The Greenbrier Valley Theatre through Feb. 3 will showcase a series of eight 10-minute plays featuring local performers as part of its tenth annual "New Voices" festival.
Teaching Artist Lukas Hagley, who is directing and performing in this year’s festival in Lewisburg, West Virginia, says a committee combed through hundreds of submissions and found eight plays that provide participants the courage to take the stage and shine.
“What made us choose these particular plays was the depth assigned to these characters. They deal with love, death, divorce, family. It's fascinating to see how they deal with these very real issues within the pieces."
- Brent Englar's "Wednesday’s Child" recounts the story of a long-married couple and a surprise that drags up old arguments.
- Eugenie Carabatsos' "The Night Sky" tells of two mid-sized stars who question their lives and the choices they have made.
- Peter Snoad's "Notice" examines the interaction of two strangers whose different understandings can change their lives.
- Carl Williams’ "Reflections" tells of two sisters who, reflecting on the death of their mother, discover the worth of treasured possessions.
- Marj O’Neill's "Being Ferried" tells of a woman whose future is foretold on the ferry to New York City.
- Nicholas Thurkettle's "Breakfast for Quartet" portrays the lives of four strangers and the very different stories they have to tell.
- Susan Middaugh’s "Meet Me in the Endive" tells of a widow who won’t admit she needs help until she gets a surprise visit from her late husband.
- James T. Kitchens' "SLAMMED!" examines the life of an old man who wants to take up a young man’s sport— wrestling.
The festival will run Feb. 1-3 at 7 p.m. and will include a pay-what-you-can preview performance Jan. 31 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $16 for general admission, $13 for seniors, and $10 for children/students.
The program is presented with financial assistance from the West Virginia Division of Culture & History and the National Endowment for the Arts, with approval from the West Virginia Commission on the Arts.
Located in historic downtown Lewisburg, Greenbrier Valley Theatre is the the state's professional theater and produces first-class theatrical productions featuring professional actors.
The theater also offers an after-school drama program and a summer camp for children and teenagers as well as lectures, workshop, literary readings, art-appreciation activities, and live simulcasts of the Metropolitan Opera.
For tickets or more information, call the theater's box office in Lewisburg at 304-645-3838 or visit www.gvtheatre.org.
