterical dimension of their skills. Even glimpsing actors’ facial expressions as they listen to the action onstage elicits full-blown laughter from the audience. Costumes and make-up deserve special attention for making Flanagan somehow look straight out of My Big Fat Greek Wedding.
“The Attractive Women on the Train” by P. Seth Bauer, OC ’93, is one of the stronger scripts in the program. Bauer’s juxtaposition of past and present is as seemless and natural as his dialogue. Rick Sahlen shined, as does Gnatovich, although her big presence and clear articulation are at times over-powering for the small space and light-hearted nature of the drama. “Driving,” by first year Baraka Noel, is the perfect show-closer. It involves the whole cast and leaves the audience on a lively note.
The set is appropriately minimalist and includes just the right amount of scenery and props to suggest different settings. With its page-like white backdrop and black, blocky set pieces, the stage subtly evokes a type-written page. Unobtrusive music plays between scene changes while actors, in costume, move scenery.
Director Wright has participated both as an actor and director in professional festivals such as this. He wanted to provide an opportunity for collaboration between student actors and playwrights. The new face over at Warner, he seems to be a breath of fresh air in the Theater Department. Oberlin’s department has an extensive repertoire of both avant-garde and classical plays, but rarely does the audience get treated to a light-hearted, age-appropriate comedic romp such as this.
Having heard of Oberlin’s renowned Creative Writing program, Wright wanted to create a forum for student voices. He and other theater professors chose the five student-written works in the program from a pool of 40 plays. Wright then filled out the program with pieces written by alums now working in the biz.
Wright’s concept of utilizing Oberlin’s diverse strengths cooperatively is one from which many departments here at Oberlin could benefit. The wealth of resources here too often remain segregated. The Oberlin Shorts is not only a successful collaboration between departments, but an opportunity to see something that feels like relaxing entertainment, which has become almost a foreign concept at this stressed-out school. So tonight procrastinate on that paper and watch some talented kids having a great time.
Little Theater. Fri. and Sat., March 7 and 8 at 8 p.m. and Sun., March 9 at 2 p.m. $3 OCID, $5 public.