Category Archives: Previous Shows

Moonlighting 2016: Full of Surprises . . . Readings of Short Plays by Local Playwrights

moonlighting2016Opening the Saturday after Thanksgiving, Ashland Contemporary Theatre will present “Moonlighting 2016,” the company’s annual festival of short plays by local playwrights.  This year’s selections are: “Flicker” by Diane Nichols, “Veganish” by John Yunker, “Special Delivery” by Mig Windows, “You Lucky Lady!” by Ruth Wire, “I Do” by Bob Valine, “Spiritual Teachers’ Life-Skills Bootcamp” by Jeannine Grizzard, and “Priorities” by Teresa Peterson.  The plays are directed by Jeannine Grizzard and Lyda Woods and Will Churchill.

Five playwrights are veterans of the Moonlighting Readings and two, Mig Windows and Teresa Peterson, are new to ACT.  The submissions this year went to a new level; we received 35 short or one-act plays from 17 playwrights and so many were well conceived that it was really hard to choose.  In the end, we selected seven short plays, in part based on how they worked together to create a show with ‘surprises’ as the underlying theme.

The Moonlighting Readings evolved from ACT’s Paschal Readings series founded by Board member Ruth Wire and then Artistic Director, Michael Meyer.  The first of the readings was in April 2007, using the talents of seven Ashland writers, a number of whom would be presented numerous times over the next decade.  Since that first evening at Paschal, ACT has premiered 136 new plays by playwrights in the region.

There are four performances: Nov. 26th at 8pm and Nov. 27th at 2pm at the Ashland Community Center. 59 Winburn Way, downtown.  Dec. 3rd at 8pm and 4th at 2pm at Grizzly Peak Winery, 1600 E. Nevada Street, Ashland.

Tickets are $12.  Available at Paddington Station, Grocery Outlet and online here.

Reservation Line: 541-646-2971