Carpenter Square Theatre announces its 22nd Season

CST just announced it’s 22nd Season. For this kind of theatre, with the kind of work it offers, to last that long is quite remarkable. CST seems to be comfortably funded, and housed gratis at the arts center, I think (at any rate they were funded well enough to blow off my volunteering offers when I first moved here in 2003). Which is good (the funding, not the blow-off), because they can concentrate on the work.

Steve Martin’s (yes, THAT Steve Martin) “Underpants” is the lead-off play for the season. What a third career he’s having.

I worked with a similar type theatre in Tampa and they were a lot more ambitious and experimental than CST, but they also depended on private donations and box office to survive and believe me, the fundraising was a weight; it did lead to a lot of very fun, creative marketing projects. But they were hungry, which gave them an edge that CST doesn’t have — and they sure didn’t turn away willing volunteers.

But CST seems to do a great job, balancing the provocative nature of alternative theater with maintaining support in a conservative area. I just wish I could afford to actually see the plays and know for sure!

The 2005-2006 season includes a play by a Tahlequah writer, which is great. Small theaters like CST and The Loft (the Tampa indy theater I worked with) are smart to give local playwrights a chance.

Speaking of local, this weekend you can enjoy some local improv comedy, for free, courtesy of CST (and Allied Arts). A show by a sketch comedy group, Everybody & Their Dog, will take place at the Kerr Park Amphitheater in OKC July 15, 16, 17, 22, 24.

There are also several Okie writers represented in the upcoming 10-Minute Play Festival. July 23 only night for that! You may not think much can be done theatrically in 10 minutes; but you would be wrong. Sometimes those shorties pack more of a punch than a three-act.

I recommend getting a season ticket if you can afford it. It helps the theater immensely by giving them funding up front.