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WGLT's The Leadoff is everything you need to know for Thursday, June 16. Normal City Manager Pam Reece says the Town needs extra money from the federal government to offset the impact of inflation on the Uptown Underpass project. Ariele Jones talks to Heartland Theater Company managing director Gail Dobbins about its 10-minute play festival, running each weekend in June.
Heartland Theatre Company Managing Director Gail Dobbins, left, and past president Sandi Zielinski.
The weather is getting warmer. The days are getting longer. The pandemic seems to finally be turning a corner. Maybe you’re thinking of getting back out there and finding something new and exciting to kick off the summer.
Well you’re in luck: the Heartland Theatre Company is set to debut “Hot Shorts,” a festival of five, fresh 10-minute plays for your viewing pleasure, starting at 7 p.m. May 23 on its YouTube channel.
Theater Managing Director Gail Dobbins said tight deadlines from writing to rehearsing helped really spice things up.
Heartland Theater
Every theater has had to find its way to reach audiences during the pandemic. For Heartland Theater Company, that includes reaching into its own past.
Taking full advantage of its YouTube page, Heartland has been uploading videos culled from past 10-Minute Play Festivals. The festival is a yearly competition that draws short plays from playwrights all over the world.
Dubbed “10-Minute Plays from Better Days,” the YouTube series each week highlights a different play from the festival that was established in 2002. Fortunately, the plays have always been recorded, so the theater had plenty of material from which to choose.