Short Cuts
Stage shows hold several advantages over their silver-screen counterparts. Besides the urgency that comes with the art form’s ephemeral nature, there’s the authentic connection forged when audiences identify with in-the-flesh actors rather than captured images. Also, short-play showcases such as Potluck Productions’ Cries and Whispers From the Heartland are much more common than mini-film festivals. In an era of overlong Oscar contenders, Cries and Whispers packs ten pieces into two hours, presenting a kaleidoscopic series of plays in the time most movies use to complete a single narrative arc.
Cries and Whispers marks Potluck Productions’ tenth birthday. During its decade in existence, the Kansas City collective has presented scores of plays from female writers. Glendora Davis, one of the organization’s founders, contributes to Cries and Whispers, a gently satirical sci-fi work that depicts a future in which people buy their dates at a robot store. Catherine Browder, another established author, submits a New York City-set rooftop conversation shrouded in the cloud of 9/11.
While recognizing some of the city’s top women playwrights, Cries and Whispers also unveils fresh voices, such as University of Kansas students Libby Dean (in “The Option,” a grief-stricken mother attempts to discover whether her almost-estranged son is sexually active) and Kendra Finney (in “Breakfast,” a college couple’s spat over the titular meal doubles as an exploration of relationship dynamics).
The program ranges from wistful romance to tragicomedy, with characters of all ages covering the emotional spectrum. Some pieces lack theatrical polish, making them feel as raw as overheard arguments; others are so sincere that audience members might get a bit choked up — as, say, during a mother’s deathbed address to her family in Dana Pflumm’s “One Last Smile.”
Often, as with Kristin Soper’s “Ketchup,” the plots of these bite-sized dramas fit into a simple sentence: He likes ketchup on his eggs; she doesn’t. Sometimes an all-you-can-eat appetizer buffet can be more satisfying than a single mammoth main course.
