By Beulah F. Vega
Now playing at the Raven Performing Arts Center through Feb. 2, Raven Shorts consists of eight plays, five directors and 15 actors. Like all good one-act festivals, this is the definition of community theater, with participants running the gamut from seasoned (and award-winning) professionals to newbies getting their first taste of the theater world. The stripped stage and basic production values allow the eight scripts and acting to be the focus instead of the normal theatrical razzle dazzle.
Act One starts with The Albuquerque Express (or The Grift of the Magi) by Dan Stryker, directed by Kate Edery and starring Kit Flanagan, Charles Bertram and Jeanette Seisdedos. The predictable twist and some of the over-the-top characterizations robs some of the charm from what at its heart is a cute story. Bertram plays a grifter like a pro, and Seisdedos’ innocence serves her well.
Intermission by Jacquelyn Wells, directed by Ron Nash and starring Tamara Brooks, Amanda Claiborne, Maggie Belle and Jordan Berby, is an ars theatrica about large theater personalities and backstage drama. The script is fairly tight, but direction and casting do not support the script as well as they could. Belle’s harried stage manager is a bright light in the cast.
My Sunshine by Ron Nash, directed by Neva Hutchinson and starring Ron Smith and Avery Turbeville, uses the premise of an estranged grandfather taking care of his granddaughter. It’s good, but slow pacing hinders the impact. It feels like it’s part of a bigger piece instead of a true one-act.
Act One closes with Wedding Surprise by Scott Lummer, directed by Jenna Vera Dolcini and starring Tamara Brooks and Matt Farrell. Set in an old Blockbuster Video, this speculative comedy is a great example of Lummer’s humor. Though the audience interaction is odd considering they are supposed to be in a top-secret area, it’s still a strong piece and Farrell is well cast here.
Act Two begins with Newark – Ten Miles by Francine Schwartz, directed by Ron Nash and starring Lisa Erwin and Michael Erwin. A saccharine story about letting go, the script might have had more emotional impact if different choices had been made.
Schrodinger’s Cat Shed by Chris Johnston, directed by Jenna Vera Dolcini and starring Matt Farrell and Maggie Belle, is a play I have seen before. Since I last saw it, the script has been tightened up to the benefit of the play. Belle and Farrell are both well cast. It might be the tightest show in the festival.
Museum Pass by Kyle Therral Wilson, directed by Ron Smith and starring Craig Peoples and Mary DeLorenzo, begins with an American couple having a typical “ugly American” conversation in a European museum. The directing and writing are slow-paced. Much like My Sunshine, this feels like it’s taken from a longer piece.
The program ends with another speculative comedy. Her Very Own World by Tony Sciullo, directed by Kate Edery and starring Elizabeth Henry, Kit Flanagan and Charles Bertram, is simply fun. Henry is typecast as the top performing scientist, Bertram is charming as her unserious husband and Flanagan is believable as an overworked assistant.
Is every play amazing? No, but those who don’t care for one of the plays have only to wait a few minutes for the next one to begin. A new works festival is like a good buffet; it has a little something for everyone.
Take a chance on something new.
‘Raven Shorts’ runs through Feb. 2 at the Raven Performing Arts Theater, 115 North St., Healdsburg. Thu–Sat, 7:30pm; Sun, 2pm. $10–$25. 707.433.6335. raventheater.o
