Megan Reynolds, Meghann Deveroux, and Bowie Henderson in Pride and Precipice (Janetta Leigh)
For the ninth year, Whim Productions is back with its annual short play showcase, Alphabet Soup: Theater from Queer Voices.
Every year, I am struck by the range of themes, tones, and genres covered in these plays. There are stories of queer pain but also queer joy, queer love, hope, and pleasure. This year, there’s a hefty dose of queer hijinks added to the mix as well.
In All the Stars in Cygnus, Zo E. Schmidt presents a sweet, simple, and slyly clever conversation between two women at the end of a 50-year marriage as one lies on her deathbed. As the two reflect on their life together, we gradually realize there’s more to their relationship than it first appeared.
Both Oversteeped Tea by B. Michael McFarland and Kevin King’s The Space Where We Met feature tense reunions between gay men and important women from their youths.
In Courtney Honors’ Futureproof, Patch (Alisa Lynn) is a doomsday prepper counting down the last minutes before the Big Event she’s convinced is coming. At the same time, she’s also speedrunning a brand-new relationship with Nadine (Orpheyuss). The two connected at a lesbian bar the night before and have decided to move in together, although it turns out they have very different expectations of what their future will look like.
As you might expect from this sort of play development showcase, many of the plays are heavily dialogue-focused. That’s not a negative assessment, especially as much of that dialogue is rich, funny, and poignant. But it does make the more raucous bursts of physical comedy stand out.
The High Who Spied Me is a “poem about reactions” by playwright John Adams (director Kevin King), about a stoner (Clint Steven) and a British spy (Ma’Riece Johnson) who pique each other’s interest. Adams’ script is written in light, lyrical verse, narrated by Larry Goodman, with some fun bits of tumbling thrown in by Johnson. The dynamic between the actors is breezy and endearing, and the end result is a hilarious, mildly chaotic 15-minute burst of energy.
Camilo Fontecilla’s Pride and Precipice gives us Willow (Megan Reynolds) and Bree (Meghann Deveroux), who are pushing their relationship to its edges on a taxing hike to a mountain’s summit. The banter between the two is delightful, and the tone remains lively as they move from loving horseplay to bickering, and finally to physical scuffles staged in riotous tableaus by director Kyle Tichenor.
As always, Alphabet Soup, which includes an entire process of script development in addition to the public performances, is an engaging look at the creation of live theatre. Each year, some of the plays are stronger than others, and there are always a few truly fantastic standouts, but the real star of the showcase is the process on display—the act of creating art and cultivating a sense of community.
“Alphabet Soup: Stories from Queer Voices,” a production of Whim Productions, runs through April 13 at Whim Space, 415 Prospect Ave. For more information, visit whimproductions.com.
