Roulette lets viewers gamble on variety of one-act shows At a glance
The longest- running shorts festival in central Ohio has returned with 21 works by American playwrights.
With a program chosen from more than 2,000 submissions, MadLab Theatre’s 18th annual Theatre Roulette will open tonight with the first of three rotating bills.
“Short- play festivals offer a huge value for audiences, with a variety of experiences all in one evening,” playwright Matthew Widman said.
“Short plays can pack a punch.”
Widman, of New York, makes his Roulette debut with “Homeland Security,” a black comedy about a young man and woman called into a federal office to answer personal questions.
Big government and big business conspire in the play that examines the challenges of protecting privacy in the digital era.
“What we create to enhance our lives usually has a dark side,” Widman said.
Widman’s play is part of the “Inside Bets” bill, which begins with Christopher Lockheardt’s “5: 53,” about a couple in bed fighting about whether to get up.
“Lockheardt, a festival veteran, is great at finding a hook for his plays,” said Stephen Woosley, who directs five of the seven playlets.
The “Inside Bets” program includes “A Wicked Slice” by John Busser; “The Last Word” by J.C. Cifranic; “Speed Date” by David Susman; “Ask Me Anything” by Philip Middleton Williams; and “Deal,” Woosley’s comedy about a vacationing couple who wish they could always relax at the beach.
“They think this is the life,” Woosley said, “but they start to imagine all the things they’d miss out on.”
The “House Edge” bill, under Amanda Bauer’s direction, offers “All Out of Second Chances” by Scotto Moore, “Caleb and Rita” by Jessica Moss, “A Clean Dislike” by Alex Dremann, “Fargo 3D” by E. Wade Fritzius, “Her Big Day” by Heather Meyer, “Ladder” by Doug Powhida and “Last Man Standing” by Chris Morris.
In Powhida’s absurdist comedy of modern manners, Woosley plays the husband. In Moore’s 1800s drama, he portrays a lonely bachelor looking for a wife.
“This unusual period piece suggests nothing is ever as it seems,” Woosley said.
Laura Spires and Kyle Jepson co-direct the “Wheel Checks” bill.
“The seven plays focus on normal people making life- altering decisions about their futures, but several have a sci- fi edge,” Jepson said.
For example, a teenage girl is visited by an older version of herself in “Carl Flunt Would Protect You From Trucks” by Scott Mullen.
“It’s a comedy about how decisions when you’re very young can affect you when you’re older,” Jepson said.
In “Behind Bluebeard’s Door,” a comedy by Dana Leigh Lyman, doors open to different stories, such as “Bluebeard” or “The Little Mermaid.”
“Young girls and boys Theatre Roulette 2017 MadLab Theatre 227 N. 3rd St. 614-221-5418, www.madlab.net “Inside Bets” (8 tonight, May 19 and May 27); “House Edge” (8 p.m. Friday, May 20 and May 25; 2 p.m. May 27); “Wheel Checks,” (8 p.m. Saturday, May 18 and May 26; 4 p.m. May 27). $15, or $13 for students and senior citizens, $10 for members think they want to be princes and princesses,” Jepson said, “but this play shows the darker side.”
Jepson plays Maya in “Checked Out,” a sci- fi comedy by Jonathan Browning about romance in a future of computerized matchmaking.
“It’s very sweet and hopeful, about how people will still be surprised by personal chemistry,” Jepson said.
“Wheel Checks” also offers “An Honest Dialogue” by Matthew Fowler, a comic drama about a couple having marital problems; “The Jane Austen Expressway” by Erik Christian Hanson, a sci- fi comedy about the British novelist’s revenge on a Hollywood screenwriter; “Our Ten” by Mark Harvey Levine, a drama about the emotional reactions of six drivers to a rush- hour freeway incident; and “Magnificent. And Everywhere” by Shannon Murdoch, a drama about an unexpected pregnancy after a one- night stand.
“I love Roulette,” Jepson said, “because it’s a really good introduction to theater for newcomers but also comfort food for theatergoers, with a wide variety of genres all in one night.”