Whether it’s simply not your genre, dark auditoriums make you narcoleptic, or your attention span only lasts to intermission, a 90-minute play can be a tough swallow. If long form theater isn’t your style, Staples Players’ One Acts is for you.
One Acts is an annual play festival directed by Theater 3 students. Students each pick and direct a 10-minute play ranging from comedies about sky-diving brides to thrillers about a time capsule with a dark secret. Kayla Damiano ’25 is directing “Grave” for her second year of One Acts.
“I decided to take it because I quit acting,” Damiano said. “But my creative ideas always stayed and I wanted to apply them to learn about the other side of theater.”
On top of deciding the set, staging and lighting for their plays, directors get to work with fellow Players through callbacks and castings.
“My favorite part is that I get to work with people I consider my friends,” Sam Skopp ’28 said. “It’s a really fun community.”
Skopp, playing Marcy in “Grave,” finds this both a perk and a challenge.
“It’s very different going from having people like Mr. Roth and Carrie who have been doing this as their job their whole lives, to people that are close to your age,” Skopp said.
Throughout the process, actors like Beckwith Fipp ’27 watch other rehearsals and give feedback.
“My favorite part is how diverse all of the shows are,” said Fipp. “Audiences can be excited to see a plethora of unique and interesting plays.”
Directors collaborate closely with their classmates by exchanging notes and sharing props.
“It’s a lot of group collaboration,” Damiano said. “There’s a lot of opportunity to conflict but everyone’s really good at working together.”
Lighting director Henry Baker ’26 is tasked with helping directors bring their visions to life onstage with lighting cues.
“Catering to the needs of so many people that have very different ideas and trying to execute that can be difficult,” Baker said.
This collective effort makes One Acts a positive learning experience for students involved and a unique viewing experience for audiences.
“Audiences can be very excited to see the hard work that they’ve all been putting in,” Baker said. “It’s truly, truly something to see.”
Tickets can be purchased on the Players website.
