PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date: 6/10/19

Contact: Andrew Rothman
From: Chagrin Valley Little Theatre

40 River Street
Chagrin Falls, OH 44122
Phone: 440-247-8955
E-mail: cvlt@cvlt.org
Website: www.cvlt.org

Chagrin Valley Little Theatre premieres new one-acts at the sixth biennial "10-10 Festival"

CHAGRIN FALLS, Ohio - The Chagrin Valley Little Theatre will bring a fresh series of one-act plays to its River Street Playhouse stage as they launch their sixth biennial 10-10 Festival on June 21. The selected scripts will be staged in performances at 8 PM Fridays and Saturdays through July 13, and on Sundays June 30 and July 7 at 2 PM.

Directed by Yvonne E. Pilarczyk and Cameron Zona, each of these one-act plays is an Ohio premiere, and many are world-premiere stagings. CVLT began the biennial 10-10 Festival in 2009, putting out the call for short plays to be performed at its 65 seat second venue, adjacent to the main theater building.

"The first festival was a resounding success, receiving submissions from all over Northeast Ohio and beyond," Pilarczyk said. "The following editions were equally a hit." The 2019 edition received over a thousand comedic and dramatic scripts from playwrights around the globe, which the selection committee read and whittled down to a lineup of ten:

940 Feathers by Tim Brennan of Austin, MN is about a long-married couple facing the biggest challenge of their relationship. In Pet Sounds from Anthony Pezzula of Albany, NY, household pets try to solve the mystery of where their master has gone. Dwayne Yancey of Fincastle, VA's That Play About the Gurgling Mud Pit considers which is best: a dead playwright or a live playwright. Holy Hell by Barbara Lindsay from Shoreline, WA examines the relationship between a man and a woman from their separate sides. The perils of cheap flights are the source of laughs in Budget Airlines Flight 711 by Bruce Guelden of Winters, CA. In The Thought Doesn't Count from Emily Hageman from Sioux City, IA, a sock monkey leads two people into a long-overdue conversation. Brett Hursey of Farmville, VA's Scrambled is about a fight that starts with a box of tampons. Aisle Six by Washington DC's Matthew Fowler finds an elderly man and a young convenience store employee exploring the hard truths of aging. Where You From? is a playful look at whether a couple must (or can) live happily ever after by Don Bertschman from Braddock, PA. Finally, Brad McNight Wilson of Brooklyn, NY turns in Play Date, in which a little boy learns how to talk to girls.

Pilarczyk, who has been working as an actor and director in the Cleveland area for more than 40 years and was instrumental in the launch of the 10-10 Festival says “the River Street Playhouse is one of my favorite stages, as it allows the freedom to present new, alternative, or edgier works than the main stage at CVLT, and offers opportunities for actors, directors, and audiences that aren't common in community theater settings." Co-director Cameron Zona is earning his BFA in Theatre at Lake Erie College and is Artistic Director of Hershey Montessori.

The troupe of actors portraying the various roles include Catherine Remick, Donald Edelman, Eli Ravenson, Grace Mannarino, Grace Perry, John Hickman, Kathy Lamping, Kevin Jones, Lisa Lee Lazarczyk, and Shannon Sidorick.

Show times are 8 PM Friday and Saturday nights 6/21 - 7/13, and 2 PM on 6/30 and 7/7. All seats are $13 general admission. The River Street Playhouse is located at 56 River Street, west of the main CVLT building. Advanced purchase and advanced arrival for parking are both highly recommended. Call the Box Office Monday through Saturday 1-6 p.m. at 440-247-8955 or visit the website at www.CVLT.org.

CVLT is generously funded by Cuyahoga County residents through Cuyahoga Arts and Culture and supported by the Ohio Arts Council. CVLT is a proud member of the American Association of Community Theatre.

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