Sample Local Flavor With VARIATIONS ON THE END at MICA's BBOX- The Tradition Continues

Welcome to the 19th annual presentation of VARIATIONS ON...., a ten-minute play festival that has bounced around Baltimore between production companies, venues and formats over the course of its lifetime. This year, again under the capable wing of Rapid Lemon Productions, please enjoy VARIATIONS ON THE END at BBox Theater in the Gateway Building of MICA in the Mount Royal area of Baltimore.

You may know that, er, unique round building that looms over 83, which is one of the newer buildings at MICA. That is the mixed-use Gateway Building, home of the BBox Theater, and I assure you, it's equally unique on the inside. It is this year's home of the VARIATIONS ten-minute theater festival, VARIATIONS ON THE END.

It's at the corner of North Avenue and Mount Royal, not too far from the symphony and opera houses. I parked in one of the lots adjacent to the building; there were no signs saying I mustn't, but I was a bit nervous about being towed. I was not towed.

This year’s VARIATIONS carries the theme “the end,” chosen by audience vote during last year’s VARIATIONS ON CHANGE production. VARIATIONS ON THE END is eleven brand new, separate pieces of theater, custom written according to this year’s theme, sharing the same actors. This is the 19th annual production of Baltimore's ten-minute play festival, The Variations Project .

The set may look somewhat familiar to city residents from anywhere, not just Baltimore. It’s two panels of urban grunge, one one each side of the stage to form a ‘wing,’ and they’re visible during each vignette, and in between them. Those panels alone don't suggest apocalypse, but when combined with each theatrical piece, some of which have their own mobile set pieces, the overarching ‘vibe’ of this year’s VARIATIONS feels like apocalypse (used in the original sense to mean ‘revelation’) and post-apocalypse (used in the common contemporary understanding to mean ‘complete civilization destruction’) survival. Last year’s VARIATIONS ON CHANGE didn’t seem to have a unifying theme until I left MotorHouse and the ethos of the performance- not the individual pieces themselves- kept plucking at my subconscious, and it eventually nudged its way to my conscious to suggest it was an exploration of how we understand and relate to one another, particularly regarding gender perceptions.

Most of this year's short plays are wonderfully complete, and some of them are completely wonderful. Here is my idea of what a ten minute play should be: a complete story, with beginning, middle and end, characters, setting and plot, rising action, complications and climax. This is not easy to execute in the space of ten minutes. Short pieces can feel like conversations, rather than a complete story, including only a few of the necessary elements. There are examples of that among this year’s contenders, but other pieces are true short stories, surprisingly innovative, funny, unlikely or relatable.  “Toes For Sale,” by Larry Malkus and “The Blob’s Main Squeeze,” by R. A. Pauli,  both in Act I, are excellent examples of the short play form. In Act II, each of the 5 pieces has a complete story arc.

The eight performers represent a variety of physical types, and are equipped with versatile talent and depth of experience.  The Ensemble is Anthony Case, Sarah Daniel, Vanessa Eskridge, Todd Krickler, Shakiara Saunders, Crystal Sewell, Jenna Sharples, and Mel Tillery, who represent not only diversity of body types, but ethnicity, age and gender expressions as well, and I am impressed with each of them.

Mel Tillery is terrifically versatile, and strong in each scene, appearing in 6 of the 11 pieces. I believe I haven’t seen Sarah Daniel before, and am feeling oddly cheated by that. I hope to see her often in future, as her delivery is impeccable and her expressions fascinating, heart-rending and hilarious. Shakiara Saunders is high profile in three drastically different pieces, and is equally convincing in each.  Todd Krickler brings an ‘affable middle aged white dude’ aesthetic to the table, which he employs to advantage by meeting our expectations and then either exceeding them or breaking them altogether.

Crystal Sewell has subtle physicality and vocalizations, demonstrates reliable, flexible acting chops, and her face is delightfully mobile. Jenna Sharples is furiously relatable as “Me,” (I feel a vicarious catharsis at her meltdown), in “I Don’t Want Your Effin Pancakes,” written by Crystal Sewell. Vanessa Eskridge gives us a gentle, rambling daffiness in Arthur Cleaves' piece “Chicken,” but is a justifiably sharp and outraged crusader in “Pissed-Off Goldfish” by Sharon Goldner and the contrast is great fun. I imagine Anthony Case’s distinctive physical attributes may limit his characterizations… and I am pleased to be wrong. He is by turns angsty, resolute and comically disabled, and has great mastery of his voice. 

Director Jalice Ortiz-Corral gives each separate performance piece plenty of room to breathe, and nothing feels rushed, at the same time ensuring cast members are connected, blocking tight and dialogue snappy. I’m fascinated to see what new situation will unfold from one piece to the next. Some titles turn out to be more descriptive of the play than others: “Pissed-Off Goldfish,” by Sharon Goldner is pretty descriptive; “Hatchet,” by Bruce Reich, less so; however, it is simply riveting. There’s a good blend of serious and comic pieces in both acts, but Act II feels weightier, thematically, than Act I. 

 In the concluding piece, “Rivals,” by Tess Huth, actors Sarah Daniel and Mel Tillery give us a whole gamut of emotions, interspersed with extra action-y action, choreographed by Fight And Intimacy Choreographer Casey Kaleba. “Hatchet,” written by Bruce Reich, makes use of Lighting Designer Martin Smith’s location spots and the upstage - downstage expanse of the theater floor, which makes the low-action, intense piece quietly dynamic. “Bug,” by Allegra Hatem, features a great deal of motion and meanwhile manages to give us character notes for each of the 5 performers. “The Blob’s Main Squeeze,” by R. A. Pauli, features six actors in an extremely interesting collaboration, and uses the word 'pseudopod;' twice, in fact. 

Participate in this terrific Baltimore tradition by showing up for something you've never seen before, and probably will never see again. For curious, novelty-minded folk, the VARIATIONS project overall, and particularly 2023's VARIATIONS ON THE END, offers tapas plates of theatre, a flight of dramas, a sampler of stories. Please enjoy the edge.

Purchase tickets online.  https://www.rapidlemon.com/2023

 The BBOX is accessible from the North Avenue exit off the Jones Falls Expressway. The entrance to the building is on Mount Royal Avenue at the building's south corner. The BBox is on the right, shortly after the entrance. Bathrooms are all the way down the hall and around the corner.

Tickets run $20. Choose your date from the menu when purchasing tickets online. Tickets also available at the door. The box office opens at 7 PM. While you're there, vote for next year's theme- Fate, Courage or Fame- by dropping money in a milk bottle.

BBox Theater, Gateway Building, 1601 W. Mount Royal Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland

Photo, L to R: Jenna Sharples, Vanessa Eskridge, Mel Tillery, Sarah Daniel, in "Pissed-Off Goldfish" written by Sarah Goldner

Photo Credit: photo courtesy of Rapid Lemon Productions

Final Factoid: This is the 19th Annual VARIATIONS, which means next year is 20 years. Be alert for extra-special specialness surrounding that. Maybe you'd even like to get involved in next year's fun.

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