From laugh-out-loud humor to thought-provoking twists, Studio Theater in Exile will take you on a theatrical adventure with the Dramatists’ Theme Park: Seven Rides. The show is a series of seven short play series exploring truth, irony, and absurdity with minimalist design and bold performances.
The Dramatists’ Theme Park: Seven Rides will be on stage at Studio Theater in Exile (STIE) at the Hudson Valley MOCA located at 1701 Main Street in Peekskill for two weekends only February 14, 15 and 16, and February 21, 22 and 23. Friday shows start at 7:00 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday shows begin at 3:00 p.m.
STIE Artistic Director Mara Mills said, “An important mission of Studio Theater in Exile is to develop and produce new works and present opportunities for actors, playwrights and directors in our community. A short play program is a chance for old and new directors to take risks with interpretation, for actors and directors to work together as a repertory company, and to collaborate with playwrights.”
Added STIE Producer Jeremy Gratt, who designs many of the productions,“The format also highlights how directors can imaginatively use minimalist set pieces and projections to construct the plays’ environment.”
The short play series submission process garnered over 200 plays, out of which seven were selected. From parents trying to sign up for their child’s summer camp to an absurdist vision of survey-taking, the plays have a surrealist vision and reflect the truth and irony of our times.
Ed Friedman, a local Peekskill author and playwright, directed his short play Justice Served. “My play takes place in a district attorney’s office in Chicago. As the DA is preparing a young victim of gay bashing for the trial of the perpetrators, their meeting is interrupted by a lawyer who purports to assist them. However, it becomes clear he has another agenda, with a twist at the end.” Friedman is also author of the humor book I Will Not Be Ignored, which the Peekskill Herald featured in a July 2024 article.
-
'
-
'
-
'
-
'
-
'
-
'
-
'
-
'
-
'
-
HV MOCA
'
Local actor Sonia Lee Garber is in two of the Theme Park plays: Fresh Hell, written by Brian Cern, and directed by George Croon; and Culling, written by James McLindon and directed by Derek Tarson.
“In Fresh Hell, I play a super-neurotic mom that is trying to sign her child up for summer camp,” said Garber. “In Culling, my character works in a high school library and tries to convince her boss that the book The Color Purple should not be banned. I get to enjoy both the comedic and the dramatic,” she said, adding, “that’s what I like about the two different plays that I am in.”
Ed Friedman said, “I’ve read the plays, and it should be a fascinating experience. The plays range from the naturalistic and topical to the metaphorical. Within these categories, they are funny, poignant, and thoughtful–often in the same piece.”
General admission tickets to the Dramatists’ Theme Park: Seven Rides are $25, and $20 for students and HV MOCA members. Tickets can be purchased online via Eventbrite using this link.
The playwrights whose work is featured hail from all over the country. The directors are from Westchester, Putnam, and Rockland, and the ensemble of actors come from the Hudson Valley, from Stormville to Yonkers.
For more information about the Hudson Valley Museum of Contemporary Art or Studio Theater in Exile, visit their websites and follow Studio Theater in Exile on Facebook and Instagram.
Don’t forget to tell Ed, Sonia, and everyone else at Studio Theater in Exile, you read about it here in the Peekskill Herald.
Visit the Peekskill Herald Events Calendar Features and the Peekskill Herald Event Calendar to see more local events or to add your event.
Subscribe or donate to the Peekskill Herald and receive the latest news, stories, and featured events daily into your inbox.
