SkyPilot will present a selection of original one-act plays this fall. Playwrights were invited to submit works based on the theme:
“Future Shock.”
“Future Shock,” a 1970 book written by Alvin and Heidi Toffler, who defines the term as a certain psychological state of individuals and entire societies under the pressures of “too much change in too short a period of time.” The book predicts that a post-industrial society will be marked by a culture where everything ranging from goods to human relationships will be temporary and the familiarity that institutions (family, national identity, religion, professions) once provided will be lost.
Running Thursday, November 7th- Sunday November 24th
Series A - Thursdays and Fridays at 8PM
Mondegreen by Stephen Olson
Directed by Morry Schorr
Free Space by Isaac Rathbone
Directed by Stephen Juhl
The Old Rogue by James Menges
Directed by James Carey
Series B - Saturday and Sunday at 8pm and 5PM
Book of Life by Judy Klass
Directed by Arden Haywood Smalls
Truthiness by Maximillian Gill
Directed by Kristina Lloyd
Final Assignment by Jean Koppen
Directed by Alysha Brady
Tickets are $15 but for $20 you can get a festival pass and see both series A and B.
SkyPilot Theatre Company’s Runway series will close out its 2019 season with a selection that pays homage to a literary classic. A Twisted Christmas Carol will be performed on Wednesday, Nov. 13th at 8pm at Oh My Ribs! Theater, 6468 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles. The production is open to the public with tickets for $5 at the door.
Runway is a play reading series that helps to develop new plays in the early drafts stage. The readings are directed by prominent Los Angeles theatre directors in partnership with the playwrights. They are rehearsed, staged, on their feet and performed with scripts-in-hand, immediately followed by a focused feedback session with a moderator, the playwright, and the audience.
In A Twisted Christmas Carol, written by Phil Olson and directed by Ian Nemser, it’s Christmas Eve is a small Texas town and cantankerous BBQ joint owner Buford Johnson gets into an argument with his wife Darla and tells her he’s skipping the holiday altogether. After storming out of the restaurant, he gets hit by a twister, rolls his truck and falls into a coma. He awakens in a dream state where he’s visited by Hank Walker, his ex-business partner, who takes the form of the Ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future. Hank leads Buford – a.k.a. Scrooge – on a journey similar to that in Charles Dickens beloved A Christmas Carol … only Texas- style.
Phil Olson has written 16 published plays that have had over 400 productions in six countries around the world. Ten of his plays are published by Samuel French including A Nice Family Gathering, which has been optioned to be made into a feature film, A Nice Family Christmas, and Mom’s Gift which starred Cindy Williams (Laverne & Shirley) at the Meadowbrook Theatre in Michigan.