The Riant Theatre Announces Finalists for 2017 Strawberry One-Act Festival

The Riant Theatre's 30th Annual Strawberry One-Act Festival has announced the finalists of the 2017 summer one-act play competition The finalists are chosen by the Riant Theatre's Artistic Director, Van Dirk Fisher, a jury of industry judges and through audience votes and online views.

This summer's festival marks the 30th Season of The Riant Theatre's renowned short play competition. The plays selected in this process will be performed in the finals which takes place Friday, July 28 at 7:30pm & 9:30pm; Saturday, July 29 at 1pm, 3pm & 5pm; and Sunday, July 30 at 2pm at the Theatre at St. Clement's, (423 West 46th St, NYC).

Reflecting the diversity written into the mission of its presenter, THE STRAWBERRY ONE-ACT FESTIVAL has produced over 1,500 one-act plays since it began in 1995 (in recent years, the festival has often been presented biannually due to demand from artist submissions and audiences alike).

Tickets to the finals of THE STRAWBERRY ONE-ACT FESTIVAL are priced as follows: General admission - $25 advance/$27 at the box office, Premium seating - $30 advance/$35 at the box office. Tickets are on sale now through www.therianttheatre.com/item.php?id=398 or by calling 646-623-3488.

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The 2017 finalists are:
(See below for descriptions)

A PLAY ON WORDS by Albert Repicci

TYPE CAST by Adam Delia

BANGING ON THE KEYBOARD by Crystal Cabrae

SICK AND TIRED by Diane L. Parker

THIS WAY OUT by Annie Rosenberg

TREFFPUNKT by Natalie Lifson

CHEESECAKE by Nadia Asencio

THE UNSPOKEN 200 by Ehinomen Okojie

TELL ME YOUR CRAZY by Jason Kurtz

KETCHUP OR MUSTARD by Lior Almagor

TRAIL MIX by Patrick Sherrard

LITTLE INVISIBLE BACKPACKS by Magdalena Cychowski

The writers of chosen plays get to work with an Industry Coach to help prepare them for the Finals, which are judged by a jury of industry experts who include actor Count Stovall, casting director Ellyn Long-Marshall, theater producer Stephen Miller and literary associates Helen Schultz and Kate Bussert, In addition to the opportunity for finalists to be selected for publication in print in the festival's anthology The Best Plays From The Strawberry One-Act Festival, awards are presented for Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress and Best Costumes in addition to the main prize for Best Play, which comes with a $4,000 prize and a development deal for a full-length play produced by the Riant Theatre.

Awards will be presented at the Closing Night Ceremony and Performance on Sunday, August 27th at 7pm, at the Riant Theatre, 31 West 34th Street, 7th Floor, NYC. Ticket information is forthcoming. In addition, some of the plays in the festival will be selected for publication in print in the festival's anthology The Best Plays From The Strawberry One-Act Festival: Volume Nine.

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One-act plays from the summer for on-demand streaming are also on the festival's Vimeo channel: vimeo.com/rianttheatre. The fee of $25.00 allows for 24-hour viewing period.

One-Act Plays Available On-Demand:

Program A:

Friday, July 28th at 7:30pm & Saturday, July 29th at 1pm

A PLAY ON WORDS by Albert Repicci

Directed by Ramona Floyd

Featuring: Michael Piper-Yourie and Stephanie Weppler

A young male playwright recognizes the drab appearing woman at a bar as being the theatre critic who reviewed his play and timidly approaches her and asks her opinion of his work. When she dressed him down, he dressed her up. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/ aplayonwords

TYPE CAST by Adam Delia / Five Flights Theater Company

Directed by Adam Delia

Featuring: Jess Carillo and Lenny Thomas

When Lana, a young Italian American Acting student, wakes up with her Teacher's Assistant Varrick, she thinks she's finally got the man of her dreams, except he doesn't want her to tell anyone from school . . . and Lana isn't the type to say the smartest things. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/ typecast

BANGING ON THE KEYBOARD by Crystal Cabrae

Directed by Ryan Adams

Featuring: D'Angelo Adams, Cory Boodoo, Josh Brooks, Angelica Cabrera, RJ Isquerdo and Hunter Hathcock

A dark comedy that combines the intricacies of interpersonal relationships, the supernatural and the apocalypse. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/ bangingonthekeyboard

SICK AND TIRED by Diane L. Parker

Directed by Nicholas Orvis

Featuring: Diane L. Parker

A dramatic portrayal of Voting Rights activist Fannie Lou Hamer. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/ sickandtired

Program B:

Friday, July 28th at 9:30pm & Saturday, July 29th at 3pm

THIS WAY OUT by Annie Rosenberg

Directed by David Kahawaii IV

Featuring: Miles Gutierrez-Riley

The last thing Nelson Ferreira expects when he gets home from school is the shocking news that his family are illegal aliens who've just found out that they're being deported in less than a week. A heartbreaking journey through anger, fear and grief as one struggles to accept his fate. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/ thiswayout

TREFFPUNKT by Natalie Lifson

Directed by Eric Grayson

Featuring: Gregory Cioffi, Sara Parcesepe, John Leinung, Maxim Swinton, Inna Swinton, Jon McHatton, Jeremy Lister, Jaime Arciniegas

Richard, a WWII veteran struggling with PTSD, discovers that the future may not be so dim after all when he meets Henry, a WWI veteran, and his daughter Cathy. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/ treffpunkt

CHEESECAKE by Nadia Asencio

Directed by Nadia Asencio

Featuring: Amilcar Javier, Rick Calvo, Alaska Caleo, Malinda Logan

Dining hell ensues as two best friends struggle with the elephant in the room. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/ cheesecake

THE UNSPOKEN 200 by Ehinomen Okojie

Directed by Jonathan Downey

Featuring: Devin Kessler and Ehinomen Okojie

The world mourned for a few days, but these women will mourn for eternity. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/ theunspoken200

LITTLE INVISIBLE BACKPACKS by Magdalena Cychowski

Directed by Magdalena Cychowski

Featuring: John Dimino, Connor Gressitt, Jennifer Parkhill

Losing a parent is an earth-shattering event. When Jake learns that his family has been forging letters he believed he was receiving from his mother (written before she passed), he must learn to forgive, rebuild and heal in the face of his grief. Little Invisible Backpacks

Program C:

Saturday, July 29th at 5pm & Sunday, July 30th at 2pm

TELL ME YOUR CRAZY by Jason Kurtz

Directed by Brett Douglas

Featuring: Alexandra Berenbaum and Jesse Pimentel

Frank, a young businessman, thinks it's clever to ask his date how she is crazy. He discovers that sometimes you get what you wish for, and wish you hadn't. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/ tellmeyourcrazy

KETCHUP OR MUSTARD by Lior Almagor

Directed by Lior Almagor

Featuring: Kelsey Lea Jones and Galia Barkol

Two women are waiting for a life-altering decision. What begins as a random encounter between strangers turns into a brave friendship that would change the way they perceive the world, each other, and themselves. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/ketchupormustard

TRAIL MIX by Patrick Sherrard

Directed by Patrick Sherrard

Featuring: Laura Sweeney and Michael Mingoia

The first time taking a new path can change your journey forever. https://vimeo.com/ondemand/ trailmix

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Nicknamed "The American Idol for playwrights," the Strawberry One-Act Festival has been presenting New York premieres and world premieres of short theatrical works submitted for competition from across the country. Since 1995, it has produced over 1,500 one-act plays. Strawberry Festival actor alumni includes Jesse Eisenberg, Chazz Palminteri, Ato Essandoh (2016 Jason Bourne/ HBO's Vinyl/Elementary), Ving Rhames (2016 Bastards/Mission Impossible) and Chance Kelly (NBC's Aquarius/American Sniper). Among the playwrights presenting their work in this year's competition are pianist and performing composer Neil Wolfe and a two-time Emmy nominated producer Michael Selditch (Queer Eye for a Straight Guy).

The Riant Theatre (formerly The Black Experimental Theatre) was founded by Artistic Director, Van Dirk Fisher in 1979 as a not-for-profit organization with the mission of providing a nurturing environment to develop new plays and outstanding artists - particularly for the African-American Playwrights facing limited access to resources for developing and presenting their work. Through the years, The Riant has extended its mission of furthering the understanding between the races by celebrating diversity through theatre. By 1991, the theatre company expanded to a loft in Tribeca and was renamed The Riant Theatre. Since 1995, it has been producing and presenting the Strawberry One-Act Festival. The Riant (which means merriment and laughter in French) has grown to become a place where artists - singers, writers, actors, directors, musicians, and visual artists - can come together to collaborate on new works and share ideas.

The Riant Theatre has a strong youth mentoring program, which provides internships for teenagers and college students interested in the arts. Besides THE STRAWBERRY ONE-ACT FESTIVAL (usually presented twice a year, in February/March and July/August), its current programs include THE CORE PROJECT, an ongoing intensive workshop for writers, directors and actors to develop new plays and present them in stage readings; NEW PLAY READING SERIES, in which plays are read before an invited audience and followed by a question and answer session with the playwright and artists; and MUSICAL THEATRE WORKSHOP for students, in which they learn Broadway, gospel and classical style songs under the guidance of theatre professionals and work on scenes and choreography that will lead to a performance. Visit www.therianttheatre.com for more information.

Van Dirk Fisher, the Founder and Artistic Director of The Riant Theatre and the Strawberry One-Act Festival, has spent his career nurturing and inspiring New York City's emerging actors and playwrights. A native of Brooklyn, he performed on stage and screen since his early years and later has studied acting at SUNY Purchase. In 1979, dismayed by the limited opportunities for African Americans in theatre, he founded the Black Experimental Theatre.

"I wanted to provide stories that covered the economic, social and political progression of the African American," says Fisher. "I thought it was important for us as people of color to produce and tell our own stories and not be dependent on somebody else to tell our stories for us," he further explains.

For his accomplishments with The Riant Theatre, Van Dirk Fisher received the 2009 AUDELCO Special Achievement Award. As an actor, Fisher has appeared in several plays, commercials and voiceovers. He is also a director and a published novelist and playwright. As a TV producer, he created and produced Who's Got Game?, a reality improv game show. Currently, Fisher is working on a reality show version of the Strawberry One-Act Festival.

Pictured: SICK AND TIRED Diane L. Parker as Fannie Lou Hamer. Photo by Rich Kowalski.