One-acts capture 'snippets of lives' www.azstarnet.com ®:
Published: 01.11.2008
One-acts capture 'snippets of lives'
By Jane See White
SPECIAL TO THE ARIZONA DAILY STAR
Actually, it was an accident that Nell Summers found her newest directing project — Beowulf Alley Theatre Company's presentation of "Fifth Planet and Other Plays," by David Auburn.
"It just fell into my hands," she says now.
Summers had gone to collect a donation for another theater company she works with — a box of costumes, jewelry and a bunch of plays. Looking through the materials, she picked up the Auburn plays.
"I don't usually have time to read the plays, but this was the first one I picked up — seven plays in one book," Summers says. After just a few pages, she was hooked.
"It is seven self-contained, one-act plays, none having anything to do with the others. Snippets of lives. They're all so different that anyone will be able to find something in it," she says.
Auburn won the 2001 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for "Proof."
"Fifth Planet" tracks two observatory workers over the course of a year in a series of brief encounters — 44 short scenes.
"There's so much Auburn doesn't write down — it's a really tight story, that first play. It unfolds — it has so much to do with the actors' communicating what's going on in their minds to the audience," says Summers.
"When you read it, you can hear the actors saying these lines — but there is just one hidden intent behind each line, so it's challenging. We have had to search for each of those."
For the seven plays, Summers has assembled a "huge" cast of 15 actors.
In "Are You Ready?" three people drawn to the same restaurant are changed instantly. In "Damage Control" a politician and his aide address a crisis. "Miss You" involves four people, three relationships and telephone technology.
In "What Do You Believe?" 10 people sitting in chairs that reflect their personalities share their thoughts.
"One is obsessed with the idea that in the future all sorts of transportation are going to hover," says Summers. "Another believes that in 2020 people will kill themselves because they won't be able to get into a really good New Year's Eve party. They're very different."
"Three Monologues" is about a woman's solitude, and "We Had a Very Good Time" tracks a couple on a trip to a frightening foreign country.
"I like all the plays," Summers says. "You can't say who's your favorite, like a mother with kids. They're all interesting and unique in their own ways."
PREVIEW
"Fifth Planet and Other Plays"
• Presented by: Beowulf Alley Theatre Company.
• Playwright: David Auburn.
• Director: Nell Summers.
• Where: Beowulf Alley Theatre Company, 11 S. Sixth Ave.
• When: Previews at 7:30 p.m. Thursday and next Friday; opening is 7:30 p.m. Jan. 19.
• Tickets: Previews, $10; regular performances, $16-$19, with discounts available at www.beowulfalley.org online or 882-0555.
• Running time: About 2 hours, plus one intermission.
• Cast members: Stephen Cruz, Johanna Hudson, Jeremy Womac, Roger Owen, Danielle Shirar and Steve McKee.
● Jane See White is a Tucson-based freelance writer.
All content copyright © 1999-2008 AzStarNet, Arizona Daily Star
"Previews, $10; regular performances, $16-$19, with discounts available at www.beowulfalley.org online or 882-0555."
