A delightfully eclectic series of stories will fill the Allen County Community College Theatre tonight, with the premiere of the ACCC Student-Directed One Acts.
Five of the six one-act plays are original pieces, written by students themselves, and take a look at a troubled therapist, a band of superheroes preoccupied with trivial matters, a series of role reversals on prom night, a down-on-her-luck singer’s deal with the devil and a pair of stage hands suddenly thrust into the middle of a play.
THE PRODUCTION opens with “The Therapist,” directed by Tanya Wilson and authored by Jessica Truitt.
A struggling couple, Dakota Yohe and Jessica Garrison, pay a visit to Alexis Hosack for some counseling.
The couple soon realize things are not as they seem, from the moment Hosack introduces herself: “I’m the rapist. No wait, I’m the therapist.”
The counseling — predictably, and hilariously — goes downhill from there. Hosack leaves the audience in stitches as she zigs and zags from one antic to another. Yohe and Garrison, meanwhile, deftly follow along with appropriate measures of shock and disbelief with snippets of humor. Watch for John Thompson’s memorable cameo at the end of the skit.
WRITTEN AND directed by Whitney Olson, “The Useless League” follows the story of a group of ragtag superheroes.
But their mission for the day isn’t to thwart an evil plot or restore law and order. They just want some lunch.
Travis Eppinger, Brandon Eckley, Grace Cameron and Rhea Shay each displays a fair amount of quirky humor as they toss food ideas back and forth. Watch for references to places in and around Iola.
THE GOINGS-ON take a decided madcap and outrageous turn with “Prom Night,” written and directed by Dakota Yohe, which tells the tale of three young high school couples preparing for, then reflecting upon, their big night.
In this case, however, Truitt, Shay and Wilson portray the male roles, while Eppinger, Mack Melvin and Brandon Collins portray the females.
Their stereotyped performances will leave the audience snickering, then rolling and finally laughing out loud multiple times.
One warning: the characters’ reflections following prom are decidedly not for young spectators, thus the “PG-14” warning.
