Friends who joined Associate Professor Kristin Johnsen-Neshati and MFA Candidate Nicholas Horner on Friday March 6, for the 1,001 Plays Project were treated to a unique theatrical experience. After meeting student playwrights from Santa Catarina Federal University in Florianopolis, Brazil via Skype, we listened as our own students performed staged readings of seven 10-minute plays written by students from Mason and Santa Catarina University. The theme for all seven plays was “Tomorrow” and it was fascinating to see the unique approach taken by each playwright.
Following the staged readings, the audience in TheaterSpace and students in Brazil participated in a Skype discussion of the plays. Perhaps the most interesting aspect of the discussion was that the Brazilian playwrights were astonished at the interpretation of their plays that the GMU student directors and actors brought to their work. The Brazilian playwrights universally agreed that they had never envisioned the interpretation our students brought to their work. In hindsight it makes sense that artists from different cultures and with different life experiences would approach a play in a way that reflects those differences. Hearing the discussion between theater lovers in different hemispheres makes one appreciate the magic that theater brings to all people of the world.
The 1,001 Plays Project invites university students from around the world to submit original 10-minutes plays that will be performed by theater students in other countries. Plays written by Mason students were to be performed by the Santa Catarina students at a later date and our students will join them via Skype just as the Santa Caterina students had joined us for our performances.
The 1,001 Plays Project aims to connect student playwrights and artists from around the world. The School of Theater hopes to continue the project with student playwrights from South Korea, China, and many other countries.