A deep dark secret (okay, not that dark) about my past is that I used to perform on stage before I turned to writing as my primary artistic outlet. Not that I was ever a professional actor, but I appeared in a number of community theater shows. Favorite roles include Henry Carr in Tom Stoppard’s Travesties and Parolles in Shakespeare’s All’s Well That Ends Well.
That, as I said, is in my past. Aside from appearing in a few short plays or staged readings of works by fellow playwrights, I haven’t appeared in a full-length play since I was in Romeo and Juliet in 2008. (I played Friar Lawrence, in case you were wondering.) And, honestly, that’s not likely to change. I no longer have the time or energy to devote to the extensive process of putting on a show. Staying up until 1:00 in the morning to work on sets, and then getting up early the next morning to go to work, was something I could manage when in my twenties, but is a tougher row to hoe, as they say, now that I am, well, a bit north of my twenties.
However, last year I found myself involved with a group called WordsMove Theater, a collection of actors who put on staged readings of short plays. Last December, we performed a set of holiday-themed plays, including a reading of Dylan Thomas’s “A Child’s Christmas in Wales. The plays were performed without sets or costumes, to facilitate their being performed in various venues, and we did not of course have to memorize any lines. Now that’s my kind of theater!
And now, we’re going to do it again. The show is called Fixing the Unfixable, and will be performed at four different venues over the next couple of weeks.
Plus, this time, two of my own plays will be performed: “Buddy and Chester” and “Banana Therapy.” Neither of these are new: both were originally done twelve or thirteen years ago for the Hovey Players’ 24-Hour play festival (meaning they plays had to be written, rehearsed, and performed within a 24-hour window). I’m pleased to see both plays get a second life!
Other playwrights involved are Nora Ephron, Paul Rudnick, and Robert Luxford. All performances are Free! Free! Free! However, donations are gratefully accepted.
More details may be found on the WordsMove website.
Program:
“On Maintenance/Exercise/Blind as a Bat” by Nora Ephron
Directed by Mary Crowe
“Buddy and Chester ” by Peter M. Floyd
Directed by Ben Dubrovsky
“Cashless” by Robert Luxford
Directed by Mary Crowe
“I Remember Nothing/Who Are You?” by Nora Ephron
Directed by Mary Crowe
“Banana Therapy” by Peter M. Floyd
Directed by Ben Dubrovsky
“My Husband” by Paul Rudnick
Directed by Mary Crowe
Performances:
Carleton-Willard Village
100 Old Billerica Rd.
Bedford, MA 01730
Wednesday, June 10 7:00 pm
Bemis Hall
15 Bedford Rd.
Lincoln MA 01773
Friday, June 12 12:30 pm
Lincoln Public Library
3 Bedford Rd.
Lincoln, MA 01773
Wednesday, June 17 6:30 pm
Congregation Beth El
105 Hudson Rd.
Sudbury, MA 01776
Saturday, June 20 7:30 pm