James Carey, Producing Artistic Director of The Attic Theatre and Film Center has announced repertoire to be presented as part of the company's 18th Annual Denise Ragan Wiesenmeyer One Act Play Festival (formerly known as the One Act Marathon), a contest for playwrights. Performances for this event are supported, in part, by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission. Performances of this 120 minute evening, comprised of the World Premieres of four Finalist new one act plays, will be given on Fridays and Saturdays, September 11 - October 3, 2009 at 8:00 p.m. at The Attic Theatre and Film Center; 5429 W. Washington Boulevard; Los Angeles, CA 90016.
Jamie Gray, The Attic Theatre and Film Center's Literary Manager and Producer of the One Act Play Festival, said: "This year we received 150 submissions, from locally-based playwrights, as well as other playwrights hailing from around the country, including international entries from Canada, Europe and Israel. A little over 20% of this year's applicants are local. Our company's Literary Committee for the One Act Play Festival has now selected four Finalist plays to be presented in fully staged performances at The ATTIC. Also, this year, for the first time, we have changed the name of the event from a One Act Marathon, to a One Act Play Festival, as now we present four new plays over a four-week span of time, as opposed to presenting 12 plays over a four-day period, as we have in the past. Hence, the event is really now a Festival, as opposed to a Marathon. The goal of the Festival is to discover fresh and exciting new theatre and writers, while providing both a fun event for the audience and simultaneously a serious professional experience for the playwrights."Bethany/Bakol, written by Wendy Graf, is a one-person show exploring religious identity, loyalty, and attendant feelings of safety or threat. Under the director of Marla DuMont, actress Allison Deyer will appear in the dual roles of Bethany/Bakol.
Lessons & Carols, written by Demetra Kareman, takes place in The Marymount School for Girls, a boarding school in Terrytown, NY, where two teenage students try the patience of a nun who serves as the school's nurse. Under the direction of Craig Jessen, the cast will include Angela Ryskiewicz at Lila; April Grace Lowe as Gloria and Terri Marsteiner as Sr. Fleming.
Jon and Mary Go To Pluto, written by Matthew Tucker, is set 1,000 years from now, as NASA launches its first manned mission to Pluto. While trekking off into space two people start to make small emotional connections while learning about each other's past. Under the direction of Michelle Begley, actor Tom McCafferty will appear as Commander Jon Barnes; actress Marilyn Anne Michaels will appear as 2nd Commander Mary Templeton; and actors, Chipper Albers and Harriet Stuckey will appear as the Voice from Houston. About The Playwrights:Wendy Graf (Playwright - Bethany/Bakol) is a multi-award winning Los Angeles-based playwright. Plays include: Lessons; Leipzig; The Book of Esther; Zeno's Paradox; LA Tales; No Word In Guyanese For Me; The Cross And The Saber; and Shanghai Ghetto. Bethany/Bakol is the first act of the full length Behind The Gates, looking forward to a 2010 production.
Demetra Kareman (Playwright - Lessons & Carols) is a born and bred New Yorker. She graduated from Kenyon College in 2001 with a degree in History, and in 2008, received her MFA in Playwriting from The Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University. In 2007, her play Hoops was a finalist in The Tennessee Williams National One-Act competition. Her one act play Lessons & Carols was a finalist for the 2008 Award in Drama from Arts & Letters Journal of Contemporary Culture, and took first prize at this year's Dylan Days Festival. She currently teaches Playwriting at the School House Theater and Expository Writing at Rutgers University.
Matthew Tucker (Playwright - Jon and Mary Go To Pluto) After working as environmental investigator for the County of Orange in CA for seven years, Tucker began writing creatively in 2005. His short plays, Rest Stop and Game 7 premiered at the 2006 Riverside Cultural Consortium's Art Festival and Circus Theatricals 2009 One Act Play Fest, respectively. He also writes short stories, film reviews, produces independent cinema, and is currently editing his feature length documentary, Billy Tucker Ends the Decade.
How The One Act Play Festival Works:
The Attic Theatre and Film Center's Denise Ragan Wiesenmeyer One Act Play Festival (formerly known as the One Act Marathon) is one of the oldest One Act Festivals in the City of Los Angeles, having started in 1990. The Attic Theatre's Literary Committee reads new one act plays submitted from all over the country, after which, the plays are rated according to several guidelines, including: plot, character, theme and quality. Then the top four to six plays are produced in a competition adjudicated by industry professionals from the theatre and film world who focus on the writing elements of each play.
Photo 1:Denise Ragan Wiesenmeyer
Photo courtesy of The Attic Theatre and Film Center
Photo 2: Matt Tucker
Photo by Amy Orsatti
Videos