Dallas #1MPF 2017

credit: Ben Schroth

This past weekend, I participated in the 4th Annual Dallas One-Minute Play Fest, a co-production between local honchos Kitchen Dog Theater and One-Minute Play Festival, a national organization that swoops into communities all over the country and partners up to get a pulse on the zeitgeist. I contributed two pieces. I participated in 2014 and 2015 as well, but this one, this time was probably the most enjoyable. My pieces were directed by Emily Ernst, who I think is an SMU grad. She lead a group of mostly SMU alumni through my plays and several others.

This is the cast of the "clump" my two plays were in.

As always, it is incredibly difficult to get photos from these sorts of events (it is a big criticism of mine as a playwright to not get archival materials, especially production pics, of projects like this... in particular because 1MPF gathers the plays for free. No one is paid.). The best I can do is the pic above of the stage set and ready just prior to curtain and the pic of the cast taken as a selfie and swiped from FB. I know a few of the actors, but I, sadly, didn't get to meet everyone.

The event did garner some nice press... here, here and here.

As I have done in the past, I'll post my one-minute plays here. I was pleased with them this year. I was especially pleased that I didn't fall into the political-activist-low-hanging fruit trap of writing about Trump or some other nonsense. Not that I don't have a lot to say about it, but beciase I don't think a one-minute performance is the right platform to do any real exploration of such a topic. I am also pleased that I managed to make the plays very specific to Dallas, my city. They can't be moved to another festival in another city and still make a bunch of sense (well, maybe the LISTICLES one, maybe...)

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GEOGRAPHY OF A DALLASITE  by Brad McEntire

NARRATOR:    As a kid...

Two KIDS enter. The age group pairing enters each time they are referenced, throughout…

KID 1:              The suburbs are so boring. man.

KID 2:              I wish we lived in the middle of the city

NARRATOR:    In your teens...

TEEN 1:           Yeah, Deep Ellum's okay.

TEEN 2:           I heard it used to be better.

NARRATOR:    In your 20's...

HIPSTER 1:     I'll meet you at the Double Wide. Or Somewhere in Expo Park.

HIPSTER 2:     Let's do Bishop Arts. They just put in a new Microbrew place.

NARRATOR:    In your 30's...

THIRTIES 1:    I am never leaving Old Monk.

THIRTIES 2:    I am never leaving Uptown.

NARRATOR:    In Your 40's...

FORTIES 1:     I am never leaving the Old Monk.

FORTIES 2:     Unless it is to go to… (together) The Lakewood Landing.

NARRATOR:    In Your 50's...

FIFTIES 1:       Are we going out tonight?

FIFTIES 2:       Nah. I might do some work. Or, what is on to watch tonight on HBO?

NARRATOR:    In your 60's...

SIXTIES 1:       Honey, I think I'll give some money to the Arts District. After all, we go once a month.

SIXTIES 2:       (on phone) Yeah, bring the grandkids over. We're just here in the suburbs.

End.

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 LISTICLES   by Brad McEntire

Lights up. A group of Dallasites run on in as a mob.

SPOKESPERSON:          Okay. What do we want? Serious journalism?

ALL:                             (cheering) No.

SPOKEPERSON:           Indepth reporting?

ALL:                             (cheering) No.

NED:                            Fake News?

Everyone stops cold. The SPOKESPERSON walks slowly up to NED. Then, quietly, with bottled intensity…

SPOKESPERSON:          I will punch you in your filthy face…

NED:                            Well, what do we want?

SPOKESPERSON:          (turning to everyone else) What do we want?

ALL:                             Listicles!

CROWDPERSON 1:      7 Places to Get the Best Queso in Oak Cliff!

CROWDPERSON 2:      Top 5 places to take a First Date in Uptown for Under $500!

CROWDPERSON 3:      Best 9 custom hat shops in Highland Park!

ALL:                             Listicles!

CROWDPERSON 4:      3 Best Humans in Deep Ellum!

CROWDPERSON 5:      5 Most Disappointing Sports Mascots in DFW!

CROWDPERSON 6:      9 Most Outrageous Burgers in the Metroplex!

ALL:                             Listicles!

NED:                            Top 10 List of Listicles!

ALL:                             Yeah, listicles!

Then they all run off as a swarm. Blackout.

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