It's "Summer Shorts," a festival of plays defined by their brevity, now in its fifth year at 59E59 Theaters through September 3rd! The challenge of "Summer Shorts" is to create a complete play within a time constraint of approximately 20 to 30 minutes. Each "short" is expected to have a full arc, but they need not be strictly speaking, and most of the selection presented by the authors above in the Series A repertory is not, one-act offerings. Some are comprised of several scenes, that shift in location, and introduce their characters. Some are monologues.
Since it is not easy to present a beginning, middle and end in such a short form, some of the plays succeed better than others.
Each bill offers four little vignettes, and in "Summer Shorts 5-- Series A" , the offerings included:
Neil LaBute's "The New Testament" proves to be not just a very funny, well-paced work, it also tells its story cogently, under the direction of Dolores Rice, tantalizing out the details of its brilliantly simple plot. Jeff Binder, with foils in Mando Alvarado and James Chen, is particularly adept in this little tale of racism and self-righteousness.
"In This, Our Time...," Alexander Dinelaris paints vivid portraits of a troubled modern
family. JJ Kandel directs the dynamic cast in a minimalist dramatic work that mystifies with an unsatisfactory ending.
Erin Darke and Ted Koch in a scene from In This, Our Time... by Alexander Dinelaris, directed By J.J. Kandel, part of SUMMER SHORTS 5 Series A.ANNUAL FESTIVAL OF NEW AMERICAN SHORT PLAYS Photo Credit: Rahav Segev
"Triple Trouble with Love" is Christopher Durang's entertaining stand up comedy of a play about the perils of relationship. It features Nick Choksi, Beth Hoyt, and Aidan Sullivan in a triptych to dysfunction.
Ruby Rae Spiegel's "Carrie & Francine," despite a complete plot line, manages to feel fragmental and, well, incomplete.
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No Mozart this time around from Mark Morris Dance Group at "Mostly Mozart Festival"
There was no Mozart in the Mostly Mozart Festival presentation by Mark Morris Dance Group at Lincoln Center's Rose Theatre in the Time Warner Center from August 18th through 20th. The much-touted New York premiere of "Renard," set to a score by Igor Stravinsky that was played by the skillful MMDG Musical Ensemble under the baton of Stefan Asbury, fell under the Sravinsky Too rubric, however.
(See a video of typical Morris dancing at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xeFyYFxTqtQ)
Also on the program was last year's sensation-- "Socrates," a piece choreographed to music by Erik Satie-- which is certainly dynamic, but the dance to celebrate on this program is "Festival Dances," set to Johann Nepomuk Hummel's Piano Trio in E Major, Opus 83. "Festival Dances" is a beautiful and gentle work in the spirit of Agnes DeMille with plenty of balletic influence.
Both "Renard," which is a comedic piece, and "Socrates" make fine use of vocal accompaniments. Renard is adorable, acrobatic, and reminiscent of silent films. The costumes by Maira Kalman with labels naming each of the characters beginning on the front of their shirts and ending on the back and little headpieces of crowns or ears are imaginative and simple. The Cock's Chics are dressed like 1960's cheerleaders in crinolined skirts so when Cock breaks out into a little endzone dance it just feels right. The stylized violence also seems appropriate for the story.
Visit markmorrisdancegroup.org to find a schedule for future MMDG performances.
To find a schedule for Summer Shorts5, go to 59E59.org
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