Arts & Entertainment
Good Signs of Life in 'Life is Short'
Onion Man Productions presents a series of nine, 10-minute plays at the Lionheart Theatre at local theater.
Where can you go to watch nine, no make that nine and a half, plays all in one evening? The answer to that is the Lionheart Theatre from Thursday to Sunday. James Beck, managing director of Onion Man Productions, has put together a series of original, 10-minute plays .
Not only is each play only 10 minutes short, which is why you can watch nine of them in one evening, but each and every one of them is set in a funeral home. This unusual setting makes for some predicaments, provokes some thought and definitely provides some laughter.
It’s fun to see nine separate stories presented in one evening. The challenge for the playwrights is to introduce the characters, develop the plot and carry the story through from start to finish in a short time. Some achieve this better than others.
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The first Act consists of five plays beginning with "New Age Farewells" by Susan M. Steadman. It’s a dialogue-driven play, with some characters a little more engaging than others. Bravo to the last play in the first act, "The Achilles Plan" by Sean Casey. Reminiscent of "Damn Yankees," the play moves quickly. The actors are equally matched and good. Kudos to the part of Joe played by Richard Blair.
The four plays in Act Two clip right along. I enjoyed "Final Arrangements" by David L. Fisher. The writing in this play brings a combination of humor and thoughtfulness. The acting is balanced with Carolyn Choe doing a fine job as the funeral home director. She also directs this play.
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Between the Acts, Beck along with Emily Quartarone portray the story of a pregnant woman whose mother had just passed away. The young woman is given a tour of the funeral home by a kind employee who had know her mom. This is a very nice, but non-intrusive, addition to the other productions. It ties everything together.
Take an evening this coming weekend to see Life is Short. New concepts in short play writing and good local talent come together to provide an evening well spent.
Shows: Thursday-Saturday 7:30 p.m., Sunday 3:00 p.m.
Lionheart Theatre
10 College St.
Norcross, GA 30071
(770) 885-0425
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