Offscript - One-night stands

When short-run shows demand attention

Like a mayfly’s 24-hour lifespan, live theater has a fleeting nature. Still, if all live productions are ephemeral, some are more ephemeral than others. Most theatrical seasons emphasize shows that run for weeks, draw heavily on a playhouse’s creative energies and instill a sense of “event.” But theaters also stage shows with shorter runs, which may last merely a night or a weekend.

Short-run shows tend to receive smaller budgets and less rehearsal time than major productions, so they often don’t represent a group’s finest efforts. They tend to be special events, fundraisers or workshops of material that might get a full production later. (As a theater critic, I confess a bias against them, since there’s little point in reviewing a show that will have closed when the next issue hits the stands.) But tuning out all short-run shows risks overlooking a significant portion of a city’s theatrical life. February is so full of short but fascinating productions, it’s as if they were scheduled to redress the tendency to dismiss them.

Playhouses like 7 Stages frequently showcase brief engagements from out-of-towners. Georgia Tech’s Ferst Center for the Arts hosts The Acting Company this weekend. With legendary John Houseman as one of its founders, The Acting Company is America’s premiere touring classical repertory company. It presents an intriguing “backstage” treatment of As You Like It Feb. 14 and a theatrical adaptation of American Dreams: Lost and Found, Studs Terkel’s book of interviews of American dreams and aspirations, Feb. 15.

There may be no event in theater history that compares with The Lysistrata Project: A Theatrical Act of Dissent. On March 3, a date chosen for the numeric elegance of “03/03/03,” troupes around the world will stage readings of Aristophanes Lysistrata as an act of mass protest against the impending war in Iraq. As of this writing, the website (www.lysistrataproject.com) estimates 346 readings will be held in 29 countries, including several in Atlanta.

Perhaps the most appealing thing about the project is their choice of play. Instead of a heavy-handed polemic about war’s human costs, like Euripides’ Trojan Women, Lysistrata is a comedy in which women unite to end the Peloponnesian War by withholding sex from their soldier-husbands.

Even if you’re a hawk, you’ll be intrigued by the talent behind Synchronicity Performance Group’s reading of the play at Oglethorpe’s Conant Performing Arts Center. Michele Pearce directs a cast that features Carolyn Cook, Carol Mitchell-Leon, Rob Cleveland and Daniel May, as well as artistic directors Sean Daniels, Richard Garner and Vinnie Murphy. Other groups planning Lysistrata readings include Atlanta Urban Media Makers, PushPush Theater and EstroFest.

Other intriguing play readings this month include the Feb. 17 conclusion of the Goethe Institut’s German Play Reading Series, with Tim Habeger directing Marius von Mayenburg’s Parasites at PushPush. And Theater Emory’s Brave New Works’ project features night after night of new plays by such writers as Pamela Turner and David Garrett.

The highlight of Brave New Works will be the full production of Crow: From the Life and Songs of the Crow. Vinnie Murphy directs his adaptation of Ted Hughes’ classic cycle of Crow poems, in which biblical creation stories collide with the savagery of nature in bloody, sardonic verses. Murphy has been developing Crow for 15 years, and finally, after five weeks of rehearsal, the one-man production debuts Feb. 21-22, starring Emory student Raife Baker. It also includes video design by Brian Ginn and a score performed live by Drew DeMan.

Writer/director Sandra L. Hughes has had a similarly long-term fascination with painter Frida Kahlo, as revealed in her Frida: Diego and Me at The MASK Center Feb. 15-16, 22-23. If your interest was piqued by Julie Taymor’s film Frida, consider Hughes’ interpretation of Kahlo’s life and work through mask, mime and acting.

Expect fewer highbrow concerns with Out of Hand Theater’s The VD Show, playing Feb. 14-16 at the Red Light Cafe. The cabaret-style show about love and sex features live music and about 30 sketches and short plays, including contributions from Steve Murray and Joe Gfaller. It promises to be a Valentine that gives you paper cuts.

But don’t blink, or you might miss it.

Notices from Out of Town: Peter Hardy’s short play “Like Going to Europe” will be produced this month by New York City’s Love Creek Productions ... Phillip DePoy’s play Easy, which had its world premiere at Horizon Theatre last summer, is nominated for the Edgar Award for Best Play by the Mystery Writers of America.

Notices from the Lobby: Currently my favorite lobby notice is the one displayed outside the Alliance’s Hertz Stage: “This performance of Shakespeare’s R&J contains adult content and a misting haze effect.”

curt.holman@creativeloafing.com

Off Script is a biweekly column on the Atlanta theater scene.