Long Shot: a Festival of new plays
LOCATION: Loeb Experimental Theatre
DATES: October 13-15
DIRECTORS: Mary E. Birnbaum ’07, Clint J. Froehlich ’06, Tim M. Marrinan ’06, Josh C. Phillips ’07
PRODUCER: Veronica T. Golin ’07

To some, it might seem rare that Harvard students could be considered “long shots” in their pursuit of success in any field. Yet that was precisely the term used to title this weekend’s polished debut of a set of five student-written plays at the Loeb Ex. However, in “Long Shot: A Festival of New Plays,” the term seemed to suit the sense of irony that ran throughout the program.

Produced by Veronica T. Golin ’07 under the aegis of the Harvard-Radcliffe Dramatic Club, this set of mini-dramas was the product of the imaginations of five talented student playwrights.

The first play, “A Slice of Life,” began the festival with a sardonic awareness of tradition, which suited the budding playwrights’ efforts to forge their own, new dramatic conventions. In it, a father who wants to circumcise his son according to family ritual is prevented from doing so. In an ironic twist, the professional he hires botches the job.

The drama focuses on the now-adolescent son’s excruciating explanation of these events to his first real love interest. Written by Michael C. Mitnick ’06 and directed by Mary Birnbaum ’07, “A Slice of Life” stood out as one of the festival’s most fully conceived and professionally produced plays.

The second drama, “Romantic Comedy,” took matters to a more abstract level. Written by Jen L. Brown ’07 and directed by Clint Froehlich ’05-’06, the action consists of four people discussing a romantic comedy that they are writing. The piece turns into a more serious fulfillment of its title when one of the writers turns out to be the “real-life” protagonist of their story in the larger play. The situation was constructed cleverly, and made this drama one of the wittiest pieces of the festival.

“Swings,” the central vignette, moves more slowly, but delivers a message as powerful as the other plays. It examines a somewhat dopey high school couple and their relationship to Michael (Samantha G.M. Barnard ’09), a “really weird” girl who doesn’t live by their rules. The love triangle set up between the three is quickly dismantled, but the supposedly normal couple evolves into an agent of unusual cruelty in yet another ironic twist.

The penultimate production, “Bathroom Etiquette,” was probably the most over-the-top play of the show. The creation of writer Farley T. Katz ‘06 and director Tim M. Marrinan ‘06, its action centers on two men in a restroom.

“Kevin” (Baruch Y. Shemtov ’09), comically over-exaggerated in his quest for relief, breaches the unspoken bathroom rule of aloofness and asks the other man—who at first seems comparatively normal—for “help” in progressively outrageous ways. Raucous comedy, more pointed and risqué than in the other works, ensues. The result, however, was not overtly offensive but managed to make viewers just uncomfortable enough to succeed dramatically.

“Finding Their Guitar” ended the show on a more idealistic note, one that suited the promise of the creativity of the festival writers. Written by Ben E. Green ’06 and Charlie Miller ’08, and directed by Josh Clay Phillips ’07, this musical homage to the ’80’s revolves around a boy on a quest to become a rock star.

His dream is impeded, however, by a medical condition critically debilitating his arms. After a visit from a mystical guru, the boy realizes his true calling—as a master of the art of the air guitar. Under his sage’s tutelage, he participates in a sweetly sincere journey of self-discovery that is a mixture of the comic and earnest overtones found in “Rocky” and “The Karate Kid.”

As in the other plays, irony emerges in “Finding Their Guitar,” as the hero strives to become the champion of an art accessible to anyone with enough imagination, and the play’s idealism effectively strikes a poignant chord in audiences. Yet this irony also suggests a certain democracy present at the core of the show: that anyone with enough creativity and enthusiasm can make their artistic dreams a reality. These playwrights have done an admirable job with that freedom.