A Smorgasbord of New Plays to Satisfy Theatrical Appetites

10-Minute Play Festival Returns to Brockport Stage

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BROCKPORT, NY (02/11/2009)(readMedia)-- The sixth biennial Festival of Ten will debut its complement of 10-minute dramas and comedies on Friday, February 27, 2009, at 7:30 pm. Performances of the ten plays take place at The College of Brockport's Tower Fine Arts Center Mainstage, 180 Holley Street, Brockport.

P. Gibson Ralph, producer for TheatreBrockport, which is staging the Festival of Ten, recalls that "when we started the Festival 12 years ago, there really wasn't anything similar in the area. Some of the plays that we have featured have gone on to other regional productions, but many of the playwrights were grateful to the College for giving them their first chance to get their written words up on their feet."

From the over 400 plays submitted in a national search for the 2009 Festival, the ten selected reveal the wide spectrum of what is on playwrights' minds today. From the one-person drama List, which has overtones of Greek tragedy as a wife and mother contemplates her current situation, to the romantic comedies Crossing the Line and Take Two, there is always something for everyone in the Festival. "It's like the Rochester weather," says Ralph. "If you don't like it, wait ten minutes until it changes." (Though the actors in the various plays appreciate that they are working with a living, breathing thing - as opposed to the standardized texts of Shakespeare or Miller - it is often the directors who have contact with the playwrights. Often a cast member's suggestion will find its way into the play, just as sometimes a playwright will revise something once they are to see the play being performed.

The Playwrights' Symposium is always a much-anticipated aspect of the Festival of Ten. This year, there will be an opportunity to network with theatre professionals, as well as learn from award-winning playwrights whose focus has included fashioning 10-minute plays. The Symposium will be held Saturday, March 7 from noon to 4:30 pm. For more information about the Playwrights' Symposium, please call (585) 395-2496.

Performances of the 2009 Festival of Ten are February 27, 28, March 5, 6 and 7, at 7:30 pm and March 1 at 2 pm. The performance on Sunday, March 1, will be sign language interpreted for the hearing impaired.

Tickets for the performances are $12/General, $10/Seniors and $8/Students and are available by phone at (585) 395-ARTS or at the Tower Fine Arts Center Box Office. Tickets can also be obtained at all area Wegmans supermarkets.