Theatre Odyssey names winners of its 2018 Ten-Minute Play Festival

For area fans of short-form live theater, Theatre Odyssey’s thirteenth annual Ten-Minute Play Festival is as tempting as a box of chocolates. For area playwrights, it’s a chance to show off in a staged production. That’s why the festival was created in the first place. In 2018, the festival clearly met its goals. Dozens — 70 to be exact — of strong submissions flooded in. The festival’s “secret readers” narrowed that down to eight exceedingly good, exceedingly short plays. These were staged for a live audience from May 3 to 6 at the FSU Center for the Performing Arts. Over the course of four performances, these micro-plays were judged by L’Tanya Evans, the head of The Out-of-Door Academy’s visual and performing arts program, Nate Jacobs, the founder and artistic director of Westcoast Black Theatre Troupe, and Julian Olf, a Sarasota-based director and playwright. The judges announced this year’s winners after the festival’s final performance on May 6.

Best Play: Michael Bille’s “The Card Game.” This heartfelt, funny vignette puts its cards on the table at a Florida retirement community. Two friends mourn the loss of another friend who’d been part of their long-running poker game. They briefly consider giving up the holy game of poker. Instead, they decide that the best way to keep his memory alive is to let the game go on. Featuring Neil Levine and Richard LeVene.

Runner-Up: Keith Whalen’s “Cliché.” A man strikes up a chat with an older woman in the park. She responds with a barrage of clichés. He tries to stop her, but it’s like closing the barn door after the horse escapes. The police appear — with equally hackneyed responses. It’s either a dystopian society where clichés mandated by law, or a public service message against bad writing. Featuring Andrea Dovner, Harry Lipstein and Ashley Strand.

Audience Favorite: Bernard Yanelli’s “Death of Honor.” Philip Hamilton was Alexander Hamilton’s eldest son. Philip’s statesman father had groomed him to follow in his footsteps. Those plans came to nothing when Philip fought a duel over his father’s honor, and died in 1801. In one of history’s cruel jokes, Alexander Hamilton would himself be killed in a duel with Aaron Burr in 1804. Were these senseless deaths or a family curse? The playwright doesn’t answer. But he captures the horror—and sheer waste of human potential. Featuring Tom Aposporos, Shawn Cacciola and James Kassees.

Don Walker is an actor, a director, and Theatre Odyssey’s current president. He notes that the 2018 festival was a crowd-pleaser. “Of course, I acted in Dan Higgs’ play,” he says. “I wasn’t in the audience, but a number of people came up to me after the show and told me they thought it had been our best ever. I think they’re right. There was so much great work to choose from this year! We could’ve easily staged double or triple the number of excellent plays.”

Theatre Odyssey’s 2018 “Ten-Minute Play Festival” ran through May 6, at the Cook Theatre, FSU Center for the Performing Arts. To find out more, call 799-7224 or visit theatreodyssey.org.