Gablestage in Coral Gables was hit doubly hard in spring, 2020. The coronavirus pandemic struck at just around the time the theater was preparing to mount its production of Arthur Miller鈥檚 鈥淭he Price.鈥�
Then, they lost the man who was the driving force behind Gablestage for 20 years. Joseph Adler died in April after an 18-month battle with cancer. He was Gablestage鈥檚 Producing Artistic Director 鈥� which meant he not only handled most of the day-to-day operations, but he was largely responsible for choosing the thought-provoking plays that would become the theater鈥檚 trademark.
Despite the challenges -- and the heartbreak -- the theater has not turned back from its mission of presenting cutting-edge pieces.
Through Sept. 25, Gablestage will present , a series of online world-premiere projects, selected through a commissioning grant process. The theater granted eight awards ranging from $1,500 to $3,000. The artists were tasked with creating short-form digital content true to Gablestage鈥檚 tradition of confronting 鈥渢oday鈥檚 issues and ideas.鈥�
A few of the pieces deal directly with the psychological and societal effects of the pandemic -- like 鈥淚ntimate/Internet, by Brandon Urrutia and Michael Yawney (premiering Friday, Aug. 14). It鈥檚 about a young man searching for love on the internet, after moving back to his parents鈥� home during COVID-19 lockdown. Can one find true intimacy online when the only decent Wi-Fi is in Mom鈥檚 kitchen?
The rest of the plays explore other themes likely to resonate with South Florida audiences. Like Rachel Finley鈥檚 鈥淎merican Bullet,鈥� which premieres Sept. 4. The solo show was born of every parent鈥檚 worst nightmare; Finley鈥檚 son was a student at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School at the time of the 2018 shooting.
In one of his last interviews, the late Joseph Adler was asked what Gablestage does. He responded that he wanted theater-goers to get in their cars after the show, go to a restaurant and argue about it. The people who run Gablestage see no reason to soften that ethos.
鈥淵ou want to tackle the hard issues,鈥� says director Margaret Ledford, who鈥檚 been curating entries for ENGAGE@GableStage. 鈥淭heater allows you to ask yourself the hard questions. And evaluate it and grow.鈥�
IF YOU GO (ONLINE): ENGAGE@GableStage
The online pieces premiere 7 p.m. every Friday through Sept. 25 on . The premieres are free to watch 鈥� and the shows remain free for viewers on the site thereafter.
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This interview is part of 鈥淚ntermission,鈥� a 港澳天下彩series looking at how South Florida鈥檚 arts community is coping during the COVID-19 pandemic.
If you鈥檝e got a story for us, please send an email to 鈥渢alk to us at wlrnnews dot org鈥�, with the word 鈥淚ntermission鈥� in the subject line.
