60 Minutes In Dublin Vol II, The New Theatre

Following on from the success of Vol I, Maylin productions gives us another 60 minutes in Dublin. Having put a call out in April looking for new ideas for short plays set in Dublin, once written, the team had two weeks to work on them. The 9 short plays are from an array of writing, directing and acting talent that give us a few glimpses into different lives at a moment in time, that range from the funny to the thoughtful, over the course of the 60-ish minutes. 

All plays take place between 8 and 9pm, which has the effect of ruling some ideas in and others out. The locations range from outside a bar, where one woman wants to cut and run while the other wants to get as many company bought Mojitos as she can; the couple who have different ideas on their first few dates; the guy who wants to spend Friday playing video games rather than having a session with his roommate's friends; the old school mates who bump into each other in a bar, plus a lot more, all play out in front of us on a simple, symmetrical set of a large wooden two seater, and two white sheets draping above the stage and down the back. It doesn't really need anything else. 

It is a delightful evening, moving well from one short to the next, the pace never lagging, and with shorts there is no danger of outstaying their welcome. In some cases, there was that glimpse of a bigger picture, while for others, it was more comedy and bizarreness that won the day. There was a piece, Aphrodite, that used voice over along with movement from the actor on stage, the actor might lip sync some of the words, but there was that separateness of both, in what was a very different approach than most. The running order, much like songs on an album (assuming people still listen to full albums) was well put together, varying the writing styles and pieces. 

Another reason for this is the doubling up of cast, and the running order gives them time to be ready for their next piece, with well defined characters, and all ably performed by the different actors (all listed below) creating the wide variety of characters needed. It is interesting to move between different syles and so many characters without having to connect them all. It is like reading short stories, each one different and stand alone.

It is a wonderful evening that due to the nature moves along and gives at times a quirky look at Dublin, but also puts out there a range of talent, from writing, to directing, to acting, that also exists here in Dublin. At times funny, odd and sad, it is a great mix, that comes over very well, with a freshness and vibrancy that is infectious.