Verdict: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (reviewed Thursday 14 November)
A full house of enthusiastic supporters greeted the opening of Manly Festival of Short Plays, touted as all original work made and produced by local creatives.
The six plays featured this evening were all roughly 15 – 20 minutes in duration, offering a variety of themes, performances and directorial approaches.
Although the staging was sparse (but well-utilised), the top three most engaging plays had the most fundamental quality in any stage play: voice projection. We needed to hear what the actors had to say. A couple of the plays unfortunately suffered from mumbled lines and actors turning their back on the audience, creating an impression of being amateruish rather than polished with a professional eye.
Nevertheless, those plays that did stand out were highly entertaining in their originality and eagerness to showcase the talent of local creatives.
Rats in the Kitchen was a clear audience favourite, featuring a late night DJ on a pensioner-friendly radio station, offering her advice on how to get rid of the ‘narcissistic rat’ in your life. A clear narrative that had a solid beginning, middle and end.
Homecoming was another interesting piece; whilst the ending felt a bit unfinished there was a strong cross cultural element that resonated well with the audience.
The other strong favourite on the night was Driven to Distraction – a hyper-realistic monologue about a man being treated for driving addiction. The actor in this role clearly loves the spotlight!
The festival will feature these plays and more on a rotating roster, so be sure to check it out before the season closes.
There are also abundant opportunities to be involved with Manly Theatre Group as a creative or behind-the-scenes, including a ’24-hour’ Christmas special coming up in December.
Manly Festival of Short Plays will be performing at Darley Smith Theatre until 23 November. For tickets and showtimes, go to https://events.humanitix.com/manly-festival-of-short-plays-2024
To find out more about how to get involved in Manly Theatre Group including the upcoming Christmas special, go to https://www.facebook.com/groups/manlytheatregroup/ on Facebook.