Festival gets in on act
Short Season of Short Plays set to amuse and entertain audiences
THE return of the Festival of One Act Plays to the Civic Theatre next week, on 6 and 7 May, is great news for local theatre groups and schools, especially after a four-year hiatus due to theatre renovations, floods and Covid.
Townsville Little Theatre has been a long-time supporter of the festival and each year takes the opportunity to fine tune its entries with its Short Season of Short Plays.
This year it has come up with three 10-minute plays and two one-act plays (usually around 30 minutes long) and these make up the short season on offer.
The evening opens with the two one-act plays.
A Basic Human Right takes us into the world of the CWA as the committee deals with a looming disaster – the loss of the only hairdresser in their small town.
Pamela Garrick, Jennine Padgett, Suzy Gilmour, Jacinta Ryan and Jordanna Miller keep the laughs coming.
Local Susan Mattocks is to be praised for writing this one. Director is Iain Mcdougall.
Unfortunately the second play doesn’t quite click. Local playwright Teri Galea
Thorne places two soldiers in a battlefield for Blood, Guts and … Questions? The major, David Brooke-taylor, and the Rookie, Paige Thomas, don’t come across as believable characters and the language used is very non-military. There were also some problems with lines. More rewriting of the script will help.
Director is Teri GaleaThorne.
The first 10-minute play is also written by Teri GaleaThorne, It Started with a Parcel and she nails this one with Bob, Stephen Duffie, in all sorts of trouble from his wife Sophie, Melissa Donges, when she opens a parcel for him containing – well, that would give the game away. Very funny. Director is Stephen Duffie.
Local playwright Catherine Mckernan-doris is finding worldwide success with her plays at the moment, and The Grave Yard Shift shows why. It keeps you captivated right to the end, with plenty of laughs along the way. Congratulations to Barbara White who gives an exemplary performance well backed up by
Jennine Padgett. Director is Christine Scott.
The final play, A Certain Age is by Julie Johnson who is another Townsville based author who is enjoying widespread success with her work. Starring one of Townsville’s leading actors, Jacinta Ryan, this is a play with lots of humour but with a beautiful message of ignoring society’s expectations of beauty. Campbell Briggs plays Society.
Director is Sonia Zabala. The short play format is an ideal opportunity for new writers, new directors and budding actors to try their hand at theatre without a lot of pressure but with the help of an experienced team of practitioners.
These are well worth a look.
Note: There is strong language and adult themes in some plays.
The Short Season of Short Plays continues tonight and tomorrow night at St Margaret Mary’s Theatre, Crowle Street Hyde Park at 7pm. Tickets will be available at the door.