A STAGED READING OF “TOGETHER,” A SCIENCE FICTION PLAY.
SCRIPT2STAGE2SCREEN BEGINS ITS 2023-24 SEASON WITH A STAGED READING OF “TOGETHER.”
by Audrey Liebross
Script2Stage2Screen (S2S2S) will begin its 2023-24 season on Friday, October 20th and Saturday, October 21, 2023 with a staged reading of TOGETHER, an original production by playwright Thomas Pierce. TOGETHER marks the first time that S2S2S will present a science fiction script. The playwright, who lives in Seattle, Washington, will attend both nights, and will be available for questions and comments.
The story is that Helen, an astronomer, has discovered that an asteroid will hit the earth in six months. She decides to ask her ex-husband, David, who is chair of his university’s English department, to go to Chile with her and spend what may be the rest of their lives there. Before David can decide, Sarah, an assistant professor in the English department, arrives to make her own request. For the remainder of the night, the three of them struggle with how to live their lives in a world that may soon end.
Experienced performer and director Morgana Corelli brings her directing expertise to S2S2S once again with this production. The talented cast consists of Tiffani LoBue and Richard Marlow (both also veterans familiar to Coachella Valley audiences) and Chloe Lapenat (a stage and screen actor). The playwright, a member of the Dramatists Guild, is Instructor Emeritus in Philosophy at South Seattle College, Seattle, Washington. His plays have been produced in the United States, Europe, and Asia.
Sarah (Chloe Lapenat) sharing a secret which surprises Helen (Tiffani LoBue) and panics David (Richard Marlow), in TOGETHER (photo credit: Hal O'Connell)
Script2Stage2Screen is an innovative performing arts organization for the development of original stage productions. S2S2S differs from many local theatre companies in that it presents only staged readings, rather than full-fledged plays. I asked Hal O’Connell, who is a member of the company’s Executive Committee, to explain the concept of a staged reading compared to an actual play and to a traditional reading. In an email, Hal explained that traditional readings usually have the cast members seated behind music stands. The performers are “reading from the script, with no action, set, costumes, props or sound.” In contrast, a staged reading is performed as a play would be, with “the actors moving around, on a full set, wearing costumes and make-up, using props, with appropriate lighting, sound and special effects.” Hal added that the “primary difference between a staged reading and a full production is that our actors carry scripts.” Hal mentioned that audience members frequently comment that, after a few minutes, they stop noticing the scripts, and become as immersed as they would in an actual play.
Coachella Valley Theatre World does not review S2S2S’s work; by the time we can publish a review, their two-evening run is over. We urge our readers to follow our preview articles about S2S2S’s upcoming performances, which we plan to publish for each staged reading.
All of S2S2S’s performances take place at UUCOD, 72-425 Via Vail Rancho Mirage, CA 92270 (across from the Rancho Mirage Dog Park) at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 cash or check at the door, or they may be purchased via PayPal on the website: www.script2stage2screen.com . Will-call reservations may be made at script2stage2screen@gmail.com.
The rest of S2S2S’s season consists of:
A VERY HOLLY MOOSEMAS, by Jean Ciampi (November 17-18, 2023). Holly Anderson is convinced she can create Christmas movie magic in Atlanta in August. A bear, a scotch- drinking nun, a case of salmonella, a cranky host and a Scrooge of a boss may say otherwise. But, joy isn’t where you find it but where you create it.
LET IT RAIN, by Ed Friedman (January 26-27, 2024). Putting on a classic American play should be easy for an established community theatre, but it doesn’t work out that way when there are competing agendas among participants. And community stakeholders have their own ideas as well.
THE MOST DISTINGUISHED CITIZEN OF LEDBETTER GAP, written and directed by Jason Hull (February 23- 24, 2024). It takes more than you think to win a big award in a small town!
LIFE, LOVE, AND THE PURSUIT, by Shelley Chester (March 22-23, 2024) Maxine Stafford, 67, meets a successful 55-year-old writer, Ryan Allen Squire. As Maxine attempts to play matchmaker for Ryan, the two develop an unlikely friendship that changes both of their lives.
YOUNG PLAYWRIGHTS’ CELEBRATION: MAIN CHARACTER, by Brooklyn Rutledge (April 19-20, 2024). Cass is a completely, totally, absolutely average high school girl, definitely not anybody who would be a main character. She is overly aware of this fact, and yet, here she is dealing with all the annoyances that come from being the star of the show.
SOUTHLAKE, by Mike Byham (May 24-25, 2024). We peek in on the life-defining moments of Randall Scott – a Vietnam veteran who with his young, pregnant wife Rose settled into the quiet farming suburb of Southlake, Texas in the early 1970’s. Told through scenes that alternate between the early 70’s and 2022, it’s a story of love, regret, change and redemption. And there’s a ghost.
ENGAGEMENT RULES, by Rich Orloff (June 21-22, 2024). This comedy follows the intertwined lives of two couples who have become good friends despite (or because of) their multi-decade age gap. Both couples face problems at the intersection of sexuality and spirituality, forcing everyone to face questions that none of them can answer easily.