Plays are stories that are meant to be performed, and Aloha Performing Arts Company offers something every aspiring playwright needs: an audience. ADVERTISING Plays are stories that are meant to be performed, and Aloha Performing Arts Company offers something every
Plays are stories that are meant to be performed, and Aloha Performing Arts Company offers something every aspiring playwright needs: an audience.
The Original Play Festival highlights the work of up and coming writers and actors, and just might be the springboard for tomorrow’s big stage hit. Five directors have assembled casts for six, never-produced plays that will be staged in four days during the 22nd annual Original Play Festival.
Performances run Wednesday through Aug. 22 at 7:30 p.m. at the Aloha Theatre in Kainaliu.
The festival opens with “Bats,” a quirky comic murder mystery by Honolulu Playwright Edward Pickard, directed by Felicity Johnson. Her cast consists of Mia Kriebl-Bruno, Aaron Getzinger, Rich Mears, Tim Bruno and Miles Lugo.
“The great thing about original play festivals is that they’re all so different and the authors get to see them performed and come to life,” said Johnson. “The playwrights get to see what could work better in their play, or notice things that they didn’t expect to see. It’s wonderful. It’s also a great way for young actors or new actors to get their foot in the door and start doing something on stage.”
Annie Herring directs the Aug. 20 show, “The Past Tense of Hurt,” by Colorado Playwright J. Jackson. The play is a character study of two women who have a cathartic meeting of the minds on a fateful day. The women are portrayed by Janemarie Singer and Binti Bailey.
“Somebody Has to Die” on Aug. 21 is a classic slapstick whodunnit by Kona playwright Kitty Powell, who also directs. The cast members are Dan Hoff, Christina Boyko, Suzanne and Mark Murdock, Tim Bruno, Kat Sullivan, Arianna Rose, Sofia Ribeiro, Oliver Kreibl-Bruno and John Victor Ribeiro.
“It’s a really great experience working with Kitty because she directed and wrote the play,” said Kat Sullivan who plays Honey Delight in “Somebody Has to Die.” “It gives us the opportunity to be a part of her creative process, as we strive to showcase her talent as a writer and a director.”
Aug. 22 features a triple bill of short plays. The first performance is “The Recommendation,” a comedy of the absurd by local writer Thomas Johnson, and directed by Paula K. Cornwell. The actors, which include saints, God, Lucifer and Jesus, are performed by Steven and Shelene Grey, Lily Cho, Martin Dwyer, Rich Mears, Kazutoshi Maruta and Miles Lugo.
The final two shows of the festival are directed by Robin O’Hara. Second on the evening’s bill is “The Unsalable Thing,” by Mark Tjarks, of Oahu. This play centers around a self storage unit being lived in by a homeless person, and features cast members Rich Mears, Engel Edwards, David Bruce, Paula K. Cornwell and John Victor Ribeiro. The final show of the evening is Gloria Blum’s comedy based on real events involving her Polish mother, “Ma’s Last Request.” This cast consists of Kitty Powell, Steven and Shelene Grey, Janemarie Singer, Kazutoshi Maruta and Sofia Ribeiro.
“An original play festival gives writers an opportunity to get their work out there and get it on stage,” said O’Hara. “I find that the playwrights really benefit from coming to the theater to see their play, because they are able to see those voices that were inside their head come alive. They can see where the weaknesses are in the writing and dialogue, and can see how the audience reacts. It’s often very different than what the author intended. Another advantage is for the actors themselves. New actors are able to audition and become more comfortable with the audition process. In fact, this year we have quite a few people who are new to the area that came to audition, so we get some new blood into the theatre as well.”
The festival will conclude at 3 p.m. Aug. 23 with a free public potluck to celebrate the festival and its participants. The potluck will take place at the APAC Loft, which is located across the street from the theater on the second floor of the building housing King’s Daughters Thrift Shop. It will include a talk story and the presentation of the “Opie,” the people’s choice award for best script, as well as an awards presentation.
All plays are presented in staged reading format, with simple technical presentation and actors holding their scripts. Tickets are $5 per night, with a $1 discount in exchange for a previous night’s ticket stub. A complete festival pass may be purchased for $15.
Tickets and passes are available online at www.apachawaii.org, or at the theater box office beginning one hour before performance time. After each performance, audience members are encouraged to remain and participate in a brief discussion of the play with the actors, directors and in some cases, the playwrights.
For more information, call 322-9924 or visit www.apachawaii.org.
