Teasers Highlight Students’ Talents

It is spring season for Fresno City College, which means Teasers, short plays written, directed and performed on stage by FCC students, returns to the FCC theater.

“Teasers strives to be a student-driven performance,” Chuck Erven, theater instructor, said. “The plays they are directing and performing come straight from the material they create in their playwriting classes.”

Among the many short plays being performed this year, is  “Out of The Blue” by Nicole Osborne — a story about two entomologists who are trapped in a butterfly aviary for the night, with tension building between them as they try to find their relationship connection.

The play “Eva” by Marlena Eckel is about a young woman’s personal struggle with lesbianism. “Natalie is marrying her fiancé Jeremiah; both she and he come from very religious backgrounds,” Eckel said. “However, she has secretly been seeing Eva, Jeremiah’s sister, behind his back.”

Sean Stoll, author of “Errant Press,” writes a play about a reporter who is told to cover a volatile story soon after her news network is acquired by a corporate conglomerate. The sources of the story have been withheld from her, casting her into a career jeopardizing predicament. “She must decide whether to return to independence or go with the grain and accept her new position in the world of news media,” Stool said.

“Going Home” by Amber Smith is about Tricia who has an encounter with her best friend which forces her to re-evaluate their situation on living on the streets.

Matthew Robinson wrote the play “Josh Komitsky Has Some News.” In this play, Josh Komitsky gathers his best friends in a local diner to deliver some life changing news, but his friends must be able to put their differences aside in order for Josh to share his news.

“Chuck Erven has done a terrific job incorporating the class learning into the writing process for Teasers,” Robinson said. “Hearing actors speak your words changes your perspective in wonderful, unexpected ways that make you a better writer, in my opinion. The experience has been tremendous.”

Teasers runs from May 1-3, and the audience is asked to donate to benefit a scholarship. The performance will be held in the FCC Studio Theater in room TA 105.