There’s an old saying in theater: “When you find a gem, let it shine.”
Key West’s Red Barn Theatre found such a gem over a decade ago, and has been letting it shine in most seasons since. It’s called “Short Attention Span Theatre,” one of the most popular shows the theater offers each year.
It’s a simple concept – pick a mixed slate of funny, powerful, poignant or off-the-wall short plays and populate them with some of the area’s top comedic talent, then string them together for an evening of fun. Each year, the Red Barn’s resident family – the McDonalds – find six or seven new plays and pull them together under a title that relates to them all. This year’s theme: “Alternative Facts,” which most will agree is relevant to the times.
“One of the things I love most about Short Attention Span Theatre,” said Mimi McDonald, the Red Barn’s managing director, “is that it gives us the opportunity to explore a number of different voices and new playwrights in one show. And it seems to many of us that the human condition is evolving right now, and these playwrights are noticing that and commenting on what’s happening in a very comedic way. And we have such great comedic actors all doing a variety of very funny characters in this one.”
This year’s rendition stars Erin McKenna, Mathias Maloff, Cassidy Timms, Nina Pilar and Zach Franchini. They appear in various combinations during the evening of plays that focus on characters who are in conflict with larger forces – a catering job for an engagement party with a missing bride; a chance meeting on the Golden Gate Bridge, two audience members who insist on world premieres, a fiancé put to the test when she meets her possible in-laws, and two FBI agents who interrogate a newscaster when a newsroom is hijacked.
“It’s a fast, fun evening,” said McDonald, “but there’s a message or two in there as well.”
As they do every year, the entire McDonald family shepherds this show to the stage, directing, building sets, handling the tech and more. Along with Mimi are her husband Gary, and their adult children, Amber and Jack.
“We’ve been a theater family for more than 45 years,” Mimi said. “It’s in our blood, and we have such a great time working together on this show. It’s always a big hit.”
Tickets for “Short Attention Span Theatre: Alternative Facts” are available at KeysTix.com, redbarntheatre.com, or by calling the box office at 305-296-9911. All curtain times are 7:30 p.m.
