For locals tired of the movies and looking for something to do this weekend, area youth are offering a creative alternative that is live and in 3D.
Stage Dwellers and Montezuma-Cortez High School Theatre will present their annual one-act festival tonight through Saturday at the Cortez high school auditotrium.
Each nights showing will feature three one-act plays and an improvisation performance from the Impulsive Improvisors.
Many of the performances are student written and directed.
Its a nice opportunity for kids who are interested in taking on a little more responsibility and being more of the creative force behind the production to be able to step up and do that, said Nicholaus Sandner, M-CHS drama teacher.
The first one-act, Indian Summer, is written by Betty Brydon Beecher and is directed by Lacy Lukas.
Its about finding peace and contentment within your limitations, said Lukas, a junior.
The act is about a man who gets in an accident and must choose what makes him happiest.
Since the scene takes place in 1910, a wheelchair from that era had to be purchased online and brought from California for the show, Lukas said. In addition, a door frame had to be built on the set wide enough to accomidate the chair.
It was a blast working with everybody, Lukas said of her cast and crew. They were really receptive and responsive and took directions well. It was a really fun show to do.
The next performance is entilted Difference, which is written and directed by Bryan Tripp and Carson Soukup.
It actually is a scene between two people meeting at a bus stop an older man and a young woman, Sandner said. And theyre both at different places in their lives and in their relationships. The first time through the scene, they make decisions that make it serious, that make it dramatic. And it ends up kind of falling apart.
The characters are then confronted by a magical character who turns back time.
This time they go through the scene and its more of a comedy and they take a more light-hearted approach to it and they end up seeing the advantages of being optimistic about things and being light-hearted, Sandner said.
Last, but not least, Star-Crossed Lovers: An Investigative Report is a contemporary take on William Shakespears Romeo and Juliet, as told by a news report after the events take place.
The show is directed by Joshua Martin and co-written by Jacob Valdez. Martin said he adapted the script from a video project he had done for another class.
A friend and I were in English class last year, and it was either write an essay on Romeo and Juliet or do a cool project, he said. Im involved with video making with a few of my friends and we wanted to write a video script for it. We got together and picked a few scenes that we liked and wrote them.
Martin advises the show is for mature aduiences and warns viewers to be prepared for a little inuendo seeing as how Shakespeare was a pervert.
Sandner gave the show a PG-13 rating.
The One-Act Festival will run from 7 p.m. to approximately 9 p.m. tonight as well as Friday and Saturday nights. Tonights show will be followed by a ceremony to induct new thespians into the troop as well as presenting awards.
Tickets are $8 for adults and $5 for students. For reservations, call 565-3722 ext. 198.
Reach Reid Wright at reidw@cortezjournal.com