Comedic 10-Minute Plays

David Ives' The Philadelphia works really well as long as you have actors who have a good sense of timing. While the banter is good, I think that it is only really effective when the actors know when to step in with their lines. The back-and-forth between Mark and the Waitress is the foremost example. Since their lines rhyme with one another, keeping the right tempo is key. Otherwise, this script was very strong--the story was short and to the point, and it was entertaining. (It provokes some thought, too...what would being in a Tacoma be like? A San Francisco? A St. Paul?)

Duet For Bear And Dog is interesting because right up until the last page or two, it is a very funny play. "She" is particularly hilarious--the random idea that She is a Russian immigrant, and initially mistakes the bear for her husband, helps keep the short play sharp and unpredictable. At the very end, though, Bear steps out of the scene and has a very dramatic speech about giving birth. I think this works, because it doesn't completely negate everything that has already happened in the play. It is very bittersweet: here we have a bear who has no choice but to eat out of dumpsters, but she warmly reflects on living in the woods and raising her cubs.

Anything For You is good because the conflict is entirely self-contained. Lynette's distress over needing to find someone to sleep with eventually leads to Gail admitting that she is in love with Lynette, despite her denials. When they don't know what to do about their huge conundrum, they settle for solving their smaller problem: what they are going to order. It ends basically the way it begins--a casual dinner between friends. It is full of soap opera cliches, and that is what makes it so very funny.

Erin Blackwell's Aimée does a good job of spoofing national security and surveillance. Aimée plays an aggravated straight man to the serious, deadpan Larry and Madge, which is extremely funny. The play also manages to offer an interesting take on the debate about love and its authenticity. Of course, it ends up ridiculing the debate by having the two absurd characters of Larry and Madge fall in love with one another. I don't think this play would work as a longer piece, which is why it is strong as a 10-minute play.