In Miami, that signals two things – oppressive humidity that won’t let up until at least October and City Theatre’s Summer Shorts Festival.
Summer Shorts, billed as America’s Short Play Festival, is a festival of 24 short plays divided into three separate performances: the traditional “Signature Shorts,” the raunchy, late-night “Undershorts,” and “Shorts 4 Kids.” The 2009 Festival includes 11 world premieres, including plays from four South Florida based playwrights: Michael McKeever, Christopher Demos-Brown, Marco Ramirez and Andrew Rosendorf.
Marco Ramirez, who was previously the literary manager of City Theatre before starting graduate work at Julliard, says “It’s very true to the word “Festival.” It’s about the work – yes – but it’s also about a sense of community, and a sense of celebration, that you don’t find in a regular theatre doing a regular season of work.”
This year Guild playwrights can play a major role in that Festival atmosphere. Stuart Meltzer, the Artistic Director of City Theatre, has invited the Dramatist Guild back for another Town Hall Meeting on Saturday June 13 at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts. Gary Garrison will be coming down from the Guild offices in New York to lead a panel discussion of major artistic directors and the role new work plays in their artistic visions. After the Town Hall Meeting, Guild members are invited to a discounted performance of Signature Shorts and Undershorts. More details will be sent out to South Florida Membership as they are known.
As your local regional representative, I hope you take part not only in the Town Hall Meeting but by taking the time to see the shorts. Christopher Demos-Brown says, “City Theatre is probably the best short play venue in the country – I don’t know that many people in South Florida realize we have this great thing here.”
While the shorts have been chosen for this year, submissions are open for next year’s festival as well as for the National Minute Play Contest, which City Theatre co-sponsors with the Actors’ Theatre of Louisville. All short plays read by one theatre, will also be read and considered by the other. Meltzer is open to a variety of pieces: from the really “naughty” for Undershorts to the adorable for “Shorts 4 Kids.”
Marco Ramirez, who has had work in multiple festivals, offers advice, “No matter what you do, you know your stuff is going to get smashed up against other writers’ work, so I think there’s a general feeling like you really HAVE to push any creative muscles you’ve got to the limit. It’s not about any sense of competition between pieces; it’s just about making sure every piece has a distinct sense of form. It’s kind of like asking yourself “what’s the ten-minute play that no one else can/will write?” and then writing THAT play.”
While you do have to be extremely creative, in some ways, there are fewer limitations for plays in the Summer Shorts Festival. Each play pulls from the working troupe of six actors. Demos-Brown has a one-line, walk on role; an indulgence that he wouldn’t be able to get away with in a production of a full length play.
I hope you attend our Town Hall Meeting on June 13th, and stick around for the Festival afterwards. It will be a great way to start exploring and creating your own ten minute plays to submit for next year’s festival.
Miami
By Andie Arthur
Summer is finally here.
In Miami, that signals two things – oppressive humidity that won’t let up until at least October and City Theatre’s Summer Shorts Festival.
Summer Shorts, billed as America’s Short Play Festival, is a festival of 24 short plays divided into three separate performances: the traditional “Signature Shorts,” the raunchy, late-night “Undershorts,” and “Shorts 4 Kids.” The 2009 Festival includes 11 world premieres, including plays from four South Florida based playwrights: Michael McKeever, Christopher Demos-Brown, Marco Ramirez and Andrew Rosendorf.
Marco Ramirez, who was previously the literary manager of City Theatre before starting graduate work at Julliard, says “It’s very true to the word “Festival.” It’s about the work – yes – but it’s also about a sense of community, and a sense of celebration, that you don’t find in a regular theatre doing a regular season of work.”
This year Guild playwrights can play a major role in that Festival atmosphere. Stuart Meltzer, the Artistic Director of City Theatre, has invited the Dramatist Guild back for another Town Hall Meeting on Saturday June 13 at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts. Gary Garrison will be coming down from the Guild offices in New York to lead a panel discussion of major artistic directors and the role new work plays in their artistic visions. After the Town Hall Meeting, Guild members are invited to a discounted performance of Signature Shorts and Undershorts. More details will be sent out to South Florida Membership as they are known.
As your local regional representative, I hope you take part not only in the Town Hall Meeting but by taking the time to see the shorts. Christopher Demos-Brown says, “City Theatre is probably the best short play venue in the country – I don’t know that many people in South Florida realize we have this great thing here.”
While the shorts have been chosen for this year, submissions are open for next year’s festival as well as for the National Minute Play Contest, which City Theatre co-sponsors with the Actors’ Theatre of Louisville. All short plays read by one theatre, will also be read and considered by the other. Meltzer is open to a variety of pieces: from the really “naughty” for Undershorts to the adorable for “Shorts 4 Kids.”
Marco Ramirez, who has had work in multiple festivals, offers advice, “No matter what you do, you know your stuff is going to get smashed up against other writers’ work, so I think there’s a general feeling like you really HAVE to push any creative muscles you’ve got to the limit. It’s not about any sense of competition between pieces; it’s just about making sure every piece has a distinct sense of form. It’s kind of like asking yourself “what’s the ten-minute play that no one else can/will write?” and then writing THAT play.”
While you do have to be extremely creative, in some ways, there are fewer limitations for plays in the Summer Shorts Festival. Each play pulls from the working troupe of six actors. Demos-Brown has a one-line, walk on role; an indulgence that he wouldn’t be able to get away with in a production of a full length play.
I hope you attend our Town Hall Meeting on June 13th, and stick around for the Festival afterwards. It will be a great way to start exploring and creating your own ten minute plays to submit for next year’s festival.
aarthur@dramatistsguild.com