10-Minute Play Festival in Southington on Sept. 12

Looking for something fun to do? West Hartford playwright Stuart Brown will have nine of his 10-Minute plays showcased on Friday, September 12, beginning at 7 pm at The Arts at Angeloria’s for their Playwrights Festival. Tickets are $15 for this fundraising event. The theater is located at 223 Meriden-Waterbury Turnpike in Southington. “Ten-Minute Festivals are very popular,” stated Brown, who retired after 32 years as Director of Student Services at UConn-Waterbury. “I’ve had these works staged across the country. Audiences love them because each play has a theme they can relate to. Most are comedic and all of them have a twist at the end that the audience never see coming.”

The playwright began writing 10-Minute plays threes year ago. They are rooted in personal experience and observation. Most of the works are comedic. “My play, The Drawing, came about during a period when it seemed every lotto drawing was for an unbelievable amount of money. I thought – what would I do with all that money if I won? The Wait concerns a theater critic and his friend who are caught in the gridlock of audience members leaving the theater after a performance of Mamma Mia!”

Not all of the plays are humorous. “The Suitcase involves a married couple coming to a major decision about their life together,” the West Hartford resident stated. “It has a serious theme with a surprise ending that no one sees coming. When I saw it staged in Rhode Island, I had a tear in my eye at the end – and I wrote it.”

According to Brown, who is also the President of the Connecticut Critics Circle, a good 10-Minute play has a fully realized arc – a beginning, middle and end – just like a full-length play. “These are not just random scenes,” he said, “but complete mini-productions. I also make sure to incorporate an unexpected twist that catches the audience off-guard.”

For further information and to purchase tickets, go to The Arts at Angeloria’s website at: https://www.theartsatangelorias.com/