I’m normally not a fan of watching an anthology of short plays, but attending the opening night of Towne Street Theatre’s In Response was a most pleasant surprise as there were some exceptionally strong short plays that truly stood out.
Most notably, this is the first Equity production I’ve seen in Los Angeles that directly addresses the occupation and most current genocide in Palestine and our country’s role in its complicity.
Towne Street Theatre (TST) proudly presents In Response — a theatre festival unlike any other. Returning for its seventh year at the prestigious Stella Adler Academy of Acting and Theatre in Hollywood, In Response is a collection of short performances that respond to today’s urgent events, social issues, and personal experiences through compelling plays and other performing arts mediums. This year’s festival’s theme is RISE UP! It continues a seven-year tradition of offering playwrights, directors, actors, and other performing artists a dynamic platform to respond to today’s urgent events, social issues, and personal experiences. Ranging from touching drama to laugh-out-loud comedy, the show reveals historical events and how they shape our current society, calls us to act in the face of threats to our democracy, and reminds us that – regardless of who we are or where we come from – we are all one.
To preface this review, Towne Street Theatre had an open call for playwrights and directors for this Equity production, which means they took a chance on having some of their short plays be written and directed by unknown & up-and-coming artists to have their works be seen. While there were definitely veterans who added their experience in this year’s festival, some of the more powerful pieces were crafted by those who have yet to experience their works be seen in the professional theatre realm.
Photo by Vincent Ybanez
The short plays that were in this year’s In Response festival are as follows:
We Are the People
A song by: John Tierney
Directed by: Michael A. Shepperd
Frederick Douglass – Unexpected 1884
A short play by: Stephen Blackburn
Directed by: Kimba Henderson
A reflection on the historical stresses that the leaders of the civil rights and women’s rights
movements faced early in their fights.
Rumblings
A short play by: Kimba Henderson
Directed by: Kimba Henderson
Tackles the question of how we treat traitors to our country.
nothings
Spoken word by: E Talley II
Directed by: RJ Wayne
A call to action and a request to remember that what once seemed only a dream came true, and
without question, can live again.
The Right to Life!
A short play by: Shanelle Darlene
Director: Phone Tha & RJ Wayne
A story about the game that is America—one of violence, oppression and struggles – sugar-
coated with plastic and TV show lights.
A New America
A monologue by: Reginald Edmund
Directed by: Michael A. Shepperd
A reflection on what is happening in the world today.
Hold the Line
Spoken Word by: Sharon Langley
Directed by: RJ Wayne
A poem that speaks about the history of resistance in the face of voter suppression and
intimidation.
A Gentile Mensch
A short play by: Anita Yellin Simons
Directed by: Raf Mauro
It takes courage to speak truth to power. And sometimes, you win.
Kingdom of Heaven
A short play by: Rich Rubin
Directed by: Veronica Thompson
A priest and his immigrant parishioner confront the new American reality.
For the Love of D’Artagnan
A short play by: Roland Rusinek
Directed by: Veronica Thompson & Karis Clark
A speculative fiction piece with queer themes and suppression of the press in a post-Trumpian
America.
Photo by Vincent Ybanez
Out of the ten short plays, The Right To Life!, A New America, and Kingdom of Heaven stood out the most in terms of their storyline ambition, acting, writing, and direction. With The Right To Life!, it is the most ambitious one by creating a The Purge-like scenario mixed with a TV game show, thus creating a horror atmosphere that unfortunately mirrors our current situation. Josh Loren handles the challenging task of being the schizophrenic game show host as the literal embodiment of the United States that is both eerily cheesy and terrifying and switches between the two constantly with aplomb.
But it is with Paula Helena, Nina Kasuya, and Noreen Quadir that anchors the play as the terrified contestants. In the character that Quadir plays, this is the first Los Angeles Equity theatre production that addresses Palestine in such a direct way that there were audible gasps in the audience. Even well after two years of the most current genocide committed by Israel, this city and its theatre world still has a difficult time putting up productions that are willing to talk about it. So a huge shoutout to the playwright Shanelle Darlene and its directors Phone Tha and RJ Wayne for bringing this harrowing piece to life and to Towne Street Theatre for having the courage to put it up.
Photo by Vincent Ybanez
Paula Helena returns in the short play Kingdom of Heaven (written by Rich Rubin and directed by Veronica Thompson) that in a way feels like the continued story of The Right To Life! as both her characters are Latinos on the run from ICE. And in each, Helena brings the house down in the sheer rawness of her emotions that she conveys with such ferocity and vulnerability with this latter piece as Carla showcasing her range in full. Brock Jones excels as the caring and steadfast pastor. Although she didn’t perform on opening night, credit to Jacqueline Castañeda must also be given as she performs the Carla role on Sundays.
Perhaps what is the most successful and polished one out of the festival is A New America, a monologue written by Reginald Edmund, directed by Michael A. Shepperd, and performed with such masterful grace by Parnell Damone Marcano. The monologue may also be the most nuanced in terms of accomplishing its task of addressing the current situation in the United States in terms of racism while also bringing in the real humanity with a story that weaves the price of success for a Black man, community, and the most elusive commodity of all, hope.
For my first time watching a show at Towne Street Theatre, I was elated to learn about another African American theatre company in Los Angeles and that this collection of short plays was willing to take a huge chance by opening up their submissions. From this, some exceptional materials came forth with the aforementioned three worthy of the price of admission alone.
Dates: Now through November 2, 2025
Thursdays-Saturdays at 8pm, and Sundays at 3pm.
Thursdays are film nights, and Fridays through Sundays are theatre performances.
No show on Halloween.
Location: Stella Adler Academy of Acting & Theatre, 6773 Hollywood Blvd,
Hollywood, CA 90028
Tickets and reservation info can be found here.