Santiago Canyon College’s ‘Festival of One-Act Plays’ spotlights first-time writer-directors

Ryan Coombs, 42, has been a fan and patron of small and black box theater for years.

“I started reading plays as literature. I love reading plays,” he says. “That’s what led me out to places like the Maverick in Fullerton, the Chance Theater and the Long Beach Playhouse.”

In fact, Coombs says even though he would occasionally spend $90 to $100 to see major productions at places like the Segerstrom Center, he was often more moved by a small production with an $18 to $20 ticket.

So, when a call for submissions went out for one-act plays to be staged at Santiago Canyon College’s black box Little Theatre, he leapt at the chance, turning in not one but THREE original scripts for consideration.

In May, Coombs will be one of six first-time playwright/directors to unveil his work at the inaugural Festival of Original One-Act Plays.

Valerie Mora, who says her “golden life” would be as a working writer of fiction and drama, is similarly thrilled to get a chance to debut her work.

Mora, who works for the County of Riverside Public Health Department, says she got into theater arts during the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic to “find some joy.”

At Santiago Canyon College, she has acted, crewed and stage-managed, so writing and directing were the next logical step.

Mora, who is working toward a four-year degree in English and Creative Writing at California Baptist University, said she loves the idea of  “creating this little world and seeing how people react.”

A full slate

The ambitious six-play project was launched by theater arts professor Sheryl Donchey and Roberta Kay Smith of the Division of Community Education. Donchey said the concept arose in January while she was collaborating on a play with Smith and just bloomed organically from there.

Donchey says she initially planned to direct one of her original plays as she did last year with “Tis Shakespeare Time.”

Instead, a quick call for student submissions was put out, and 14 plays were submitted within a month.

Auditions began in February, which Donchey said “brought a lot of new students into us,” both from the traditional theater arts courses and community education.

“We have a large contingent of older students,” Donchey said, including Coombs and Mora.

Donchey was delighted with the fast and enthusiastic response, and six plays, ranging from 15 to 30 minutes with casts of three to six actors, were selected.

“These are all brand new original productions,” said Donchey.

She said submissions ranged from comedy to tragedy to science fiction to Western and even a “Godotish” absurdist tragicomedy in the style of “Waiting for Godot.”

Original plays

Coombs describes his play, “Earthquake Weather,” as a comedy where “existential dread meets personal responsibility.” It is reminiscent of the comedy of Woody Allen and Larry David, he said.

The play features a neurotic protagonist who wants his girlfriend to move in, in part, to clean his shower, which he fears is growing black mold and posing a danger to him.

He also submitted a relationship drama entitled “Grays,” but says Donchey selected “Earthquake Weather” because it was quirky and she had other straight-forward dramas.

Donchey compares Coombs’ writing to that of a budding Neil Simon and would like to see him enter his work to the South Coast Repertory, which has professional programs and contests supporting emerging playwrights.

Coombs has established a comfortable career as an administrator working with the U.S Department of Agriculture but has amped up his after-hours writing.

“I think the things that really move me are the arts, whether it’s comedy or (serious), I want to be part of it,” he says.

Mora’s play, “The Stillness That Swallows Sound,” she describes as a “mythical drama.” The play, inspired by Dante’s “Inferno,” has a couple of souls in the ninth circle of hell observing how the minor cuts people inflict upon each other in a relationship can compound and lead to dire consequences.

Although Donchey admits it is “going to be difficult to juggle” six productions simultaneously, all in once-a-week classes, she is excited by the challenge.

Just the start?

If the festival goes as well as Donchey hopes, it could become an annual event.

According to Donchey, theater arts, one of three disciplines, along with music and dance, in the Performing Arts Department, has been staging performances for the past 13 years.

“We started with Musical Christmas concerts in the gym until we got our black box theater,” Donchey said.

The plays will be staged on back-to-back weekends, May 15-17 and May 22-24, at the Little Theatre, Building D-121, with evening and matinee performances to be announced. Ticket prices will be $12 for students and senior staff, $15 for general admission. Tickets will be available later in April and early May on cur8.com or at the box office.

After writing for years as a hobby, Coombs said he hesitated to call himself a writer. That’s why the chance to present his work is an important validation.

“Sometimes it felt like the imposter syndrome,” he said of his writing, “because I’m not getting paid. I think maybe this will give me just enough bravado.”