RTR’s one-act play ‘Between the Lines’ is first, moves on to state
The trio of judges at the Section 2A One-Act Play Festival, held this past Saturday, February 8, at Redwood Valley Public High School in Redwood Falls, were split three-ways as to which of the eight plays was the top performance – each judge giving that spot to a different production.
In the end, the Mountain Lake Public High School one-play production, “Livin’ de Life,” tied for second-place with the presentation from Adrian Public High School, “The Fantastic Flaying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore.” The judges ranked the Mountain Lake play 3-1-4 (out of the eight plays given), while Adrian’s three scores were 1-5-2. The tie was broken by judge’s preference, with Adrian presented as section runner-up.
Winning the festival, and advancing to the Minnesota State Class A One-Act Festival this Friday, February 14, in O’Shaughnessy Theatre on the campus of St. Catherine University in St. Paul, was the selection from Russell/Tyler/Ruthton (RTR) Public High School, “Between the Lines.” They received scores of 3-2-1.
Judges for the contest were Lilah Aas, Mary Haugen and David Metcalf.
“Livin’ de Life” is a fairy tale based on the tales and characters recorded in Joel Chandler Harris’ “The Uncle Remus Tales,” and was adapted and written by Ed Graczyk. In the story, Brer Rabbit, plum tuckered out from caperin’ and prankin’ with Brer Fox and Brer Bear, has lost his zest for such escapades. His friends from the Briar Patch diagnose his troubles as a bad case of “de Mopes,” and persuade him to consult Aunt Mammy Bammy for a cure. To gather the ingredients for Aunt Mammy Bammy’s curin’ potion, Brer Rabbit has to resort to his old tricks, and thus recovers his joy in prankin’ – which is just what Aunt Mammy Bammy intended. As Aunt Mammy Bammy tells the Briar Patch critters – “Live de life ya got. De only worryin’ ya should have is how to make tomorrow better dan today.”
Adrian’s play, taken from an animated short film by William Joyce and Brandon Oldenburg, centers around a young man by the name of Morris Lessmore, who loses his cherished book collection to a cataclysmic storm that’s half Hurricane Katrina and half “Wizard of Oz.” After meeting a “lovely lady . . . being pulled along by a festive squadron of flying books,” Morris finds a mysterious, abandoned library whose books are magical and come to life – their covers beat like the wings of birds. They flutter around him protectively, watch as he starts writing again and care for him as he ages: “They read themselves to him each night.” While the play stresses that books are indeed glorious things, the point being made is that what really matters is the story – story of love, loss and healing,
The winning RTR presentation, “Between the Lines,” by Dennis Bush, is based on actual newspaper headlines, and is described as mixing fiction with facts. Audiences meet a celebrity stalker, an unfaithful husband, a polygamist, a man with a unique gift for his wife, the parents of a missing child and others – in a series of scenes and monologues that range from heartbreaking to bizarre. In essence, there’s always more to the story – when you read between the lines.
All three judges agreed that the Mountain Lake play was a “fun show!” that featured a “strong ensemble.” that practiced “great physicality.” Critique sheet comments noted that the play featured some of the strongest character developments – from head-to-toe. Additional comments looked at how well the cast worked together, noticing that the cast had fun with the piece, “and it showed.” The costuming and slow onstage addition of the trees helped to cleanly shift the setting of the play at that point further into the dark woods, creating the needed spooky mood, said the judges. They added that the moral of the story was delivered effectively, providing a good sense of conclusion.
The judges additionally liked the variance of set levels, which provided for variety in character movement and interesting stage pictures. High marks were also given to the characters’ costuming and make-up.
Special kudos were given to Aunt Mammy-Bammy (Lydia Hildebrandt), one judge stating, “Aunt Mammy-Bammy is the most effective at immersing herself in the character, making her lively, intense and fully-committed to the style.”